class: center, middle, inverse, title-slide .title[ # Confucianism and the meaningful life ] .date[ ### PHIL 2350 The Meaning of Life - FS23 ] --- # Agenda for this week 1. Video Lecture 1: Buddhism and the meaningful life. 2. Video Lecture 2: Confucianism and the meaningful life. 3. Exam 1: (read Exam instructions on Canvas). --- # Confucius .pull-left.w30[ <img src="assets/confucius.jpg" alt="" height="500"/> ] .pull-right.w60[ - Philosopher and teacher, lived in East Asia (China) in the 6th century BCE. - His teachings are the basis of the system of thought called "Confucianism". ] --- # Rosemont's _The Confucian Way_ Main thesis: A meaningful life is a moral life led in an interpersonal way; by fulfilling the obligations defined by our relationships (with reciprocity, courtesy, respect) with the aid of rituals and tradition. Other claims: - The self is fully relational, rather than autonomous. - In morality, what matters is not only what one does but also with whom and when. - We must _want_ to meet our responsibilities (according to the roles we play). - Example of devotion to family as a way to achieve authoritativeness (_ren_–a form of virtue involving both _authority_ and _authoring_). - Importance of authentic participation in rituals, custom, and tradition (_li_) as (i) an expression of our uniqueness and (ii) serving a regulating function in society. --- # Example 1: Identity crisis Consider how Confucius would respond to the “identity crisis” so many undergraduate students undergo at some point during their college career. When Mary Smith asks “Who am I?” the Master will first respond straightforwardly “You are obviously the daughter of Mr. & Mrs. Smith, and the sister of Tom Smith; you are the friend of x, y, and z, the roommate of w, the student of professors a, b, c, and d,” and so forth. To which Mary will undoubtedly reply “I don’t mean that. I’m searching for the real me.” To which Confucius could only respond sadly, shaking his head: “No wonder you call it a ‘crisis,’ for you have taken away everything that could possibly count as answers to your question.” (p. 36) _What does this example show?_ -- This example shows the importance of the idea of the self as fully relational, rather than autonomous. --- class: medium-font # Example 2: Classmate's paper For example, your classmate asks you to read and comment on a paper she has just written for a course. You are not impressed with it. What do you say? Well, if your roommate is fairly intelligent, but having troubles at home right now, is experiencing her identity crisis, and is thinking of quitting school, your answer might run something like “There are problems with this paper, but you have a really good potential thesis here, and argument there, which you can develop along thus-and-such lines. And when you’ve done so, I’ll be happy to read it again.” But now suppose that your roommate is different. He has just received a few As on exams he didn’t really study for, and while he is basically a good person, is showing signs of arrogance and pomposity; in which case you might well be inclined to say “This paper is junk from start to finish. Why did you have me waste my time reading it?” _What does this example show?_ -- This example shows that morality can take different forms according to the circumstances of the person you are interacting with (the _whom you did it_ question). --- # Example 3: Instructor's emergency Having just failed an examination yourself, you schedule an appointment with your instructor to go over it, your basic question being “How can I improve next time?” But upon arriving at the appointed time, you find that your instructor—who does not drive—has just learned that his wife has had a heart attack, and been taken to the emergency room at the hospital. Not at all surprisingly, you do not ask your original question, but instead say “Please let me drive you to the hospital.” _What does this example show?_ -- This example shows that morality consists in doing what is appropriate (not _right_) under the specific circumstances (the _when you did it_ question). --- # Golden rule In Confucianism, the only exception to the lack of moral general principles seems to be the negative formulation of the __Golden Rule__: .shadow[ .emphasis[ __Golden Rule__ (_negative version_): Do not do unto others as you would not have them do unto you. ] ] -- Positive version of the Golden Rule: Do to others as you would have them do to you. --- # Example 4: Wedding gift If someone you know is getting married, the ritual tradition dictates the giving of a gift. But if you merely purchase the first thing you see—or worse, have someone else buy it for you—you may be “going through the ritual,” but are not participating in it, and it will thus be largely devoid of meaning. You must, first, want to buy the betrothed a gift (evidenced even in the modern Western expression “It’s the thought that counts”), but in order to be a full participant in the ritual, and express yourself relationally, you must devote the time and effort to secure a gift that is appropriate for that person. _What does this example show?_ -- This example shows that, for a ritual to be authoritative, one must participate in it with the right attitude and intention. --- # Questions - What about a case in which a person has suffered harm from their parents? It seems that the filial relationship is broken, and that person would not be in the wrong by not engaging with their parents.