2 12 14 Legalism Han Feizi NOT the founder of Legalism o He was an extremely clear writer synthesized many previous Legalist doctrines into one coherent system 280 233 BCE For our purposes he is the last major thinker during the warring states period o The warring states period ends when the Qin dynasty begins the state of Qin reads and promotes legalist teachings Han Fei comes from the state of Han but his teachings really caught on in Qin o Qin was already sympathetic to legalist doctrines because of previous legalists for example Gongsun Yang a big influence on Han Fei Elegant writer but a stutterer never held important public office o Supposedly studied under Xunzi alongside Li Si o While in Qin Li Si spreads rumors that Han Fei is a spy o Han Fei is imprisoned kills himself via poison given to him by Li Si Han Feizi was also very interested in the study of rhetoric o Han Feizi argues that the art of persuasion involves as much knowing the trust and having good arguments but knowing the other persons mind as well o If you want to convince someone you have tog et in their heads o This view on rhetoric influences Han Feizi s philosophy A good ruler keeps his intentions and thoughts opaque to his followers However the ruler should know his followers minds The Han Feizi The Text Han Feizi probably wrote or advised the writing of good portions of this It collects many views of pervious Legalists in a clear and concise and consistent way For example Gongsun Yang and Shen Buhai o However Han Feizi is also going to argue that these positions can work together Major themes o Responses to Confucianism and Mohism Situationalism o Recognizing the selfishness of human nature Amoral philosophy o Importance of clear laws Universal applicability o Enforcement of laws Two Handles the stick or the carrot Promotion of Merit o Maintaining Government Rid society of the Five Vermin Keep your intentions opaque as a rule Rhetoric Responses to Confucianism and Mohism Confucians and Mohists seem to have a lot in common o Both advocate turning to the sage kings for help o Both are going to advocate moral education We need good role models to show us how to behave Then the people will be good to o But Han Feizi points out both of these schools of thought failed to bring Han Feizi argues this largely because they focus too much on peace Problems internal matters why do they disagree o 1 If Mohists and Confucians are both telling us about the sage kings then At least one of these views must be wrong Pg 352 Filial piety vs irreverence wastefulness vs frugality etc o 2 The greatness of the sage king period is misstated Any goodness in the quality of life did not come from virtues Pg 241 Sage kings brought order the interference of feelings of benevolence NOT because of benevolence Sometimes in the interest of peace and stability you have to do the hard things Even if you always show love people will sometimes misbehave You must be ready to deal with it o 3 Even if the past was good there is absolutely no reason to think the past methods will hold true in the current situation Pg 340 The analogy of the rabbit and the stump Confucianism and the virtues may have worked in the past but they re not working now Let s set them to one side a pursue a more amoral philosophy The Legalist Alternative Remember Kongzi Laws are confusing and lead to problems They don t solve the underlying problem Laws encourage people to be sneaky o Han Feizi lives in a post Xunzi world and finds Xunzi rather compelling People are bad by nature according to the Han Feizi so solving the underlying problem is futile Society is falling apart I will do whatever is necessary to bring peace o Here s what we need to accept People are self interested inherently evil We should use that to our advantage BMW CEO vs Pfizer CEO 2 14 14 Legalism How do we maintain peace and stability in society o Accept that people are self interested o Make it so that following the laws are always in a person s self interest Do not mistake circumstance with virtue o Take the BMW CEO and Pfizer CEO o According to Han Feizi both act out of self interest not out of virtue So we should make sure following laws is always in our self interest Most people are pretty average and not capable of greatness We need to set the laws so that peace and stability is maintained even with mediocre rulers Here s The Legalist Sage o Pg 357 The sage does not work on his virtues he works on his laws o If we want people to be good we have to use the laws to make them good Situationism o The virtues advocated in the past don t apply to the modern times o Remember the story of the Rabbit The state Qin Ch in becomes the first unified dynasty in China Using Legalist o After the death of the first Qin emperor things go south quickly Legalist o However many legalist principles get absorbed in Confucian thought Legalist worked principles dies out How to Make Good Laws Step 1 Make sure you know your advisors ant that they don t know you o You re going to have to delegate o Pg 314 Ch 5 Make sure your ministers don t know your desires and intentions so that they don t try to change to please you o Pg 316 Know who is good at what so you can delegate work to them o You then use the information you get from your ministers to help you form the laws Step 2 Use the Laws to set firm standards o By setting firm standards the grey areas aren t supposed to be a problem o The laws should be simple concise ad clear o These standards are applicable to ALL people No exceptions Including the ruler This helps in the case of mediocre bad rules Step 3 Make following the laws in a person s self interest o The Two Handles Harsh punishments Generous Rewards o Application of the two handles holds for following the laws o But it also applies to appropriate fulfilling of one s duty This means failing to do one s duty but also overstepping one s duty If you do more than you say you must be punished 2 17 14 The Two Handles Seen on page 317 Make sure that following the laws is always in a person s self interest through the Make sure that following the laws is always in a person s self interest through the use of Harsh Punishments use of Generous Rewards Pg 343 the laws must be known clear and dependable o People are motivated by desire for rewards people are motivated by fear of death use that to control them This is what gives the ruler his power …