Oct. 19, 2009
Art 173
Chinese Ideas about Life And Death
Qin (221-206 BCE)
Han (206 BCE – 220 CE)
Daoism
goal is to come into balance with nature argues against exerting effort to influence nature (and that includes human nature)
“Occult”
Hun and Po
Zhu Village tomb (2nd c. CE)
Liu Sheng’s tomb in Mancheng (died 113 BCE)
Mawangdui, near Changsha; Tomb of Marquis of Dai and wife and son (about
170 BCE)
Confucius (6th c. BCE)
Junzi (gentleman)
Ren (benevolence)
Li (propriety, ritual)
“If a ruler himself is upright, all will go well without orders. But if he himself is
not upright, even though he gives orders, they will not be obeyed.”
“Nowadays a filial son is just a man who keeps his parents with food. But even dogs or horses are given food. If there is no feeling of reverence, wherein lies the difference?”
Tomb Lintel with Two Men, 1st c. CE. Museum of Fine Arts, Boston
Lolang Basket (1st – 2nd c. CE)
Legalism |
Confuciansim |
man is selfish |
man essentially good |
need to control |
need to encourage |
Laws |
Morals |
Rewards and punishments |
Examples |
centralization necessary for consistency |
hierarchical order – relationships |
Scholars detested because threat to authoritarian ideology of state |
encourage study – especially history for examples |