Classical Confucian political thought : a new interpretation

233 Pages·2015·2.54 MB·English

by  Confucius

Classical Confucian
Political Thought
•

Classical Confucian
Political Thought
•
A New Interpretation
Loubna El Amine
Princeton University Press
Princeton and Oxford
Copyright © 2015 by Princeton University Press
Published by Princeton University Press, 41 William Street,
Princeton, New Jersey 08540
In the United Kingdom: Princeton University Press, 6 Oxford Street,
Woodstock, Oxfordshire OX20 1TW
press.princeton.edu
Jacket Photograph: Ancient Chinese door knocker, located in
Temple of Confucius, Harbin City, Heilongjiang Province, China.
© aphotostory/Shutterstock
All Rights Reserved
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
El Amine, Loubna, 1983-
Classical Confucian political thought : A new
interpretation / Loubna El Amine.
pages cm
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN 978-0-691-16304-8 (hardcover : alk. paper) 1. Confucianism
and state. 2. Philosophy, Confucian. 3. Confucian ethics.
4. Political ethics. I. Title.
BL1840.E5 2015
320.0931—dc23
2015000234
British Library Cataloging- in- Publication Data is available
This book has been composed in Palatino
Printed on acid- free paper. ∞
Printed in the United States of America
1 3 5 7 9 10 8 6 4 2
For my parents
Adnan El Amine and Fadia Hoteit
•

Contents
•
Acknowledgments ix
Note on Translations and Transliterations xi
Prologue 1
Ethics and Politics in Classical Confucianism 2
The Thesis of This Book 9
Historical Background 16
Chapter Outline 26
Chapter 1. Ruler and Ruled 29
The Virtue Argument 30
The People—Continued 37
Hegemons 51
Conclusion 61
Chapter 2. Rules and Regulations 62
Security 63
Welfare 68
Promoting the Worthy 73
Conclusion 80
Chapter 3. A Harmonious Society 82
The Case against the Mohists 84
Rituals 91
Filiality 107
Conclusion 114
Chapter 4. Rulers and Ministers 117
Xunzi’s Vision 118
Insubordinate Ministers 124
viii ∙ Contents
Revisiting the Question of Virtuous Rulership 135
Conclusion 140
Chapter 5. Political Involvement 143
Biographical Preliminaries 144
The Virtue of Political Involvement 145
Dilemmas of Political Life 151
Conclusion 174
Chapter 6. Heaven in Politics 176
Heaven’s Allotments 180
Uncertainty and Political Involvement 184
Heaven’s Patterns 190
Conclusion 193
Epilogue 194
Bibliography 197
Index 207
Acknowledgments
•
There is an old Arabic saying, sometimes attributed to the Prophet
Muhammad, that goes, “Seek knowledge, even in China.” The idea
of China as a faraway—the furthest away—land had not completely
disappeared from the social imagination in the Arab world by the time
I was an undergraduate. That I ended up writing a book on China’s
central intellectual tradition was the result of an unexpected journey
that started with my professor and mentor at the American University
of Beirut, Yahya Sadowski. He encouraged his students to think about
the Arab world comparatively, often using East Asia as an example.
When I started graduate studies at Indiana University, Bloomington, it
was Robert Eno’s class on Classical Chinese philosophy that introduced
me to Confucianism, with which I have stayed since.
This book is based on my dissertation work at the Department of
Politics at Princeton University and I cannot sufficiently express my
gratitude to my advisors. Charles Beitz and Alan Patten encouraged
this project from its inception, providing continuous help and meticu-
lous feedback. Neither my background nor my research interests were
typical, and they, and the Princeton political theory program more gen-
erally, were never anything but supportive. Willard Peterson open-
heartedly gave up much of his time to make sure that I was adequately
versed in Chinese history. Stephen Angle’s mentorship, both through
the example of his own work in Chinese philosophy and through his
tireless commentary on my chapters, was crucial. His characteristic
generosity also extended to seeing me through the ups and downs of
academic life.
I have received more feedback in the process of writing this book than I
can adequately recognize here. I especially wish to thank Aaron Stalnaker
and David Wong for reading and commenting on the whole manuscript.
Stalnaker gave especially thorough feedback. Thanks are also due to three