Name ___________________________________________________________ Hour _________ Date _____________________
Chapter 8: Ancient China
Lesson 2: China's Ancient Philosophies
Main Ideas
 Belief systems: Legalists believed that the government must control people
through strict laws.
 Belief systems: Confucius taught that order would return to China if society
was organized around five relationships.
 Belief systems: The followers of Daoism taught that people could find
virtue by living in harmony with nature.
Vocabulary
Term
Definition
Other
Representation
(Icon, Picture, Example,
Sentence, etc.)
Application:
What learning
target does this
term connect to?
Why?
philosophy
Legalism
Confucianism
filial piety
Daoism
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Name ___________________________________________________________ Hour _________ Date _____________________
Legalism
1. What did Legalist believe government must do in order to control society?
2. Legalists believed that human nature is _____________ and that people only do
good if they are ____________ to be good. The government believed that
harsh punishments were needed to make people afraid to do _____________
3. Shang Yang, a supporter of Legalism, wanted to force people to report
____________________ He thought that people who did not report lawbreakers
should be __________________________.
Confucianism
4. Confucius lived in a time of much ____________ and ____________ in China.
5. Confucius developed ideas to end conflict and have peace in all relationships.
He felt _________________ was absolutely necessary for _______________________ .
6. How did Confucius want government officials to lead?
7. The book that had Confucius' ideas written down in was called _________________
8. What were the 5 Relationships for Confucius' code of proper conduct?
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7. Describe one of Confucius' most important teachings, filial piety.
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Name ___________________________________________________________ Hour _________ Date _____________________
Daoism
8. Daoism is the third Chinese philosophy created by ______________ No one knows if
he really existed, but his name means "Old Master." The book of his
teachings is the Dao De Jing which means ________________________________________.
9. Describe "the way" of Daoism
-A universal force called the Dao (or the Way) __________________________ .
- All creatures, ________________________, live in harmony with this force
- To relate to nature and each other, each ______________________________ an
individual way or Dao.
- The individual had to ________________________________and with
__________________________________
10. How do Daoists "follow the way?"
- they do not ________________________________________________
- they do not try to _________________________________
- they _________________________________are they were
- they did not want to be _________________________________ .
11. Daoists tried to understand nature and live in harmony with its rhythms.
Describe the idea of the "Yin and Yang."
Why it matters now: The teachings of Confucianism and
Daoism remain influential in China and the world today!
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Name ___________________________________________________________ Hour _________ Date _____________________
Graphic Organizer for the Three Chinese Philosophies
Use the graphic organizer to write down different ideas that go along with
each of the ancient Chinese philosophies
Legalism
Confucianism
Daoism
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