Chapter 5 Topic 3: Ethical Principles of Confucianism

Nominal Duration: 1 hour

Learning Outcomes:
Upon completion of this topic, the student must be able to:
1. contextualize Confucian principles into the contemporary time
2. identify and explain the ethical principles of Confucianism.
3. apply Confucian principles into societal aspects.

Introduction

Confucian ethics focuses on reciprocity (the golden rule) and the innateness
of the four great virtues: humaneness, righteousness (or justice), propriety and
wisdom. The structure of human relationships particularly the family provides an
idealized model for all other relationships. Confucius (n.d.) fought against the concept
of a feudal society, seeking a way to structure the society so that the positions of
responsibility were occupied by the “superior moral man”: A revolutionary idea, both
in his and our times.

In Confucianism, both the man and the society in which he lives are a small part
of the universe. The universe is immersed in an order, in a harmony. Any attempt to
break this harmony creates troubles.

Biographical Details

K‘ung Fu-Tsze, “the philosopher K‘ung,” (n.d.), whose name has been Latinized
into Confucius, was born in the year 550 (or 551) BC. His father, Shuh-liang Heih was
an officer in charge of the district of Tsow in the State of Lu and had been famous for
his strength and daring; he was of the K‘ung family and lineally descended from
Hwang-Ti, an almost legendary character of ancient China.

Confucius was married, in accordance with Chinese custom, at nineteen and

accepted public employment as a keeper of stores and later as superintendent of parks
and herds. At twenty-two, however, he commenced his life-work as a teacher, and
gradually a group of students, eager to be instructed in the classics and in conduct
and government, gathered about him.

He was a contemporary of Lao-tsze, the founder of Taoism, who, however, was

of the next previous generation. Confucius is said to have had several interviews with
him about 517 BC. Up to the age of fifty-two, he was not much in public life. He was
then made chief magistrate of the city of Chung-tu, which so thrived and improved
under his care, that the Duke of Lu appointed him minister of crime which resulted in
a great reduction of wrongdoing. The Duke accepting a present of female musicians
and giving himself over to dissipation, Confucius withdrew and wandered among the
various states, giving instruction as opportunity offered. He was fifty-six when he set
forth on his wanderings; it was thirteen years before he returned to Lu. In 479 BC,
Confucius died at the age of seventy-two. He was buried in the K‘ung cemetery outside
the gates of K‘iuh-fow, where most of his descendants, said to number more than forty

141
thousand, still live. His tomb is yet preserved and is annually visited by vast numbers
of his followers.

The Five Basic Relationships (n.d.)

A final ancient (Shang Dynasty) influence that shaped Confucian thought is

ancestor worship. Under Confucian influence, primitive rituals of ancestor worship,
however, evolve into the central Confucian virtue of Filial Piety: respect for ancestors,
parents, and elders generally. More specifically, within the context of the broad
principles of Li and the prime virtue of Ren, the ideal Confucian person (Jun-zi) is
further defined in terms of idealized social relationships that include a “natural”
hierarchy that is part of (all) social relations.

Five Relationships: Distinctive Virtues:

 Father and son (Parent and child)
 Husband and wife
 Elder brother (sibling) and younger
 Ruler and minister/subject
 Friend and friend
– affection, filial piety/respect
– separate gendered roles
– order, propriety
– righteousness, justice, loyalty
– faithfulness, fidelity

These five basic relationships are the natural social relationships that
essentially constitute human social life. The traditional Five Core Relationships are
strongly gendered leaving out daughters and sisters, and including only wives. The
first relationship can be expanded to Parent-Child and third can be recast as Siblings,
but the husband-wife relationship is clearly conceived as defined in gendered terms.
Altering it to Spouse-Spouse is thus a substantial change, and thus it will receive a
more substantial discussion below. Internal to each relationship are specific roles,
responsibilities and virtues that are based directly on the nature of the particular
relationship:

Parent and Child: A parent owes a child affection and care, an education that
promotes intellectual and moral development; a child owes a parent obedience,
respect, and care in old age and after death. The parent-child relationship naturally
and spontaneously includes an emotional bond of love. The authority of the parent is
rooted in wisdom and aimed at the good of the child. A child’s respect for parents, and
family elders, is essential to social order and virtue. Filial Piety is thus the core virtue
that defines and shapes most of one’s life. (Filial piety includes respect for one’s
ancestors and in classical Confucian thought is clearly related to the more ancient
tradition of ancestor worship.)

Husband and Wife: The husband is to lead, provide for, and protect the family;
and the wife is to maintain the household and defer to her husband. The family is led
by the father. Gender relations involved ritualized and clearly defined female
subordination, and this leads to a cultural preference for sons over daughters. The
ideal Confucian woman is deferential, silent, and, of course, fertile. Her virtues are
inner strength, forbearance, and a calm restraint.

Siblings: The older brother/sibling is to look after the younger and to help the
younger to obey and internalize his social roles and to fit well into the overall life of the
community. The younger supports, shows deference, and respects the older.

142
 Ruler and Subject: The ruler is like a benevolent parent and the subjects owe
obedience and loyalty. Unlike the parent-child relation, the natural bond is not affection
and love; instead, it is a sense of justice and righteousness. Since the Rule of Law
cannot be arbitrary or lawless, the subject should be able to respectful express dissent
when appropriate. Ideally the Ruler should command obedience by example rather
than by coercion and force. The resort to force always signifies failure. If the state is
well ordered and the ruler is upright, obedience is natural. “Lead the people with
administrative injunctions and put them in their place with penal law, and they will avoid
punishments but will be without a sense of shame. Lead them with excellence and put
them in their place through roles and ritual practices, and in addition to developing a
sense of shame, they will order themselves harmoniously.” Rulers should always pick
the most able, virtuous and qualified to succeed them, and not their own eldest sons
or family members. In this case, State piety is higher than any filial obligation.

Friendship: Mutual loyalty aimed at mutual virtue is the essential virtue of

friendship. Friendship is based in virtue and contributes to self-development. Friends
are akin to brothers: “When at home, you have your brothers; when abroad, you have
your friends”. “For men with no brothers, there are none who have established
themselves who have not had friends to help them.” “True friendship is a plant of slow
growth, and must undergo and withstand the shocks of adversity”.

The Five Fundamental Principles

1. Education, Ritual (Li): “Study as if you never learned enough as if you were afraid
to forget what you have learned.” Analects.

2. Humanity (Ren): “Self-control and insistence on rites are what will result in
Benevolence (Ren). Benevolence comes from yourself, not from others.” “Ren is
to love others.”

3. Superior Man (Jun zi): “The superior man is centred on justice, the vulgar in the
benefit.”

4. Power (Te): “Te is the power by which men are governed.”The right thing is not
implanted in society or by force or by law, but by the influence of people admired
and respected. If the leader is inept, society does not work.

5. The Arts of Peace (Wen): “Let the will be set on the path of duty. Let every
attainment in what is good be firmly grasped. Let perfect virtue be accorded with.
Let relaxation and enjoyment be found in the polite arts”

143
Ethical Principles of Confucianism

Reciprocity in the Analects

In these passages, Confucius expresses versions of the Golden Rule.

Chung-Kung asked about humaneness (jen), and the Master

said: ‘When going about, behave to each person as if you were meeting
an esteemed guest; employ people as if you were assisting at a great
ceremony. Do not do to others what you would want them to do to you.
Then there will be no resentment against you in the country or in your
family.’ Chung-Kung replied ‘Though I am no genius, I’ll try and put your
teaching into practice.’ Tzu-kung asked ‘Is there one word which can
express the essence of right conduct in life?’ K’ung replied: ‘It is the word
shu – reciprocity: Do not do to others what you do not want them to do
to you.’

The Innateness of the Four Great Virtues: Mencius

The four virtues here referred to are: humaneness, righteousness (or justice),
propriety and wisdom – sum up the Confucian ethics. Mencius argues here that their
roots are in human nature. Thus, virtue is human nature properly expressed.

Meng said: ‘All men are such that they cannot bear seeing each
other suffer. The kings of old had this kind of compassion and it governed
their policy. One could easily rule the whole world with attitudes like that:
it would be like turning it round in the palm of the hand. I say that men
are like that because anyone seeing a child fall into a well would have a
feeling of horror and distress. They don’t feel this out of sympathy for the
parents, or to gain a reputation among friends and neighbors, or for fear
of being considered unfeeling. Not to feel the distress would be against
human nature. Similarly, not to feel shame and disgrace and not to feel
respect for others and not to have a sense of right and wrong are
contrary to human nature. The feeling of distress is the beginning of
humaneness; the feeling of shame is the beginning of righteousness; the
feeling of respect is the beginning of propriety; and the feeling of right
and wrong is the beginning of wisdom.

Teaching and Learning Activities

Class Discussion
1. How do Confucians see the relationship between self and others?
2. How do you summarize the ethical teachings of Confucius?
3. How is virtuous behaviour described in Confucianism?
4. What are the main differences between a noble man and a poor man?
5. How should each of the main virtues manifest itself in Confucius’ concept of ideal
ruling?

144
Activity 1
Direction: The students are grouped (ten groups with five members each). Each group
is required to choose one (1) Confucian saying to be written in a calligraphy form to
be place in an A4 bond paper and translate those words into current ideas.

Activity 2
Direction: Students choose three quotes from Confucius. Create and decorate a poster
with two (2) columns:
 Write the three quotes in a column that is labeled “Confucius says…”
 Paraphrase (put into your own words) the three quotes in a column that is
labelled “(Your Name) says…”
 Add a picture(s) to each column.

Assessment Task
Reaction Paper

Name: _________________________ Course & Year: _______________

I. How do you relate Confucian principles to politics for the improvement of

governance in the Philippines? Justify your claim. (15 points)
________________________________________________________________

________________________________________________________________

________________________________________________________________

________________________________________________________________

________________________________________________________________

________________________________________________________________

________________________________________________________________

________________________________________________________________

________________________________________________________________

________________________________________________________________

________________________________________________________________

________________________________________________________________

________________________________________________________________

________________________________________________________________

________________________________________________________________

145
Assessment Task:
Reflection Paper

Name: _________________________ Course & Year: _______________

I. Could Confucianism provide a philosophical basis for developing business

ethics for today’s corporations? Explain why you said so. (15 points)

________________________________________________________________

________________________________________________________________

________________________________________________________________

________________________________________________________________

________________________________________________________________

________________________________________________________________

________________________________________________________________

________________________________________________________________

________________________________________________________________

________________________________________________________________

________________________________________________________________

________________________________________________________________

Learning Resources

Confucius, (n.d.). http://en.reingex.com/Confucianism-Ethics.shtml

Confucius, (n.d.). Confucius: The ethics of Confucius. https://oll.libertyfund.
org/titles/confucius-the-ethics-of-confucius
Confucius (March 31, 2020) https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/confucius/
Five Basic Relationships, (n.d.). Confucian Ethics and the limits of rights theory.
https://www.bates.edu/philosophy/files/2010/07/GME-Ch.-III-
Confucian-Medical-Ethics.pdf
Smart, N. & Hecht, R. D. (Ed.). (1982). Sacred texts of the world: A universal
anthology. New York: The Crossroad Publishing Company.
The main concepts of Confucianism (n.d.) https://philosophy.lander.
edu/oriental/main.html

146