What are the characteristics of feudal ethical thinking in China

A variety of legal principles that uphold and embody patriarchal ethics have been established. It became a basic principle of feudal orthodox legal thought. ... Lack of the concept of equality and strong ideas of hierarchical privilege In ancient China, Confucianism dominated

Basic characteristics

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Patriarchal and politicized moral norms

This characteristic was mainly reflected in Confucian ethical thought. When China moved from primitive society into slave society, the form of clan organization linked by patrilineal blood relations was preserved and developed into patriarchal hierarchical relations and patriarchal hierarchical order. Later, it was combined with feudal absolutism, and has always existed in feudal society The Confucian term "human relationships" mainly refers to "father and son", "ruler and minister", "husband and wife", "eldest and youngest", "friends" five kinds of relations, except "friends", are and patriarchal hierarchical relations linked. All of them, with the exception of "friend", are linked to patriarchal hierarchical relationships. In order to regulate these relationships, Confucianism has put forward a set of moral norms such as "filial piety" and "loyalty". "Filial piety, as the "reality of benevolence," is the moral code that a son should observe toward his father and ancestors. Loyalty is the extension and expansion of filial piety, and is the code of behavior of the minister to the ruler. "Filial piety and loyalty are reflections of the two most important relationships in the patriarchal hierarchy, which centrally reflects the patriarchal character of Confucian ethical thinking and thus determines the character of moral politicization. Confucianism believes that in order to rule the country and pacify the world, it is necessary to "cultivate one's body" and practice patriarchal morality, thus bringing morality to a political level. The so-called "three principles" in feudal China were both the highest moral code and the highest political principle, and even gave morality the authority of law. In this sense, the morality advocated by Confucianism is politicized morality. This characteristic of Confucian ethical thinking, which was perfectly suited to the needs of the Chinese feudal system, made it gain the status of feudal authenticity, ruling people's thoughts for a long time and with great solidity, even the modern bourgeoisie has not been able to get rid of its bondage. This is the main reason why religious morality and its ethical thought have never become the dominant form of ethical thought in China.

The moral question became the focus of philosophical thinking

This feature was manifested in the relationship between the moral principle and the world principle. Some philosophers derive "humanism" from "heaven" and "man", and put "heaven's way" and "man's way" in the context of "heaven's way" and "man's way". The "Way of Heaven" was taken as the basis of the "Way of Man". Pre-Qin Taoism and Wei Jin metaphysics belong to this type. Some materialists also tend to have similar characteristics, Zhang Zai in the Song Dynasty is from the unity of the gas led to the "people and my compatriots, things with us" moral principle; some other philosophers by the "human" and "heaven", the "human way" as the "human way" based on the "heavenly way". "and" heaven ", the" human way "abstracted into a universal law applicable to all things in the universe, and divinized as" heaven's mandate "," providence ", and then reversed the" fictional" heaven's will "," and then the This fictitious "heavenly way" as the "human way" of the original, in order to argue the reasonableness and eternity of the feudal moral program. Those Confucianists who hold an idealistic viewpoint in philosophy basically belong to this type.

Another manifestation of the intertwined character of ethics and philosophy is the theory of moral cultivation as the main content and form of philosophical epistemology. The object and purpose of cultivation as stated by Confucians in their ethical thought is ultimately the same as the object and purpose of knowledge as espoused by them in their epistemology. What they mean by "action" in epistemology is moral "practice". As for the way and method of cultivation and the process and method of knowledge, they are often mixed together. The Taoist theory of cultivation, i.e., the mysticism of "the body of the Tao", is also their epistemology.

Focusing on inner cultivation and emphasizing self-awareness in behavior

This is a distinctive feature of Chinese ethical thought in terms of moral practice. Chinese ethical thought, especially Confucian ethical thought, takes human nature, good and evil, as the psychological basis for good and evil behavior, and thus puts forward a set of methods of "cultivating oneself" and "nurturing the heart", believing that as long as one plays the role of the "heart", then one can realize that one can be a good person, and that one can be a good person. The idea is that by playing the role of "heart", we can recognize the "goodness" of our nature. At the same time, they regarded "knowing righteousness" and "having righteousness" as the signs of human beings being different from beasts and animals, highlighting the requirements for moral awareness and self-consciousness of moral behavior. The pre-Qin Confucians advocated the unity of benevolence and wisdom, and emphasized "the shame of doing one's own work" and self-reflection on moral behavior. However, while focusing on the heart and righteousness, they all downplayed personal interests and sensual needs, advocating that "there is no better way to nourish the heart than through lack of desire". After the Han Dynasty, the cultivation of the heart was gradually led to extremes, pitting sex and emotion against each other, and even advocating that "sex is good and emotion is bad," and that reason and desire should be eliminated.

Various ethical thoughts in Chinese history, especially Confucianism, have had different degrees of influence not only in China, but also in Korea, Japan and Southeast Asia, and even in Western societies, and have contributed to the formation and development of the Chinese nation's mentality, customs, and moral concepts. It is of great practical significance to scientifically summarize this precious historical heritage, criticize its dregs and inherit its essence, further remove the influence of feudal and bourgeois morality, and carry forward the fine moral tradition of the Chinese nation.