A Study Of Xunzi’s Political Thought Of " Etiquette And Law "

From the perspective of political philosophy,Confucianism has always been thinking about the legitimacy of political power,the relationship between ethics and politics,and how to make the monarch and his subjects undertake their responsibilities and obligations to each other in political practice.Xunzi put forward the idea of "upholding rites to law",that is,etiquette as the guiding principle of governing the country,and law as an effective means of governing the country,trying to construct the ideal prospect of kingly politics through the combination of rites and laws.As a great master of Confucianism in the late Warring States period,Xunzi sought the survival status of Confucianism under the double impact of ideological trend of the times and realistic politics.However,such a huge impact did not make him return to the traditional Confucian model of rule of virtue,but made him deeply see the possible shortcomings of Confucianism itself.Whether in the shaping of gentleman’s personality or in the realization of political ideal,Xunzi believed that the realization of the ideal was completely based on the consciousness of human nature and the absolute obedience of the rulers to the tradition an impractical act.At the same time,he saw the outstanding efficacy of Legalism in governing the country and maintaining order.From this positive efficiency,Xunzi found that the thinking of law is exactly what Confucianism needs in the actual political system,and it is not that there is no foundation in the traditional Confucian concept of etiquette.Therefore,he assimilated the law into rites,inherited the realism side of Confucius thought upward,and opened the "integration of rites and laws" and "the mutual use of Confucianism and Legalism" with filial piety and loyalty as the main axis in the Han Dynasty.The ritual system he created was a new systematic attempt and Confucian effort to adapt to social development in the face of new social,political and economic background.All his thoughts were also for rites and righteousness in order to demonstrate the necessity and rationality of the standard or the hierarchy of etiquette and law,he attached importance to the law from the requirements of institutionalization,and behind the law is still the spirit of ceremony.He tried to explain that law is a necessary means to govern the country,and etiquette is the basic value of human beings,which is the biggest difference between Xunzi and Legalists.Based on the research of Xunzi’s legal thought as the basic point of view,this paper makes a systematic reflection on Xunzi’s thought in the dialogue between the social background of the contemporary rule of law and the historical background of the Warring States Period: the first chapter,the transformation from morality to law,demonstrates the change of ideas with the change of political environment based on the historical facts such as the disintegration of patriarchal political system and the trend of political reform in various countries.At the end of the Warring States period,countries no longer attached importance to "morality" and "propriety",but pursued strength as the goal.The concept of "law" became the spirit of the times during the Warring States period,and also became the factor that Xunzi thought and absorbed.The second chapter,the necessity of introducing law into rites,analyzes the theoretical basis of Xunzi’s thought of law from three aspects: the view of heaven and man,the theory of human nature and the theory of grouping.The third chapter,the limitation based on rites,tries to explain that Xunzi’s legal thought will not and can’t go to legalism from the aspects of the characteristics of Li and law in Xunzi’s thought,and the difference between Xunzi’s and Legalists’ values.Xunzi’s legal thought always takes rites as its ideological boundary and fundamental spirit.The fourth chapter,"the subject of the implementation of etiquette and law" demonstrates that Xunzi regards the exemplary person as the moral subject of his thought of etiquette and law,which guarantees the orientation of law to the value of Confucianism.The fifth chapter,the construction of kingly politics,discusses Xunzi’s ideal of kingly politics and various specific legal ideas.