THE DEVELOPMENT OF EVALUATION OF CONFUCIANISM (Research Paper Sample)

Evaluation of Confucianism in Contemporary Chinese Society Student’s Name: Course: Professor’s Name: Date: Evaluation of Confucianism in Contemporary Chinese Society Introduction Confucianism is best understood as an ethical guide for moral behavior and self-discipline. The core concept of Confucianism is "cosmic harmony." Creation of cosmic harmony requires the achievement of interpersonal, familial, and societal harmony. The overall understanding is that nature needs human fulfillment in order to grow. The emphasis on the oneness of heaven and humanity in Confucian thought exemplifies the importance of harmony in Confucianism. Or, according to spiritual and religious conceptions of heaven, it is possible to become one with heaven via submission to heaven's will. Using ren (benevolence, authoritative behavior), yi (righteousness, morality), and li (ritual propriety) as standards, these parties are harmoniously coordinated. This essay attempts to analyze the impact of Confucian educational concepts on contemporary Chinese society.[You, Mi. "Confucius." In The Routledge Companion to Performance Philosophy, pp. 347-350. Routledge, 2020.] [Zhang, Bei. "Reading Song of Solomon in the Viewpoint of Confucian “Unity of Heaven and Human”." 동서비교문학저널 51 (2020): 395-424.] Values of Confucianism Confucius felt education should be utilized to cultivate the qualities of a gentleman, "shi.” His educational objective was to create a foster a perfect personality. When he mentioned "perfect personality," he meant a person with a flawless moral character who can bring others happiness and peace. He encouraged the creation of a gentleman and argued that when a student demonstrates that he can handle his studies full-time, he should be allowed to run for public office. However, it is important to note that he viewed males as having a higher social rank than females. According to him, the purpose of education should be to educate everyone regardless of their social status or rank. In other words, he supported compulsory schooling for everybody. This Confucian viewpoint appears to have had an impact on the current Chinese policy of free elementary education for six years and free secondary school for three years. In addition, anyone can study Chinese thanks to the university-level Confucius scholarships that are available.[Sheng, Xiaoming. "Confucian home education in China." Educational Review 71, no. 6 (2019): 712-729.] Confucius placed significant emphasis on the concept of education without discrimination, which asserts that everyone should receive teaching without favoritism. Confucius thought that all people, regardless of social status or rank, should have an education. Any individual, no matter how noble, submissive, or lowly, should have access to knowledge. Prior to Confucius, there was a class system in China. Confucius made education available to commoners in remote areas. Today, China mandates that all residents attend elementary school for six years and secondary school for three years at no cost, guaranteeing that everyone has access to an education.[Bahtilla, Marinette, and Hui Xu. "The Influence of Confucius’s Educational Thoughts on China’s Educational System." Open Access Library Journal 8, no. 5 (2021): 1-17.] The fundamental principles of Confucianism support the pursuit of worthy life goals. Confucius felt that the pursuit of the proper objective was crucial to advancement. According to him, a person should have a higher spiritual goal, or an idealistic vision of how society ought to develop in the future, to which they might contribute. His principal arguments are as follows: First, he talks about how important it is to make goals that take both the present and the future into account. Second, he said that a person's spiritual life should be more important than their life on earth. He concluded by emphasizing the need of retaining one's determination and sticking to one's goals. He asked that they make their determination so firm and unshakable that nothing could sway them.[Chan, Alan KL. "Confucian ethics and the critique of ideology." Asian Philosophy 10, no. 3 (2000): 245-261.] Self-discipline and introspection, according to Confucius, are essential traits that everyone should cultivate. Confucius stated that in order to manage interpersonal interactions, one must be strict with himself, govern and evaluate his words and actions to ensure they are in accordance with moral principles; he termed this "self-control". He meant that we should engage in self-reflection and introspection (self-assessment). In addition, he advocated learning for oneself as opposed to learning for others or for recognition; he held that one must learn for "self" and not for others in order to be respected or superior.[Chan, Alan KL. "Confucian ethics and the critique of ideology." Asian Philosophy ] On the same note, Confucianism emphasizes the significance of self-improvement and error repair. According to Confucius, a gentleman confesses his or her wrong and attempts to find a solution. According to Confucius' theory of self-reform, one should not conceal their mistakes. Instead, they should remake themselves and accept that people make mistakes. Additionally, they ought to accept accountability for their flaws, make amends for them, and keep a positive attitude about the flaws and criticism of others. This suggests that we should treat others the same way in which we would like to be treated.[Dunn, George A. "The Strongman, the Small Man, and the Gentleman: Confucius and Donald Trump." In Trump and Political Philosophy, pp. 93-115. Palgrave Macmillan, Cham, 2018.] Confucius emphasized the importance of people doing and behaving in accordance with their words; he considered those who did not live up to their aspirations to be unworthy. This highlights the significance of setting an example for others. Consequently, educators should function as role models in the educational system. Therefore, teachers should live by their teachings so that their learners can copy their actions. This suggests that a good leader should do what they preach. Confucius holds that, a teacher's duties also include fostering their students' moral nature, educating them, and enhancing their skills. A teacher must be a role model and practice what they preach in order to support the moral development of their students. Because every word a teacher says has an instant impact on the development of a student's personality, it follows that teachers should set a good example for their students.[Tan, Charlene. "Confucius." In International handbook of philosophy of education, pp. 91-101. Springer, Cham, 2018.] Confucius viewed education, along with politics and the law, as an essential component of effective governance. The goal of governing by the influence of morality is accomplished through teaching people, molding their minds, compelling them to follow laws and regulations, building a force of moral conviction inside them, and creating a clear conscience in them. Politics and legislation cannot replace education's indispensable role. In order to eventually construct a crime-free society, he asserted that individuals must first be educated and then punished if education proves ineffectual. It was believed that government by the effect of morals was more important tha...