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Confucius and Kant regard respect as the root of any system of

ethics.
Confucius
o Respect is expressed by the character jen (indicates an
attitude of respect toward self and others).
o Jen enables a social group to exist. Respect is necessary
because human beings are social beings.
o The social framework defines the accepted range of
respectful conduct toward others (respect for personae in
accordance with dynamic social roles).
o Basic insights on intrasocial behavior patterns were made
available to Confucius by tradition (e.g. the concept of Five
Relationships, which involves the authority of one person
over another).
Confucius wants to remold this tradition, in the sense
that there should be a reform coming from within
there should be a positive social interaction
among people.
This reform is only possible through the concept of
respectwhich Confucius describes as the unifying
thread that underlies all virtues in the Confucian
system of ethics.
o Jen is also used by Confucius to convey the essence of his
moral philosophy.
Here, respect predominates.
Jen involves more than an emotional appeal. It is not
simply benevolence, compassion to humaneness and
goodwill, or love.
The meaning of jen must include a sense
of human interaction that the focus is
on man himself and what he can morally
accomplish in relation to others.
o The root of broader social interaction (WHAT DRIVES THE
SOCIAL) is the reciprocal cultivation of respect toward
and for others and self.
Confucius: An educated man wears an air of respect.
Be respectful and loyal.
o Li and i both exemplify and provide concrete support for
jen, while the chn-tzu is its personification.
o Li / Duty
Social roles that define the limit and boundaries; li
specifies the limits of ethical behavior, of what is and
is not socially acceptable conduct
Starts from the family

The cultural setting within which jen can be


realized
Provides the context of social stability (especially
because of the political conditions prevailing in the
time of Confucius)
A symbol of ones worthiness for respect through a
commitment to underlying social and moral values
Without the establishment of boundaries, no
interaction, social or otherwise, can hope to
succeed.
Family is responsible for instilling the rules for
socially accepted behavior.
These rules then enable the interactionthe
social.
Divorced from its moral intention, from jen or
respect, li is meaningless.
To be a well-adjusted individual (a happy and
productive member of society), human beings need
discipline and training, and respect had a
primary role to play.
Intellectual cultivation is worthless if not
accompanied by emotional balance.
DISCIPLINE and TRAINING starts at HOME.
Respect is learned by the children, thus the
entire society benefits.
Sense of oneness with the family = sense of
oneness with society
(p. 242) Behavior patterns [should] conform to role
designations, that is, that the conduct of the
individual fulfills the requirements of the social role
or persona. The rules of performance are contained
within the name itself. We do not merely play a
role; we are the role.
o I / Judgment
Acquired sense of what is right
In order to apply the insights and directives of li
correctly, individual judgment must be
cultivated.
I seals our preference for tao.
Rejects the profit motive represents the doing
of what is right
NECESSARY because without it, none of the other
Confucian virtues (li and jen) could be realized

Serves as the general standard of evaluation,


bestowing meaning upon ones acts
Two components:
Subjective self-knowledge of good truth (or the
way) universal standard of tao
A potential state or situation which needs a
fitting action to make it a moral state or
situation reveals an element of particularity
in tao itself
To merely absorb learning (of li, the social
roles) is insufficient; correct implementation of
learning demands individual input, by way of
judgment.
Knowing the limits of applicability for theory is as
important as knowing when it can be applied.
Self-reliance is emphasized in Confucian ethics:
A man can enlarge his Way; but there is no
Way that can enlarge a man.
I develops a creative individual who is capable of
responding appropriately while preserving totality of
goodness and justice.
o Tao / Moral Law
Paves way for the i
Represents both a concrete way of life and an
abstract principle of conduct
It is both the universal Way of Heaven (order of
nature) and the way of human beings (human
nature).
Provides a universal and unwavering standard for
judgment
o Chn-tzu / Personification of Jen/Respect
Firm grounding in li (instructed about the boundaries
of social roles) + judgments of applicability in i (able
to cultivate the faculty of judgment) = the full
realization of jen becomes possible (consummate
social being)
li + i jen chn-tzu
Jen
The virtue of virtues, as an awareness of selfrealization and self-justification
Supreme principle of moral action
The chn-tzu is trained to confidently bring forth the
appropriate moral judgment from the depths of a

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well-cultivated personality. He is a standard of


aspiration.
A person who has achieved a mastery in li and its
application through i, whose behavior evidences
respect for social roles, for Moral Law, and for self
Suits his actions to the concrete conditions at hand
(related to the previous statement of knowing when
an action is appropriate)
An autonomous moral agent who is in harmony with
others
Moral smugness (thinking we have reached our goal and
thus need not strive any farther) is the very antithesis of
jen.
And so, an ongoing/continuous self-criticism (rather
than criticism of others) is recommended.
When li and i as theory have been translated into
practice, and internalized to instill spontaneous virtue,
one may be said to have realized the virtue of virtues, jen.
Jen supercedes the ideal: one may be a chn-tzu but
lack jen, however those who possess jen are
invariably chn-tzu.
Jen fulfills itself as the ideal of humanity, of respect for
human beings, by reiterating the social dimensions of
human existence.
Each individual is, in some sense, equally deserving
of respect, above and beyond the hierarchical
distinctions of social personae. This is jen as the
ideal of humanity.

Kant
o Human beings are worthy of respect because they are
rational beings.
o The imperative of ethics to respect others derives from our
shared rational naturereason confers personhood.
o Three main elements of the program for positive social
interaction:
Roots of respect, directed at persons as rational
beings
Respect for the moral law, a product of reason as
guided by judgment
Ideal of moral conduct in the good will, personifying
respect through the principle of humanity
o Respect for Persons: The Community of Rational Beings
Rationality provides the common context of human
interaction.

Rationality/Reason is the essence of human


nature. It instructs us by her rules to remain in
the path of duty.
The innateness and a priori character of reason
precludes education as a tool for eliciting human
nature.
REASON is the key for moral conduct.
Adherence to duty demands dual considerations.
Acting according to duty: superficial conduct,
mere legality
Acting from duty: respect for moral law
Kant condemns the impracticality of universal love:
to command the emotion of love as a moral
duty is contradictory, although respect can be
so commanded
Respect must be directed toward human beings
Kantian respect for persons parallels Confucian
respect for personae (personae is the sense of
persona as the mask worn by actors in a drama
to indicate the roles being portrayed)
For Kant, respect wells up from the sense of
participation in a community of rational beings.
Kant and Confucius shares the concept of
universality of respect for human beings in
accordance with their guiding model rational nature
in Kant and social nature in Confucius a community
of individuals as opposed to individuals in a
community
o Respect for Moral Law: The Categorical Imperative
The formula of the Categorical Imperative is called
into service. Central to both i and the Categorical
Imperative is a regard for the oughtness of a
situation, the sense of the Right.
Unlike Confucian Mean and its flexibility of standards,
Kants Laws are rigid and of universal quality.
Like tao, Kantian Moral Law elicits moral Respect.
Both also demonstrate the moral way. However,
Kants Moral Law is alienated from nature. It
presents to us an order transcending that of nature.
Duty alone must be dominant in our thoughts and
actions: only Moral Law precludes all inclination
from having a direct influence on the will.
Kantian judgment parallels Confucian i

Judgment is the vital link between theory and


practice.
HOWEVER, for Kant, judgment is a natural
gift, which may or may not be bestowed on
the theoretician at birth. Furthermore,
possession of both reason and Moral Law
prevents the development of moral judgment.
Kants problems with judgment = source of his
objectionable inflexibility
The Confucian sense of ongoing balance is lacking in
the Kantian universe, replaced by unchallenged
eternal truths.
Kant = Newtonian Model = Hard Science
(natural sciences; investigated by means of
hypothesis)
Confucius = Confucian Model = Soft Science
(social sciences)
Kant upholds the autonomous character of the moral
agent: the autonomy of the will is the sole
principle of all moral laws and of duties
conforming to them
The will both legislates and is subject to Moral Law,
serving as a creative expression of character.
o The Ideal of the Good Will: The Principle of Humanity
Respect for persons and for the moral law is fully
embodied in Kants good will.
Nothing can possibly be called good without
qualification except a good will.
The individual with a good will, the will to act on and
from moral considerations, strives to realize the
qualities of a rational being.
By the mere habit of frequently looking upon actions
as praise-worthy or blame-worthy, a good foundation
would be laid for righteousness in the future course
of life.
Although we ought to strive to act as if we were
completely rational, Kant realized this to be beyond
the capacities of mere humans, compounded as we
are of a dual sensible/intelligible nature.
There was no possibility of there being in him a
desire to deviate from moral laws. (parallels
with the Confucian concept of the spontaneous
adherence to tao)

Moral models can come from all human sources. As


embodiments of the moral law, such people demand
our respect.
The imitation of the moral models alone
entitles us to a legitimate sense of self-worth.
The Confucian self-criticism is also present in the
Kantian ideal of the good will.
Our striving for perfection never really ends,
but merely draws us on to ever-greater heights.
All of our actions must continue under the close
scrutiny of the will.
This will is both legislator and subject of the
moral law, and we must be ever wary of this
dual role, so that we do not delude ourselves
with visions of sovereignty. In this regard,
reason acts as a balancing force between
the two roles.
Respect for others is conjoined with selfrespect.
Kants principle of humanity broadens the field of
positive social interaction into the progressive
dynamism of the future.
The idea of the highest good possible is a
cooperative effort
Confucius and Kant
o Moral conduct stipulates a respectful attitude, which
is the very root of ethics and social interaction.
o For Kant, respect wells up from the sense of participation in
a community of rational beings.
o For Confucius, respect results from our experience as
social beings in a hierarchy.
o Both Kant and Confucius require the vindication of ethical
theory in moral practice: Ought implies can. To approve
in words without giving proof in deeds is to lack
merit.
o Kant = inflexible = not Men but Laws exercise power
Entrusts the application of moral law to our innate
sense of reason
o Confucius = flexible = prefers a system of men, not of laws
(which relied upon individual cultivation)
Advocates the cultivation of a sense of judgment
which is guided by experience and fitted to concrete
cases

o By a synthesis of Kantian and Confucian concepts, ethical


theory becomes practical and relevant to the dynamic
movement of society.
o The flowering of the moral system occurs in the respectful
imitation of models of virtue in the chn-tzu or good will.
Society reaps the fruit in terms of positive
interaction, while the individual benefits from selfcultivation and self-respect.
It benefits both individual and society.o Confucius acknowledges the complexity of human life,
which requires more than an appeal to reason alone. The
guidance of social institutions and interpersonal
experiences supplement rationality.

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