Ethics Debate in Ancient Chinese Philosophy

1. Review: Confucius and Mozi • Psychology part of law argument • theory of人性 • Human nature mixed social (not Good) • Interpretive argument applies to 禮liritual • 正 名zheng-mingrectify names detail • Guides application of 禮liritual in action • Requires 仁renhumanity in sage (and us?) • Or guides in wrong way

2. Debate With Mozi • Tradition can be wrong • Argument by example • Presupposing Confucian attitudes • Therefore need a standard to select • Implies following tradition is natural • Question is which tradition? Modified? • Non-social Standard • (otherwise could leave) • Inference to 天 tiannature:sky standard • Natural guide to prefer 利 to 害 li-haibenefit-harm

3. Questions No quiz this week Coffee Tutorial today

4. Result: Utilitarianism • Test of a dao is general well being • Utility an anti-tradition morality • Same in the West—diff tradition • Implies moral judgments that conflict with conventional norms • Pre-marital sex, recreational drugs, prostitution, homosexual acts • Kill poor people (more avg happiness) • No birth control (more total happiness)

5. Moral Reform Impasse • Your standard must be wrong • It implies immoral actions are right • No, it shows they are immoral • Traditionalist begs the question at issue • What is the correct morality

6. Partial Solution • Collectively self-defeating moralities • The soldier story: • Confucian morality recommends universal (utilitarian) attitudes in others • Cannot recommend itself as the public collective morality • Western Hobbes parallel • Egoism is a self-defeating morality • I would be worse off as an egoist if everyone had my moral attitudes • Weakness like Socratic method • Only tells what is wrong, not what is right • Premise: existing attitude • Conclusion: different attitude

7. Yang Zhu 楊朱 • Ethical egoism • Distinguish psychological egoism and ethical egotism • No psychological egoism in ancient China • 天Tian nature:sky's mandate in our constitution • 氣qibreath medical theory? • Mencius 辯 (disputes) to answer Yang-Mo

8. Ethics: Sub-fields (for Mencius) • Divisions: • Metaethics • Epistemology, semantics, objectivity of ethics • Moral psychology • Tendency to be ethical, selfish, religious, etc • Normative theory • Systematic answer to "what should I do“ • The highest “should” premise from which all moral conclusions follow

9. Mencius孟子 • Twin challenge of Yang and Mo • Otherwise would not 辯 biandistinction dispute • Adapts Yang Zhu's idea to answer Mozi • Alternative account of “natural will” • Inborn human dispositions/tendencies 性 • Shares the authority of天tiannature:sky • Derivation from inborn capacity 性

10. Strategy: Rituals as Natural • Origin of burial 禮liritual story • Spontaneous (unsocialized) reactions • 禮 liritual conventions emerge from natural responses • 天 tiannature:sky given patterns • Where? Born in the 心 xinheart-mind

11. Four Beginnings 端 • The心 xinheart-mind has four impulse patterns • Lead to the four classic virtues • 側隱compassion 仁benevolence • 羞惡shame 義 yimorality • 辭 讓deference 禮liritual • 是非shi/feithis:right/not this:wrong智zhiwisdom

12. Stories: • Child by the well and 仁renhumanity • Problems as answer to Mozi • Problems as a defense of Confucianism • Strong and Weak versions • Weak is probably shared by Yang-Mo • Strong is implausible for禮liritual – where it is needed • Mozi's influence --仁renhumanity義yimorality • Interesting problem for義yimorality

13. Developmental Innatism: • Plant analogy • Morality not fully known at birth • Soil = economic climate • Water + nourishment = self-reflection • Valuing one’s inclination • Seed = innate tendencies • The spontaneous, pre-social reactions • Sprout = beginning reactions • Weeds = selfish desires • Problem of evil

14. Sagehood Ideal • Banyan tree = sagehood • Universal concern • Flood-like浩 然之氣qibreath • Heart and智zhiwisdom responsiveness • Language too coarse, imprecise • Situational shi-feithis-not this是 非 • Combine judgment and inclination • Spontaneous and natural • 氣qibreath link ? Unclear

15. Two Principles • Link fact & duty: • "Is-ought": “is” does not imply “ought” • Undermines appeal to nature • "Ought-can:" ought implies can • Is moral reform possible • Can't get an 'ought' from an 'is' • Why follow the heart? Why follow天tiannature:sky • Distinguishing feature • Health (like finger)

16. Mencius and Daoism • Prefers not to 辯 biandistinction dispute • Doesn’t like language • Doesn’t need language: intuition • Foolish man and plants • Don’t force growth with theory (language and distinctions)

17. Daoism: Early History • Hermits and Yang Zhu 楊朱: No theory of道 • First theoretical Daoist: Shen Dao慎 到 • Natural performance daoguide道 • Sum of all actual performance 道daoguides is the great dao 大 道 • You will follow大 道—no knowledge of道needed