A Comparison Of Shan On Mencius And Aristotle

Shan is the basic category in ethics research.Both Mencius and Aristotle established their respective theories of Shan which have far-reaching influence on the history of Chinese and western ethical thoughts.Based on the perspective of the understanding of Shan,the practice path of goodness and the value impact of Shan,making comparative study of can reflect some commonness and differences on the basic understandings of goodness.In terms of the basic understandings of Shan,Mencius and Aristotle both took the pursuit of what is worth doing as the connotation of Shan."What is desirable is Shan" is the common logical starting point of both,but what is different is their understanding of "desire".Mencius put forward the view of “original Shan on human nature “from the perspective of emotion,using good heart to prove the rationality of original Shan on human nature.Aristotle created teleology of Shan from a rational perspective.Mencius and Aristotle both took Shan as the basis for the difference between human beings and animals and proposed the idea of the supreme Shan(the highest Shan).The highest Shan is the combination of politics and ethics,and the realization of the highest Shan is the ultimate goal of both ethical appeals.In the practice approaches of Shan,both of them attach importance to the way of thinking.However,Mencius advocated reflection based on moral introspection.Aristotle,on the other hand,expanded the scope of thought by means of meditative practice.In their practice,Mencius and Aristotle both carried out the principle of the middle way.The former discusses humanitarianism with the doctrine of heaven,while the latter demonstrates the doctrine of the middle way scientifically and mathematically.Both Mencius and Aristotle took Shan as the value orientation of social governance and gave play to certain theoretical value of Shan in politics.The difference is that Mencius took benevolence and righteousness as the core content of virtue and advocated the rule of virtue,while Aristotle took justice as the core content of virtue and emphasized the rule of law.Finally,both the theoretical systems of goodness have a profound impact.The Shan of Mencius established the Confucian spiritual connotation of inner sanctity and outer king.The free spirit of individual independence advocated by western society has appeared in Aristotle's teleology of good.The Shan of Mencius and Aristotle reflects the different historical background and social structure between China and the west.