Legalism, Taoism, and Confucianism in Ancient China

Legalism, Taoism, and Confucianism in Ancient China Philosophies dictate the most basic beliefs, concepts, and attitudes of individuals or groups, even entire civilizations. Since the beginning of time there has been great debate among men over which philosophies to live life by. The list of philosophies that exist in the world today is nearly endless, making it difficult to decide which one is the most suitable to live by. Ancient China was arguably among one of the most philosophical cultures that has ever existed to date. They had multiple schools of thought including Chinese Naturalism, Mohism, Logicians, Confucianism, Taoism (Daoism), and Legalism. Many of these philosophies fell into obscurity but three of them had a very large impact on ancient China and still have influence around the globe today. Legalism, Taoism, and Confucianism each had its own ways of seeing the nature of human beings, society, and the universe. Although they were all different they all shared a similar purpose, to make society a better place. Because they are so different, however, different people are going to prefer different philosophies. Confucianism and Taoism have and will continue to be the topic of debate for time to come and although Legalism has not been practiced for some time now, it still played a significant role in ancient Chinese history. (Confucianism, Legalism, Daoism) Confucianism was founded by a man named Confucius. Confucius was a man who proposed that society neededShow MoreRelatedEssay on Confucianism, Taoism and Buddhism1038 Words   |  5 PagesConfucianism, Taoism and Buddhism constitute the essence of the traditional Chinese culture. The relationship among the three has been marked by both competition and complementation in history, with Confucianism playing a more dominant role. Confucianism emphasized a reiteration of current moral values and Taoism developed a system of based upon a harmonization of man with the natural order. These two popular phil osophies, however, developed into popular religions eventually. Besides the major religionsRead MorePhilosophies of China and India Essay858 Words   |  4 PagesChina and India have many philosophical schools of thought. There are multiple similarities as well as a plethora of differences. While China has a wide range of thoughts concerning eternal salvation and everyday rule, India is more narrow-minded in their approach. The differences are astounding and the similarities are few and far between. Each nation has a distinctly different school of thought, which ultimately led to the establishment of their current day societies. China has many differentRead MoreChinese Philosophy From The Spring And Autumn And Warring States Eras869 Words   |  4 Pagesbegan perceiving the researchers comprehension of punishment, ritual, astronomy, medicine, and divination. There were a few distinct methods of insight that emerged in Ancient China amid this time period. Be that as it may, there were three noteworthy methods of insight that were absolutely critical: legalism, taoism and confucianism. Confucius was a researcher who served in government positions. He realized that the legislature was doing as well as could be expected, on the other hand, he likewiseRead MoreCompare and Contrast: Ancient China and Ancient India Essay664 Words   |  3 PagesAncient China and ancient India are both important and interesting ancient civilizations. They are alike and unlike in many ways. Some significant ways in which ancient India and China are similar and different are religion, art, economics, politics, and social structure. Ancient China and ancient India both consider religion to be very important. The main religions of China were Confucianism, Taoism, and Legalism. The central religions in India were Hinduism and Buddhism. Both Ancient China andRead MoreSimilarities Between Confucianism And Ancient China1248 Words   |  5 Pagesand Ancient China is no exception. The texts of the Ta Hsà ¼eh and the Chung Yung clearly details some ideas and concepts of early Confucianism in Ancient China. These early Confucian ideas and concepts from the two texts, in many ways reflect the political, intellectual, and social context of ancient China. Although Confucianism is no long as prominent as it was during the times of ancient China, it is important to understand these concepts and how later Chinese Dynasty adopted it. Confucianism hasRead MoreGreat Dynasty As A Powerful Economic And Imperialistic Country1365 Words   |  6 PagesJosh Turner Professor Mayes History 110 4/9/2015 Great dynasties in Imperialistic China Ancient China was always able to flourish as a powerful economic and imperialistic country. Behind this great amount of early success were great dynasties that played great roles in China’s history. China has always been highly influenced by its great ancient dynasties. These dynasties were able to establish monetary systems, road and canal systems for trade, and also build great elaborate historic structuresRead MoreSimilarities Between Ancient Greece And China Essay1224 Words   |  5 Pages1. Using three civilizations as examples, describe the concept of the Axial Age The concept of axial age was introduced into the sphere of philosophical knowledge by German existentialist philosopher Karl Jaspers for characterizing the period of ancient history during about the 8th to the 3rd century BC. In this period of time we have developed a fundamentally new religious beliefs and doctrines that promoted human and cultural values of the era. Jaspers described the Axial Age as an interregnumRead MoreThe Basic Principles Of Ancient Chinese Philosophy2093 Words   |  9 Pageshistory, Taoism, Buddhism and Confucianism seem to blend together. In the Shang Dynasty around 2000 BC, the people of China were polytheistic, worshipping many gods at a time. People of this time worshipped their own ancestors as gods, as they believed they became like gods after dying. The basic principles of ancient Chinese philosophy consisted of five features: spiritual existence, morality, harmony, intuition, and practice. The philosophies before the Qin era were marked by various ancient philosophicalRead MoreThe Three Types of Ancient Chinese Rulers943 Words   |  4 PagesIn ancient China, many different rulers tried to unify and rule the country using a variety of methods – Confucianism, Daoism, and Legalism to name a few. Each philosophy had its own set of rules of how people should act both in public and privately. The overall goal of each philosophy was to set a standard of acceptable living that would ensure harmony and success for the society. However, each was different and thus had different results. Legalism is a philosophy emphasizing strict obedience toRead MoreConfucianism vs Legalism2475 Words   |  10 Pagesideologies, Confucianism and Legalism. Towards the later part of ancient China (e.g Han dynasty), states started to adopt a mixture of Confucianism and Legalistic ideology. Why did Legalism and Confucianism fall off? In this paper I will explore and provide my own insights on the shortcomings of both ideologies; how Legalism was more persuasive in getting people to accept their ideas and more effective as an ideology and how Confucianism lost out in both aspects. Persuasiveness of Legalism The central