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A Study Of Wang Anshi's Ethics Thoughts And His Practice Of Ethics

Posted on:2005-12-16Degree:DoctorType:Dissertation
Country:ChinaCandidate:W B LiuFull Text:PDF
GTID:1115360155956814Subject:Ethics
Abstract/Summary:PDF Full Text Request
Wang Anshi, as "a reformer in the 11th century" of China, is also a theorist with abundant ethical thoughts. It was he who through his own works had caused people begin to probe into the origin of morality and human nature. And with the development of such kind of academic atmosphere, Song Xue—an academic revolution, came into being.Wang Anshi's ethics thought is a kind of reflection to social production and social life of that time. In the era that Wang Anshi lived, the relatively quick development of commodity economy had already constituted a certain threat to traditional small-scale peasant economy, therefore, people was eager to carry on a certain change in theory so as to meet social development of economy; And the government's good treatment to scholar in Northern Song Dynasty, also made the literati and officialdom obtain a freer space to discuss social thought. Wang Anshi, as the leader of "Xi-ning constitutional reform", was more strongly impacted and influenced by the change of the social life of Song. Therefore his ethic thoughts and practice of ethics, as an important case study that has been neglected for a long time, has practical and theoretical important significance for us to understand the development and change of the ancient ethic thoughts of China, even for us to establish socialistic system of ethic and morality on speaking terms with socialistic market economy.Wang Anshi's ethics thought mainly includes: (1) Wang Anshi advocates "human nature cannot be valued into good and evil", which is opposite to the theory of human nature of Mencius, Xunzi, Dong Zhongshu, Yang Xiong,etc, while directly bears the idea of Confucius' "similar in nature, different in habit". Actually, Wang Anshi draws lessons from the Legalists' human nature theory of pre-Qin period, andcombines their "self-benefit" with Confucius' thought, then he put forward his theory that nature is not good or evil and nature can be good or evil. This is a kind of relatively distinct views in the history of China's ethics. (2)Wang Anshi regards "five things" in "Shang Shu" as the basic behaviors in human life, and he proposes the five things can help to bring human nature into being and to display it. This view is also an important connotation of Wang Anshi's ethics thought. (3)Wang Anshi mentions the existing view that "justice is prior to benefit" of the pre-Qin period again. But Wang Anshi is not briefly repeating the views of forefathers, he implements this kind of thought into the various social policies that he carries out. This is what forefathers can not do besides Dong Zhongshu.As a politician, Wang Anshi's achievement can not be separated from "Xi-ning constitutional reform". He has incorporated his ethics thought into every social policy during the process of his implementing constitutional reform.To the realistic social politics, Wang Anshi proposes the view of "make good laws all over the world", which organically combines the ethics and political ideology together. In the aspect of social economy, every law that he reforms is in various degree based on ethical ideology. For example, some laws are designed to destroy and curb annexation, and some laws are designed to develop agricultural production, to ensure agriculture and peasants' life. His vitalizing education and his reforming imperial examination system, have adapted to the development of commodity economic society. For example, he reforms the imperial examination system to emphasize that the qualified personnel should have practical values to the society; his reforming Tai Xue, not only strengthens division among specialized departments, but also has some similar characteristics with modern university system.Dictatorial system is not compatible with commodity economy...
Keywords/Search Tags:Wang Anshi, ethic thoughts, practice
PDF Full Text Request
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