Results for 'Xunzi'

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Bibliography: Xunzi in Asian Philosophy
  1. Xunzi’s Ritual Model and Modern Moral Education.Colin Joseph Lewis - 2021 - European Journal for Philosophy of Religion 13 (2):17-43.
    While the early Confucians were largely content to maintain the rituals of ancient kings as the core of moral education in their time, it is not obvious that contemporary humans could, or should, draw from the particulars of such a tradition. Indeed, even if one takes ritual seriously as a tool for cultivation, there remains a question of how to design moral education programs incorporating ritual. This essay examines impediments faced by a ritualized approach to moral education, how they might (...)
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  2. Xunzi, Dewey, and the Reinterpretation of Religion.Slater Michael R. - 2022 - Journal of Confucian Philosophy and Culture 38:91-129.
    This paper compares the naturalistic interpretations of religion offered by the Chinese Confucian philosopher Xunzi (c. 310-219 BCE) and the American pragmatist philosopher John Dewey (1859-1952), and shows how each philosopher reconceived the nature of religious life in fundamentally non-supernatural, ethical, and therapeutic terms. While acknowledging that there are important differences between their respective views—especially on such matters as the nature and scope of ethical knowledge, the nature of ethics, and what form an ideal society will take—and that their (...)
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  3. Virtue and Virtuosity: Xunzi and Aristotle on the Role of Art in Ethical Cultivation.Lee Wilson - 2018 - Journal of Confucian Philosophy and Culture 30:75–103.
    Christian B. Miller has noted a “realism challenge” for virtue ethicists to provide an account of how the character gap between virtuous agents and non-virtuous agents can be bridged. This is precisely one of Han Feizi’s key criticisms against Confucian virtue ethics, as Eric L. Hutton argues, which also cuts across the Aristotelian one: appealing to virtuous agents as ethical models provides the wrong kind of guidance for the development of virtues. Hutton, however, without going into detail, notes that the (...)
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  4. Xunzi’s Ritual Program as a Response to Han Feizi’s Criticism of Confucianism.Colin J. Lewis - 2020 - Journal of Confucian Philosophy and Culture 34 (August):129-153.
    One of Han Feizi’s most subtle criticisms of Confucianism targets a central feature of its moral cultivation program, namely an appeal to modelling oneself on ancient sages. According to Han Feizi, this ideal of model emulation is doomed to failure due to imperfect knowledge of past exemplars, the fact that certain ideals of practice may not be applicable to (or catastrophic for) some practitioners, and the additional fact that one cannot always rely on past examples to provide good guidance for (...)
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  5. Harmonising with Heaven and Earth: Reciprocal Harmony and Xunzi's Environmental Ethics.Yi Jonathan Chua - 2022 - Environmental Values 31 (5):555-574.
    Xunzi's philosophy provides a rich resource for understanding how ethical relationships between humans and nature can be articulated in terms of harmony. In this paper, I build on his ideas to develop the concept of reciprocal harmony, which requires us to reciprocate those who make our lives liveable. In the context of the environment, I argue that reciprocal harmony generates moral obligations towards nature, in return for the existential debt that humanity owes towards heaven and earth. This can be (...)
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  6. Xunzi and Virtue Epistemology.Cheng-Hung Tsai - 2014 - Universitas: Monthly Review of Philosophy and Culture 41 (3):121-142.
    Regulative virtue epistemology argues that intellectual virtues can adjust and guide one’s epistemic actions as well as improve on the quality of the epistemic actions. For regulative virtue epistemologists, intellectual virtues can be cultivated to a higher degree; when the quality of intellectual virtue is better, the resulting quality of epistemic action is better. The intellectual virtues that regulative epistemologists talk about are character virtues (such as intellectual courage and open-mindedness) rather than faculty virtues (such as sight and hearing), since (...)
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  7. Xunzi and Han Fei on Human Nature.Alejandro Bárcenas - 2012 - International Philosophical Quarterly 52 (2):135-148.
    It is commonly accepted that Han Fei studied under Xunzi sometime during the late third century BCE. However, there is surprisingly little dedicated to the in-depth study of the relationship between Xunzi’s ideas and one of his best-known followers. In this essay I argue that Han Fei’s notion of xing, commonly translated as human nature, was not only influenced by Xunzi but also that it is an important feature of his political philosophy.
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  8. Is Xunzi’s Virtue Ethics Susceptible to the Problem of Alienation?James Harold - 2011 - Dao: A Journal of Comparative Philosophy 10 (1):71-84.
    In this essay I argue that if Kantian and consequentialist ethical theories are vulnerable to the so-called “problem of alienation,” a virtue ethics based on Xunzi’s ethical writings will also be vulnerable to this problem. I outline the problem of alienation, and then show that the role of ritual ( li ) in Xunzi’s theory renders his view susceptible to the problem as it has been traditionally understood. I consider some replies on Xunzi’s behalf, and also discuss (...)
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  9. Conformed by Praise: Xunzi and William of Auxerre on the Ethics of Liturgy.Jacob J. Andrews - 2022 - American Catholic Philosophical Quarterly 96 (1):113-136.
    The classical Confucian philosopher Xunzi proposed a naturalistic virtue ethics account of ritual: rituals are practices that channel human emotion and desire so that one develops virtues. In this paper I show that William of Auxerre’s Summa de Officiis Ecclesiasticis can be understood as presenting a similar account of ritual. William places great emphasis on the emotional power of the liturgy, which makes participants like the blessed in heaven by developing virtue. In other words, he has a virtue ethics (...)
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  10. Wittgenstein and the Xunzi on the Clarification of Language.Thomas D. Carroll - 2018 - Dao: A Journal of Comparative Philosophy 17 (4):527-545.
    Broadly speaking, language is part of a social activity in both Wittgenstein and Xunzi 荀子, and for both clarification of language is central to their philosophical projects; the goal of this article is to explore the extent of resonance and discord that may be found when comparing these two philosophers. While for Xunzi, the rectification of names (zhengming 正名) is anchored in a regard for establishing, propagating, and/or restoring a harmonious social system, perspicuity is for Wittgenstein represented as (...)
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  11. The idea of shan 善 (goodness): A neglected philosophical relation between Guodian’s ‘Wu xing’ and Xunzi.Fan He - 2024 - Asian Philosophy 34 (1):16-31.
    The ‘Wu xing’ belongs to Guodian bamboo slips texts, which were buried around 300 BCE and excavated in 1993. Its relation with Mengzi is widely investigated. Yet how it is philosophically related to Xunzi receives little attention. In this article, I illustrate a neglected relation between ‘Wu xing’ and Xunzi, by elucidating how shan 善 (goodness) is first raised in ‘Wu xing’ and developed by Xunzi into a concrete idea. Both ‘Wu xing’ and Xunzi propose that (...)
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  12. Confucianism and Totalitarianism: An Arendtian Reconsideration of Mencius versus Xunzi.Lee Wilson - 2021 - Philosophy East and West 71 (4):981-1004.
    Totalitarianism is perhaps unanimously regarded as one of the greatest political evils of the last century and has been the grounds for much of Anglo-American political theory since. Confucianism, meanwhile, has been gaining credibility in the past decades among sympathizers of democratic theory in spite of criticisms of it being anti-democratic or authoritarian. I consider how certain key concepts in the classical Confucian texts of the Mencius and the Xunzi might or might not be appropriated for ‘legitimising’ totalitarian regimes. (...)
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  13. Can Virtue Grow out of Vicious Human Nature? Xunzi’s Genealogy Reconstructed.Tang Yun - forthcoming - Philosophy East and West.
    Xunzi’s pessimistic understanding of human nature and his endorsement of the intrinsically valuable virtue of yi (義) put him in a vulnerable position. To defend this position, Xunzi needs to conquer what the essay calls “the compatibility problems,” the first of which concerns the compatibility between bad human nature and virtue, while the second is between Xunzi’s functional understanding of virtue and his understanding of virtue as possessing intrinsic value. If Xunzi’s moral philosophy were to fail (...)
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  14.  39
    Epistemic Competence and Agency in Sosa and Xunzi.Chris Fraser - 2022 - In Yong Huang (ed.), Ernest Sosa encountering Chinese philosophy: a cross-cultural approach to virtue epistemology. New York: Bloomsbury Academic. pp. 39-50.
    Knowledge is an achievement manifesting a type of competence, akin in important respects to a skill. Accordingly, epistemic judgment is an exercise of agency. Ernest Sosa’s work has elaborated these and related insights into a meticulous, persuasive version of a virtue epistemology. Given the framing assumptions of mid-twentieth century Anglo-American epistemology, developing a competence-centered explanation of judgment, knowledge, and justification required brilliant critical and creative thought. So it is intriguing and perhaps instructive to consider how some of Sosa’s views relate (...)
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  15.  91
    Truth and the way in Xúnzǐ.Chris Fraser - 2023 - Asian Journal of Philosophy 2 (1):1-17.
    This essay argues that the third-century BC Ruist “masters” text Xúnzǐ presents a sophisticated approach to semantics and epistemology in which a concern with truth is at best secondary, not central. Xúnzǐ’s primary concern is with identifying and applying the apt dào (way), which for him is a more fundamental concept that underwrites and explains truth claims. Dào refers to a way or path of personal and social conduct, covering prudential, esthetic, ethical, and political concerns. Xúnzǐ is primarily concerned with (...)
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  16.  53
    Ritualidade como virtude moral e intelectual: ética e epistemologia das virtudes desde Xunzi e Sosa.Matheus Oliva da Costa - 2023 - Anais de Filosofia Clássica 33:53-73..
    In this text, I propose that there is an intellectual virtue not yet recognized in debates within the epistemology of virtues: intellectual rituality. To elucidate this, I expose the relevance of rituality as a moral virtue within the virtue ethics of the Confucian tradition, highlight the formulation of rituality in the work of the philosopher Xúnzǐ 荀子, analyze the meaning of moral rituality, briefly describe central elements of Sosa’s virtue epistemology, and finally, based on Sosa, Tsai, and Xúnzǐ, formulate the (...)
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  17. On the View that People and Not Institutions Bear Primary Credit for Success in Governance: Confucian Arguments.Justin Tiwald - 2019 - Journal of Confucian Philosophy and Culture 32:65-97.
    This paper explicates the influential Confucian view that “people” and not “institutional rules” are the proper sources of good governance and social order, as well as some notable Confucian objections to this position. It takes Xunzi 荀子, Hu Hong 胡宏, and Zhu Xi 朱熹 as the primary representatives of the “virtue-centered” position, which holds that people’s good character and not institutional rules bear primary credit for successful governance. And it takes Huang Zongxi 黃宗羲 as a major advocate for the (...)
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  18. The Etiquette of Eating.Karen Stohr - 2018 - In Anne Barnhill, Mark Budolfson & Tyler Doggett (eds.), The Oxford Handbook of Food Ethics. Oxford University Press. pp. 700-721.
    This article explores and defends the idea that the etiquette conventions governing dinner parties, whether formal or informal, have moral significance. Their significance derives from the way that they foster and facilitate shared moral aims. I draw on literary and philosophical sources to make this claim, beginning with Isak Dineson's short story, Babette's Feast. I employ the concept of ritual from Confucius and Xunzi, as well as Immanuel Kant's detailed discussion of dinner parties in the Anthropology. Kant's account in (...)
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  19. Let the ruler be the ruler.Liam D. Ryan - 2022 - Asian Journal of Philosophy 2 (2).
    How should we understand the Confucian doctrine of the rectification of names (zhengming): what does it mean that an object’s name must be in accordance with its reality, and why does it matter? The aim of this paper is to answer this question by advocating a novel interpretation of the later Confucian, Xunzi’s account of the doctrine. Xunzi claims that sage-kings ascribe names and values to objects by convention, and since they are sages, they know the truth. When (...)
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  20. The Ji Self in Early Chinese Texts.Deborah A. Sommer - 2012 - In Jason Dockstader Hans-Georg Moller & Gunter Wohlfahrt (eds.), Selfhood East and West: De-Constructions of Identity. Traugott Bautz. pp. 17-45.
    The ji 己self is a site, storehouse, or depot of individuated allotment associated with the possession of things and qualities: wholesome and unwholesome desires (yu 欲) and aversions, emotions such as anxiety, and positive values such as humaneness and reverence. Each person's allotment is unique, and its "contents" are collected, measured, reflected on, and then distributed to others. The Analects, Mencius, Xunzi, Daodejing, and Zhuangzi each have their own vision for negotiating the space between self and other. Works as (...)
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  21. Conceptions of Knowledge in Classical Chinese Philosophy.Hui Chieh Loy & Daryl Ooi - forthcoming - In Kurt Sylvan, Ernest Sosa, Jonathan Dancy & Matthias Steup (eds.), The Blackwell Companion to Epistemology, 3rd edition. Wiley Blackwell.
    The paper discusses five conceptions of knowledge present in texts traditionally associated with the thought of such thinkers as Kongzi, Mozi, Mengzi, Xunzi, Laozi, Zhuangzi, and Hanfeizi. The first three maps onto conceptions of knowledge familiar to contemporary ears: skill knowledge (knowing-how), propositional knowledge (knowing-that) and objectual knowledge (knowing by acquaintance); while the next two map onto less commonly discussed conceptions of knowledge: motivational knowledge (knowing-to) and applied knowledge (knowing-how-to). The discussion aims to complement existing projects in the literature (...)
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  22.  56
    Paradoxes in the School of Names.Chris Fraser - 2020 - In Yiu-Ming Fung (ed.), Dao Companion to Chinese Philosophy of Logic. Dordrecht: Springer.
    In the Western philosophical tradition, the earliest recognized paradoxes are attributed to Zeno of Elea (ca. 490–430 B.C.E.) and to Eubulides of Miletus (fl. 4th century B.C.E.). In the Chinese tradition, the earliest and most well-known paradoxes are ascribed to figures associated with the “School of Names” (ming jia 名家), a diverse group of Warring States (479–221 B.C.E.) thinkers who shared an interest in language, logic, and metaphysics. Their investigations led some of these thinkers to propound puzzling, paradoxical statements such (...)
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  23.  89
    Representation in Early Chinese Philosophy of Language.Chris Fraser - 2021 - Philosophy East and West 71 (1):57-78.
    The major treatments of language in pre-Han texts—those of the Mohists and Xúnzǐ—directly address the representational functions of language. Both account for the use of words to represent objects and situations by appeal to social practices for distinguishing the same from different kinds of things and for associating names with things of the same kind. For these theorists, pragmatics explains semantics: shared norms governing the use of names fix reference and thus explain how names can represent objects and express thoughts. (...)
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  24. Can Xun Zi’s Proposition on “Establishing Ritual Practices in Accordwith Qing ” Be Validated?Chenyang Li - 2014 - 中国社会科学 35 (1):146-162.
    Wang Guowei expressed doubts about Xun Zi’s proposition on “establishing ritual practices in accord with qing,” arguing that it was in direct confict with the philosopher’s famous thesis that “human natural tendency is evil.” The word qing (情) has several connotations in the Xunzi: it may refer to factual truth (实情), sincerity (诚实) or emotions (情感). Readers of the Xunzi tend to view the emotional connotation of qing in a negative light, but in actuality qing as human emotions (...)
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  25. How remonstration fails: filial piety and reprehensible parents.Hagop Sarkissian - 2023 - Journal of Confucian Philosophy and Culture 40:109-131.
    Critics of Confucianism have long been concerned with its emphasis on filial piety (xiao 孝). Among the many traditional strictures of this concept are demands that children serve their parents vigilantly, to do so with the proper outward respect and demeanor, and to yield to parental wishes when personal desires come into conflict with them. Critics have found this problematic as an orientation not only toward one’s parents but also to authority figures more generally. One common response to such criticism (...)
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  26. Foundations of Ancient Ethics/Grundlagen Der Antiken Ethik.Jörg Hardy & George Rudebusch - 2014 - Göttingen, Germany: Vandenhoek.
    This book is an anthology with the following themes. Non-European Tradition: Bussanich interprets main themes of Hindu ethics, including its roots in ritual sacrifice, its relationship to religious duty, society, individual human well-being, and psychic liberation. To best assess the truth of Hindu ethics, he argues for dialogue with premodern Western thought. Pfister takes up the question of human nature as a case study in Chinese ethics. Is our nature inherently good (as Mengzi argued) or bad (Xunzi’s view)? Pfister (...)
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  27. Viewing Manners Through a Wider Lens.Karen Stohr - 2016 - Dao: A Journal of Comparative Philosophy 15 (2):273-290.
    I take up reflections on my book, On Manners, by Professors Van Norden, Cline, and Olberding. In response to Professor Van Norden, I further explain and defend my employment of Kant, arguing that Kantianism offers distinctive and valuable resources for thinking about manners. I suggest similarities between Kant and Xunzi 荀子. In response to Professor Cline, I take up the question of the developmental function of manners and explore in further detail the ways in which our social roles both (...)
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  28.  95
    On Equality of Outcomes in Pre-Qin Confucianism 先秦儒家的结果均等思想研究.Haixuan Pan - 2024 - Dissertation, East China Normal University
    Egalitarianism seeks equality, which can be divided into two types: equality of process and equality of outcome. However, equality of outcome has been criticized for neglecting responsibility and failing to maximize utility. While pre-Qin Confucianism did not directly address these criticisms, its philosophical ideas can be used to respond to them. Confucius’ idea of equality of outcome can be seen in several texts, such as his comparison of poverty and inequality, his different treatment of Zi Hua’s mother, and his opinion (...)
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  29. The debate between mencius and hsün-Tzu: Contemporary applications.Robert Elliott Allinson - 1998 - Journal of Chinese Philosophy 25 (1):31-49.
    This article takes one of the richest historical debates, that of Hsun-Tzu and Mencius, as the contextual starting-point for the elaboration of human goodness. In support of Mencius, this article develops additional metaphysical and bio-social-evolutionary grounds, both of which parallel each other. The metaphysical analysis suggests that, in the spirit of Spinoza, an entity’s nature must necessarily include the drive toward its preservation. Likewise, the multi-faceted bio-social-evolutionary argument locates the fundamental telos of humanity in the preservation of social ties and (...)
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  30. On the Ancient Idea that Music Shapes Character.James Harold - 2016 - Dao: A Journal of Comparative Philosophy 15 (3):341-354.
    Ancient Chinese and Greek thinkers alike were preoccupied with the moral value of music; they distinguished between good and bad music by looking at the music’s effect on moral character. The idea can be understood in terms of two closely related questions. Does music have the power to affect the ethical character of either listener or performer? If it does, is it better as music for doing so? I argue that an affirmative answers to both questions are more plausible than (...)
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  31. 《淮南子》篇章結構考 (On the Compositional Structure of the Huainanzi).Peter Tsung Kei Wong - 2019 - Dissertation, The Chinese University of Hong Kong
    In 139 BC, Liu An presented the Huainanzi to Emperor Wu. Nowadays, most Western scholars believe that the Huainanzi has a “root-branches” bipartite structure. However, given that the author of the "Yao Lue" chapter (probably Liu An himself) asks the readers to read the Huainanzi from the beginning to its end in a successive order, and given that the text is designed in such a way as to prevent readers from “departing from the root and moving closer to the branches” (...)
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