Legalism (Chinese philosophy): Difference between revisions

One of the six classical schools of thought in Chinese philosophy

Legalism
Chinese	法家
Literal meaning	Fa is “way of doing” and “standard”, Jia “school of thought”, but also “specialist” or “expert”, the usage in modern Chinese.[2][3]: 59

Legalism, or Fajia, is one of Sima Tan‘s six classical schools of thought in Chinese philosophy. Literally meaning (administrative) methods/standards (Fa; 法) “house” or “school” (Jia),^[5]: 93 the Fa “school” represents several branches of what Feng Youlan called “men of methods”,^[6] in the West often termed “realist” statesmen, who played foundational roles in the construction of the bureaucratic Chinese empire.^[7] The earliest persona of the Fajia may be considered Guan Zhong (720–645 BCE), but Chinese historians commonly regard Li Kui (455–395 BCE) as the first or “founding” “Legalist” philosopher. The combination of Shen Buhai (400–337 BCE) and Shang Yang (390–338 BCE), syncretized under Han Fei (c. 240 BCE) became what would historically be known as the Fajia.

Calling them the “theorists of the state”, Sinologist Jacques Gernet considered “those later christened ‘Legalists’ (Fajia)” to be the most important intellectual tradition of the fourth and third centuries BCE.^[8] With the Han dynasty taking over the governmental institutions of the Qin dynasty almost unchanged,^{[9][5]: 105} the Qin to Tang dynasty may be characterized by the “centralizing, statist tendencies” of the “Legalist” tradition.^[10]

Dubbed by A. C. Graham the “great synthesizer of ‘Legalism'”, Han Fei is regarded as their finest writer, if not the greatest statesman in Chinese history (Hu Shi). Often considered the “culminating” or “greatest” of the “Legalist’s” texts,^[11] the Han Feizi is believed to contain the first commentaries on the Dao De Jing. Sun Tzu‘s The Art of War incorporates both a Daoist philosophy of inaction and impartiality, and a “Legalist” system of punishment and rewards, recalling Han Fei’s use of the concepts of power (勢, shì) and technique (術, shù).^[13] Temporarily coming to overt power as an ideology with the ascension of the Qin dynasty,^[14]: 82 the First Emperor of Qin and succeeding emperors often followed the template set by Han Fei.^[15]

Though the origins of the Chinese administrative system cannot be traced to any one person, prime minister Shen Buhai may have had more influence than any other in the construction of the merit system, and might be considered its founder, if not valuable as a rare pre-modern example of abstract theory of administration. Herrlee G. Creel sees in Shen Buhai the “seeds of the civil service examination“, and perhaps the first political scientist.^{[16][5]: 94 [17]: 4–5}

Concerned largely with administrative and sociopolitical innovation, Shang Yang was a leading reformer of his time.^{[18][14]: 83} His numerous reforms transformed the peripheral Qin state into a militarily powerful and strongly centralized kingdom. Much of “Legalism” was “the development of certain ideas” that lay behind his reforms, helping lead Qin to ultimate conquest of the other states of China in 221 BCE.^[20]

Taken as “progressive,” the Fajia were “rehabilitated” in the twentieth century, with reformers regarding it as a precedent for their opposition to conservative Confucian forces and religion.^[21] As a student, Mao Zedong championed Shang Yang, and towards the end of his life hailed the anti-Confucian legalist policies of the Qin dynasty.^[22]

Historical background[edit]

The Zhou dynasty was divided between the masses and the hereditary noblemen. The latter were placed to obtain office and political power, owing allegiance to the local prince, who owed allegiance to the Son of Heaven.^[23] The dynasty operated according to the principles of Li and punishment. The former was applied only to aristocrats, the latter only to commoners.^[24]

The earliest Zhou kings kept a firm personal hand on the government, depending on their personal capacities, personal relations between ruler and minister, and upon military might. The technique of centralized government being so little developed, they deputed authority to regional lords, almost exclusively clansmen. When the Zhou kings could no longer grant new fiefs, their power began to decline, vassals began to identify with their own regions. Aristocratic sublineages became very important, by virtue of their ancestral prestige wielding great power and proving a divisive force. The political structures late Springs-and-Autumns period (770–453 BCE) progressively disintegrated, with schismatic hostility and “debilitating struggles among rival polities.”^[25]

In the Spring and Autumn period, rulers began to directly appoint state officials to provide advice and management, leading to the decline of inherited privileges and bringing fundamental structural transformations as a result of what may be termed “social engineering from above”.^[3]: 59 Most Warring States period…