The Evolution Of Confucian Educational Thought From Confucius To Mencius

This study is a dynamic investigation of the evolution of Confucian educational thought from the perspective of the history of educational thought.This paper focuses on two aspects: first,to outline the social background,political system and cultural thought origin of the Western Zhou Dynasty,which has an important influence on the emergence of Confucian educational thought,so as to obtain the main characteristics of Confucian educational thought;second,to explore the evolution of Confucian educational thought from Confucius to Mencius in the aspects of human nature,educational object,educational content,learning style and so on.The thematic sections of the study are organized as follows:The second chapter is an overview of Confucian education.It is mainly introduced in three parts: First,the definition of related concepts.We mainly start with the analysis of the two core concepts of Confucianism and Confucian education thought,and provide a comprehensive theoretical basis for a deeper understanding of Confucian education thought.Second,a brief introduction to Confucius and Mencius.A brief review of Confucius and Mencius' s personal characteristics,personal and family backgrounds,and a brief introduction to The Analects of Confucius and Mencius,in order to find influencing factors that can explain the formation of Confucian and Mencius educational thoughts.Third,the origin and general characteristics of Confucian education thought.Starting from the economic,political,and ideological culture of the Western Zhou Dynasty,we explored the influence of the social background of the Western Zhou Dynasty on the formation of Confucian educational thoughts,and provided a more comprehensive ideological and cultural background for understanding the general characteristics of Confucian educational thoughts.The third chapter is the evolution of the theory of human nature.In the "proximity to sexuality" proposition put forward by Confucius,we infer that Confucius' s sexuality has two levels: "sexual good" and "sexual evil",but Confucius never explicitly put forward this view;Zisi was in the human nature of Confucius On the basis of viewpoints,he clearly uses good and evil to speak of human nature;in the direction of Zi Si,Mencius inherited Confucius' s benevolent thought and advocated that man is born of goodness.From Confucius' "sexuality" to Zisi's "good and evil words humanity" to Mencius' s "sexual goodness",Mencius inherited the thinking ofConfucius and Zisi from the perspective of destiny on human nature.He developed "nature" into The "nature theory" is also a claim based on the background of the times in which it was located.At the time of the Warring States Period,when there was “ hungry on the road ”,and corpses were everywhere,he hoped to use his“nature goodness” doctrine to awaken people 's inherent “goodness”.Human beings should be good,and the reason why some people are evil is because of the cruelty of social reality.This doctrine of human nature that emphasizes the inherent "goodness" of humans can bring a little change to the harsh social environment at that time,and guide people to The "goodness" in the heart is inspired.Although Mencius' s theory of "nature goodness" did not bring peace and stability to the society at the time,the introduction of this theory was also a major step forward in Confucian education.The fourth chapter is the evolution of educational objects.We are trying to make an interpretation of Confucius' "education without class" thought that accords with its original meaning.The interpretation of "education without class" that most people agree with today is: regardless of the difference between rich and poor,rich and poor,and race,everyone Can enter school for education.Actually,this is a misunderstanding.Many places in The Analects of Confucius stated that Confucius had requirements for educational objects,and it was not that we thought that there were no category restrictions to educate people.Actually,from beginning to end.Confucianism advocates elite education,but Mencius' s tendency in this respect is more prominent than Confucius.The fifth chapter is the evolution of educational content.In terms of educational content,Confucius emphasized ceremony and Mencius emphasized justice,because during the Spring and Autumn period of Confucius,although there was a time for hegemony among the princes,Zhou Tianzi was always the sovereign of the world.When it comes to destruction,but in many cases,it is still what people want to follow.At least in judging whether people's behavior is right or wrong,whether to comply with the requirements of etiquette is still a criterion of judgment.Therefore,it is under such a social background that Confucius put forward the idea of "self-denial and rehabilitation",hoping to stabilize the already loose social order.However,during the Warring States period of Mencius,the princes became kings,and Zhou Tianzi was no longer the master of the world,and Zhou Li was completely destroyed.It was neither possible nor necessary to restore Zhou Li.It is advisable to propose a new code of conduct in accordance with the changes of the times,but the new code is still basedon the benevolence proposed by Confucius.The sixth chapter is the evolution of learning styles.Confucius emphasizes etiquette,which is mainly manifested by external norms.Therefore,the way of learning in Confucius is mainly reading,hearing and practicing.Mencius emphasizes righteousness,and righteousness emphasizes inner feelings and judgments.Therefore,in Mencius,the way of learning is mainly introspection.And whether the result of introspection is correct,it returns to Mencius' s view of "nature goodness theory".Human nature is inherently good.This is the criterion for judging the result of introspection,and it is not wrong to expand the good end into it.