Professional Documents
Culture Documents
the Dao
Week 4: The Mohists
Overview
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
Housekeeping
Recap
Background to the Mohists
Jian ai (inclusive care)
Against fatalism
Back to the Analects
Housekeeping
First short paper due Friday, Oct 9
Submit on Moodle, using the link for your tutor
Overview
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
Housekeeping
Recap
Background to the Mohists
Jian ai (inclusive care)
Against fatalism
Back to the Analects
Recap
Learning
Tradition
Self-cultivation
Weakness
Fate and fatalism
o Ming things that are out of our control
o Luck?
o Sometimes: just explaining why bad things happen to good people
(e.g., the death of Yan Hui)
o Sometime: dont worry about success, just worry about what kind of
person you are
Overview
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
Housekeeping
Recap
Background to the Mohists
Jian ai (inclusive care)
Against fatalism
Back to the Analects
The Mohists
Associated with, presumably founded by, Mo Di ,
or Mozi
Seem to come from outside the elite culture that
Confucians valued and identified with
Portrayed in early texts as social and political
movement dedicated to changing things to benefit all
the worlds people
Argued against the values, practices, and privileges of
the officials and gentlemen of the world
In fact were the first in China to develop sustained
philosophical argument
o And later Mohists started developing theories about argumentation, even
logic
Moderation
o Moderation in use ( )
o Moderation in burial ( )
o Against music ( )
Religion
o The will of heaven ( )
o Illuminating ghosts ( )
o Against fate ( )
Mohist arguments
Most often the Mohists defend their doctrines by
appealing to what benefits the world
o Benefit (li ) included material well-being (food, clothes), peace,
and social (including family) virtue
Overview
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
Housekeeping
Recap
Background to the Mohists
Jian ai (inclusive care)
Against fatalism
Back to the Analects
Jian ai
Literally: caring for everybody
Very often misinterpreted to mean caring for
everybody equallyso that we feel about them
and treat them all the same
o In English, this misinterpretation is often signaled by the translation
universal love
o I use the translation inclusive care
Family
For example: one of their arguments in favour of
caring more for other people is that it will
promote filial piety
In fact the Mohists consistently assume that
traditional family structures are fundamental to
social order
o E.g., notice in Book 37 (on fatalism) where they describe the
achievements of ancient sagesone of the things those sages did was
promote family virtues such as filial piety
Jian ai
So what did they mean? Mostly the following
o Do not harm others in order to benefit yourself or those close to you
(your family, friends, country)
o Perform your various social roles virtuouslyas a daughter or son,
husband or wife, subject or ruler
o Do your part to make sure that even the worst off have what they need
Overview
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
Housekeeping
Recap
Background to the Mohists
Jian ai (inclusive care)
Against fatalism
Back to the Analects
Gong Meng
From Mozi, Book 48:
Confucians
From Mozi, Book 39 (Against Confucians):
Against fate
The Mohists most extensive arguments about
fate are in Books 35 to 37 of the Mozi
These are like three different revisions of the
same basic line of argument
Well only look at Book 37, in which the argument
is set out quite clearly
You should certainly notice how much more
sophisticated the argumentation is here than it is
in the Analects!
But now the fatalists, were they the sages and good people of the former
Three Dynasties, or were they the brutal and unworthy people of the
former Three Dynasties?
o That does sound like its about the source of the doctrine!
What they said was not: I am weary and unworthy, I do not undertake my
work diligently. They also said: It is certainly my fate to be impoverished.
The Mohists defend this view by quoting a series of texts which they
claim record the words of the sage kings
Application
The rest of the argument focuses on the question
of what happens if rulers make fatalism the basis
of their policy
They start by emphasising the hard work that is
required for good government, for farming, and
for weaving
They think being diligent must bring wealth and
not being diligent must bring poverty (
)
So: you wont do your work effectively if youre a
fatalist
Application
Why wont you work hard if you believe in fate?
Basic idea: if you dont think working hard will improve
the outcome, you wont have the motivation to work hard
Example: youre in a class where the grading seems
completely arbitrary, to the point where you dont think
working hard will get you a better grade
Example: you have a job where bonuses and promotions
depend on favouritism, not on how well you do your job
Example: you are born poor in a society in which it is
very hard for poor people to get ahead
In cases such as these, are you likely to do your best?
Application
Suppose the Mohists are right about this: people
who believe in fatalism are unlikely to do their
best
That does not really give us a reason to think that
fatalism is false
In fact the argument presupposes that fatalism is
false, since it assumes that hard work really will
lead to better outcomes
So what does the argument establish? That
fatalism is not only false, it is also dangerous; if
people are fatalists, that is not a small or
unimportant error
Overview
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
Housekeeping
Recap
Background to the Mohists
Jian ai (inclusive care)
Against fatalism
Back to the Analects