Confucius And Aristotle: On The Relation Between Morals And Politics

Morals and politics are major subjects that occupied a very important place within the philosophical thinking of Confucius and Aristotle. These two subjects are the most practical aspects of both Confucius and Aristotle thought. This is primarily because they deal closely with people's daily life actions. The core of this thesis is to understand the relation between morals and politics. In addition it shall go further to explain the divergences and convergences of Confucius and Aristotle in relation to their views on morals and politics. This shall be achieved through the analyses of the moral and political viewpoints of these two philosophers. Furthermore, the significance of the relation between morals and politics in contemporary society shall also form part of the analyses.While living in a society undergoing profound changes, characteristic of the end of the Spring and Autumn periods, Confucius concluded that the principal cause of political and social unrest is "li beng le huai"(The collapse of the rites and the emptying of music of its moral content). In search of ways and means of how to bring society out of turbulence and disorder, Confucius suggested "Self cultivation of the capacity to be diligent in ones tasks." And "Self cultivation of the capacity to ease the lot of other people." He also added "Self cultivation of the capacity to ease the lot of the whole populace." In my assessment, "Self cultivation"(neisheng) indicates sageliness within, or inner efforts towards saintliness. This is basically the cultivation of inner morality by the Self. We can conclude that "to ease the lot of other people", and "to ease the lot of the whole populace"(waiwang) indicates the pursuit of 'kingliness'that can bring peace and happiness to all citizens or even the whole world. This may be defined as the relation between politics and the Self. The concept of Confucius'"Self cultivation of the capacity to ease the lot of other people" has been summed up by some of his fellow thinkers as "Inner saintliness or sageliness within, kingliness without" (neisheng waiwang).It exists between "Self cultivation" and "To ease the lot of other people",because the two are different stages towards the development of one thing,namely benevolence (ren). Although Confucius never gave a precise definition of "ren",inferences from the general sense of the word can be made. The word essentially means to love people. Different manifestations of this love exist however. For instance, from pursuing "Self cultivation" to attaining "to ease the lot of people" are all manifestations of love. This is proof of the intrinsic relation between morals and politics and also that these concepts pursue a common goal in Confucius's view.To fully understand the intrinsic relation existing between morals and politics in Aristotle thought, we have to analyse it from two angles. Firstly, from Aristotle's concept of man. In referring to man, Aristotle was focusing on the citizen, because for him the city-state is the only community in which people can cultivate virtue and live happy lives. Moreover, because the construction and organization of the city-state is founded on political activity, we come to realize that politics is the premise and foundation of morals. However, from the individual point of view morals are the premise and foundation of politics, because to have the right to participate in city-state political activities, the individual must, first of all, cultivate virtue and then only can he be admitted to politics.Thence, we come to understand that, both Confucius and Aristotle argue that there is an intrinsic relation between morals and politics. However concerning which one must be the premise and foundation their views differ. For Confucius, morals are the necessary foundation of politics. For Aristotle, morals are a necessary foundation of politics in so far as the individual as a member of the city-state participates in political activities; however because the city-state is the only political community in which people can cultivate morality, politics are necessarily the foundation of morals.The main goal of this thesis is to show, firstly, that with society undergoing rapid globalisation and with the major challenges facing humanity it is vital to engage in inter-culture exchanges in order to meet these challenges. Secondly, the thesis shall address the issue of the separation of politics from morals which has become a characteristic of contemporary society. This separation has had the effect of rendering politics into becoming a simple tool for the struggle for power. It has also relegated issues of morality to purely metaphysical discussions. Considering that in both Confucius and Aristotle thought, morals and politics are seen as having the common goal of cultivating'good citizens',Confucius and Aristotle philosophical concepts have always been a source of inspiration for contemporary society.The methodology comprises of the application of comparative and hermeneutic studies of available literature.