The Ethicalization Of Chinese Ancient Parentage Laws And Its Modern Values

Ancient China is a kindred and ethic oriented society based on small peasant economy. Family, as a most basic economy unit of the society, plays important roles of maintaining the agricultural production and stabilizing the society in the fields of economy and politics respectively. The government, therefore, pays great attention to adjust the kindred relationships, especially the relationship between the fathers and sons. Chinese ancient parentage laws which concentrate on the paternity are of great importance in the whole feudal legal system. From Zhou Dynasty, courtesies (li礼) and laws began to merge. "Qinqin(亲亲)" and "Zunzun" (尊尊), which are the basic principles and spirits of courtesy, penetrated into the laws, and the Chinese Ancient Parentage Laws began its ethicalization. By ethicalization, the Chinese Ancient Parentage Laws strengthens the sons and daughters'filial piety to their parents, and the fathers are granted all kinds of franchises in the field of economy and penalty. The duties and rights between the parents and the issues are unbalanced, and when the same crimes are committed by parents and issues, the penalties will be different. Great demerits do exist in the ethicalization of the Chinese Ancient Parentage Laws, but it formed an excellent character of maintaining parents and respecting the elders; cultivated a sense of duty to the sons and daughters; maintained the stability of family harmony,society and relationship; which has embodied the legal humane care. And these reasonable factors still have its significant modern values.Family is the fundamental unit of the social structure, the parentage relations however, are facing severe challenges. Twisted ethical phenomena, such as the loss of filial piety and sense of duty, egotism and the appearance of neet group, are becoming more and more severe. It seems that our present Parentage Laws are shriveled by such phenomena, and can make no effective adjustment. Regarding these phenomena, it has necessary to promote the Ethic of the Chinese Ancient Parentage Law which involved enhancing family maintenance and ethical family, nurturing spiritual of filial piety and practice of moralization, that our Parentage Law can develop healthily and orderly.