Rujia Discussion Questions: The Analects of Kongzi and the Book of Mengzi
KONGZI
1. Consider: What is rujia (the school of the erudites or scholars), and why is it called “Confucianism” in the west? How do the writings attributed to Kongzi differ from popular ideas about “Confucianism”?
2. It is common to condemn those who are “judgmental” in our culture. Kongzi often makes judgments about the character of others (Books 5-6) based on their actions and behavior. Is Kongzi’s practice of judging others defensible? If you condemn Kongzi for condemning others, are you contradicting yourself? Is it unacceptable, acceptable, or necessary to make judgments about the character of others? Why might judgment, approval and disapproval, be necessary to ethics and moral life?
3. Kongzi seems to care a great deal about violations and misuses of rituals (Book 3). Why should one care about such a thing (17:21.)? What are criticisms and defenses of the importance of ritual and ritual propriety (li) in Kongzi? Is ritual or social propriety too rigid or why might it be necessary to ethical life?
4. What is Kongzi’s view on profit or benefiting oneself in 4:2, 4:8, 4:9, 4:16? Is it wrong to benefit oneself and aim at profit? Is the virtuous life profitable and in one’s self-interest?
5. Does Kongzi allow for social change and, if so, under what conditions? What do passages 3:17, 4:18, 4:20, 7:1, 9:3 imply about whether change can be good?
6. Commentators read Analects 13:3 in the light of 6:25 and 12:11. Discuss how the latter two passages shed light on what is meant by the “rectification of names.” How might Mengzi 1B8 be an illustration of this?
7. Read Analects 9:29 and think carefully about it. Do you think that it is possible for a person to have the virtues that Kongzi describes in this passage? Why or why not?
8. The Odes (The Book of Songs) was already an ancient and respected classic by Kongzi’s time. Why does Kongzi regard the Odes as so important? How does he use it in passages such as 1:15, 2:2, 3:8, 8:8, 13:5, and 16:13? How is not studying the Odes “like standing with your face to the wall” (17:10)?
9. In Analects 13:18, Kongzi expresses a view (sometimes called “graded love”) that will become characteristic of Erudites for the next 2,500 years: we should have greater concern for, and have a greater ethical obligation toward, those who are bound to us by personal ties such as kinship than we do to strangers or to impersonal rules. Soon after Kongzi, Mozi and his followers would argue against this for “universal love.” Do you agree with Kongzi or Mozi about this?
11. The later Erudite Mengzi will say that human nature is good, while Xunzi will say that it is evil. Still others (like Gaozi, see Mengzi 6A1 ff.) will say that human nature is neither good nor evil. Does Kongzi have a view on this topic? Which view of human nature is most consistent with Kongzi’s general views on education and governing as seen in passages such as Analects 5:13 and 17:2?
12. Analects 4:15 is one of the most studied and discussed passages in the text. Kongzi says that his Way (dao) is “unified by one guiding principle,” yet Zengzi mentions two things. Why is this? Notice that Kongzi is not present when Zengzi explains his understanding of what the Master had said. Has Zengzi really understood Kongzi’s message? Do you agree with Zengzi’s interpretation? Compare 5:12, 5:19, 6:30, 12:2, and 15:24.
13. A beautiful and interesting passage in the Analects is 11:26. What does it suggest about Kongzi’s conception of “the good life”? How does this conception of the good life differ from those of other philosophies?
14. Kongzi emphasized several themes that became characteristic of much of Chinese culture over the next 2,500 years: the importance of family, tradition, ritual, education, and ethical cultivation. Can you find at least one passage from the Analects to illustrate each of these themes? How are these themes related to one another?
15. It has been said that some ethical philosophers emphasize moral rules, others emphasize producing the best consequences, and yet others stress cultivating good character. In what group or groups does Kongzi belong?
16. We have been treating the Analects as if it could all be reliably attributed to Kongzi. But many passages are attributed to followers of Kongzi, who disagreed among themselves about what the views of the Master were as in 19:12. Scholars now know that many portions of the Analects are much later than the time of Kongzi. In particular, Books 16-20 have long been identified as quite late. The translator Arthur Waley suggested that Books 3-9, minus the sayings of disciples, may represent the earliest portion of the text. Try reading only Books 3-9. How (if at all) do the teachings of Kongzi seem different if you focus only on this stratum of the text?
17. If you have read some Western philosophy, in what ways and to what extent does the Analects seem different from it? In particular, how does it differ in its style of writing, methodology, underlying assumptions, and conclusions? Was Kongzi a philosopher?
MENGZI
18. The Song Dynasty commentator Zhu Xi says of Mengzi, 1A1, “The gentleman never fails to desire profit, but if one single-mindedly thinks of profit there will be harm. If there is only benevolence and righteousness, then one will not seek profit but will never fail to profit.” In your own words, explain how Zhu Xi interprets Mengzi 1A1 and why you agree or disagree with Zhu Xi’s interpretation.
19. Compare what Mengzi says in this passage with Analects 4:2, 4:12, and 4:16. How, if at all, do Mengzi and Kongzi differ regarding profit?
20. What do you make of Mengzi’s comment in 1A7 that “gentlemen keep their distance from the kitchen”? Is this hypocritical or ironical? Are there any occupations in our own society that we regard as necessary, but would not want everyone (and, in particular, those making policy decisions or perhaps ourselves) to perform?
21. “Hence, Your Majesty’s not being a genuine king is due to not acting; it is not due to not being able.” What does Mengzi mean by this? Why does he think that it is true? Why does Mengzi believe that the king’s display of compassion toward the ox shows that he is capable of showing compassion to his own people? Does Mengzi 7A45 help clarify this and is Mengzi’s claim persuasive?
22. Scholars debate whether Mengzi is appealing to King Xuan to be consistent in his emotional reactions. In particular, one can argue that Mengzi is suggesting to the king that he ought to be compassionate toward his people in order to be consistent with his reaction to the ox. Explain why you agree or disagree with this interpretation.
23. A key term in this passage is “extending,” tui; “That in which the ancients greatly exceeded others was no other than this. They were simply good at extending what they did.” What does Mengzi mean by “extending” here and in comparison with 7B31? Tui is also a term from Mohist dialectics meaning “getting someone to grant what that person has not accepted when it is the same as something that that person does accept.” How might the Mohist usage be relevant to how tui functions in Mengzi 1A7? Is it relevant that Mengzi uses other words meaning “to extend”?
24. How might passage 1B5 be read as an application of the Confucian notion of shu (mutuality or reciprocity)? How does it compare to Kongzi in Analects 4.15? Why is shu so important in the thought of rujia?
25. We can contrast Gaozi, Mengzi, and Zhuangzi in terms of their attitudes toward doctrines, the heart, and the qi. Gaozi says that we should not seek for in our hearts what we do not get from doctrines. Does this mean that we should seek nothing from our hearts, or only that there are things we can get from doctrines that we cannot get from our hearts? What is it that Mengzi thinks we can get from our hearts that we cannot get from doctrines? Why might Mengzi think that doctrines are not always adequate sources of guidance? Does Mengzi 7B5 help clarify this? Why does Zhuangzi seem to think (p. 223) that both doctrines and one’s heart are inadequate?
26. What is the point of the “man from Song” story? What are the “grain” and “pulling on the grain” and “not weeding” metaphors for? How do Mengzi 2A6 and 6A7 compare?
27. In 2A6, Mengzi uses a “thought experiment” to convince us that any normal human has a “sprout” of benevolence. Is his thought experiment persuasive? Why or why not? What would Mengzi say about a sociopath based, for example, on 6A8? Why is it important that the reaction Mengzi describes occurs “suddenly”? In how many respects are our innate virtuous inclinations like sprouts? Mengzi seems to assume that if we have the “sprout” of benevolence, we will also have the sprouts of righteousness, propriety, and wisdom. But he does not offer any argument for this claim. Are there any good reasons to think that the presence of one virtue requires the others?
28. In 3A5, does the position of Yi Zhi (Yizi) differ in any important respect from that of the earlier Mohists (considering the view of human nature suggested by “Impartial Caring”)? In note 37, see one possible interpretation of what the “two roots” are. Do you agree with this interpretation, or can you think of a better one? Which of the two roots does Mengzi reject? Why does he reject it?
29. Why does Mengzi emphasize compassion for a corpse? How does Mengzi account for the origin of funeral rituals?Is his account plausible? Does this account actually provide any objection to a Mohist view on funerals? Why or why not? In the end, Yizi seems to admit that Mengzi has convinced him. Why? Discuss whether you think Mengzi has successfully argued against Yizi’s position.
30. In contemporary Western culture, we often say that we can never really know what a person is thinking, or what they are really like “inside.” Based on Mengzi 4A15 and 7B11, would Mengzi agree or disagree? Do you think Mengzi could be right about this?
31. In 5A9, how many traits of a wise person can you identify from this passage?
32. Passage 6A4-5 has been discussed at great length by commentators. What does it mean to describe a virtue as internal, as opposed to external? One possibility is that “internal” means innate, whereas “external” means socially conditioned. Another possibility is that an internal virtue requires having a particular feeling or emotion (e.g., love for a relative), whereas an external virtue requires simply acting in a certain manner. Try for yourself to find an interpretation that makes sense of what Mengzi, Gaozi, and their followers say here? Compare what Mengzi says about Gaozi in 2A2, p. 123.
33. In 6A6 and in 6A15, Mengzi uses the term “concentration.” This refers to a focusing of one’s attention. But focusing on what? Mengzi seems to think that we can focus our attention on the operation of our sprouts (i.e., we can become aware of and delight in the fact that we have feelings of compassion, or disdain to do certain things), and that this is one of the things that will help the sprouts to grow as in Mengzi 4A27.
34. In 6A10, Mengzi seems to be saying that we all have some situations in which we would disdain to do something because it was not righteous, such as the beggar refusing to accept contemptuous treatment. Consequently, although the term “sprout” does not occur here, is this an illustration of the sprout of righteousness referred to in 2A6?
35. Passages like 7A35 and 4B4 raise the issue of ethical dilemmas: cases in which, whatever one does, one must do something wrong. It seems to many people that genuine ethical dilemmas occur. However, some philosophers have denied that genuine dilemmas ever occur. Mengzi seems to think that it is always possible, if one is clever enough, to find a way to avoid doing wrong. Is the case Tao Ying describes a genuine ethical dilemma? Does the course of action Mengzi describes for Shun resolve the dilemma? Consider the same questions in 4B4.
36. In 7B37, what would be contemporary analogues of those who are “wild” or “squeamish” about ethical matters? And what would a contemporary “village worthy” be like?
37. Mengzi appeals to the notion of “human nature” in passages such as 6A6. By this he means the characteristics a human would have if raised in a healthy environment. He thinks that humans are naturally kind and have a sense of shame, but that we will not tend to manifest these natural characteristics if we are raised in an unhealthy environment, such as one where there is starvation (6A8, 7A27). Mengzi argues that it ought to make a difference to us whether a certain course of action violates our nature in 6A1 and 6A12. Do you think there is such a thing as human nature as Mengzi claims in 6A7? Should it make any difference to us whether something violates our nature? Why or why not?