Name:_______________________
Date:__________
Eastern Civilizations: Period:_______
China’s Three Philosophies
There are three main philosophies of China, which are Confucianism, Legalism, and
Daoism. You will be put into three different groups and assigned one of the three philosophies.
Your goal is to work together to read information about your philosophy, create an outline of the
most important facts, and make a poster. Your group will use this poster to teach the class about
your assigned philosophy and everyone will fill out a graphic organizer.
Directions:
1. You will be split into three groups and each group will be assigned a philosophy
(Confucianism, Legalism, or Daoism). Each group will get a reading on their philosophy.
2. Read the information on the philosophy assigned to your group and then create an outline of
7-10 of the MOST important facts on your philosophy.
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Pretend that the person reading your poster has never studied the information.
Who is the founder of the philosophy?
Are their any important texts/books that belong to the philosophy?
What are the beliefs of this philosophy?
3. When your group is done outlining you must get your outline checked by me.
4. Once your outline is checked, you will be given a large poster paper. You are to put your facts
on this poster paper.
5. When all groups are done you will present your philosophy to the class and your classmates
will take notes from your poster.
Things to Remember:
1. You will only get ONE piece of poster paper!
2. BE PRODUCTIVE! You must work cooperatively in your group. This counts as a classwork
grade each day as well as a final project grade.
3. BE NEAT! You must spell everything correctly and capitalize properly on your poster. Failure
to do so will result in points taken off your grade.
4. BE CREATIVE!
5. SHARE the work. Everyone must participate and have a job while working on this project. On
the back of the poster each group member will write what they did.
Confucianism
During the late Zhou period, thinkers came up with ideas about how to
restore order in China. One such person, Confucius, became the most influential
teacher in Chinese history. The name Confucius means “Master Kong” or
“Kongfuzi”.
Confucius felt that China was overrun with rude and dishonest people. Upset
by the disorder and people’s lack of decency, Confucius said that the Chinese
needed to return to ethics, or moral values. The ideas of Confucius are known as
Confucianism.
Confucius wanted China to return to ideas and practices from a time when
people knew their proper roles in society. In Confucianism there were five basic
relationships. Each type of relationship had its own duties and its own code of
proper conduct:
1. Father and son
2. Older brother and younger brother
3. Husband and wife
4. Friend and friend
5. Ruler and subject
These are basic guidelines that Confucius thought would restore family order and
social harmony:
 Fathers should display high moral values to inspire their families.
 Children should respect and obey their parents (filial piety).
 All family members should be loyal to each other.
Confucius’s ideas about government were similar to his ideas about family:
 Moral leadership, not laws, brought order to China.
 A king should lead by example, inspiring good behavior in all of his subjects.
 The lower classes would learn by following the example of their superiors.
As Confucius traveled to many different regions, he earned the reputation of a
respected teacher. His ideas were passed down through his students and later
compiled into a book called The Analects.
Because Confucianism focuses on morality, family, society, and government,
people often think of it as a philosophy or a way of thinking. But it is much more.
Confucianism is a unique teaching that is both philosophical and religious. It has
been a guiding force in human behavior and religious understanding in China.
Confucius believed that when people behaved well and acted morally, they
were simply carrying out what heaven expected of them. Over the centuries
Confucius’s ideas about virtue, kindness, and learning became the dominant
beliefs in China.
Legalism
Legalism, as defined by the writings of Han Feizi, is a philosophy where it is
believed that human nature is wicked and people do good only if they are forced to
do it. They believed that harsh punishments were needed to make people afraid to
do wrong. Unlike the beliefs of Confucianism and Daoism, Legalism was a political
philosophy without religious concerns. Instead, it dealt only with the government
and social control. Followers of Legalism disagreed with the moral preaching of
Confucius. Legalists also reject Daoism because it didn’t stress respect for
authority.
Legalists felt that society needed strict laws to keep people in line and that
punishments should fit crimes. For example, they believed that citizens should be
held responsible for each other’s conduct. A guilty person’s relatives and neighbors
should also be punished. This way, everyone would obey the laws.
Shang Yang, a supporter of Legalism, wanted to force people to report
lawbreakers. In fact, he thought that people who did not report lawbreakers should
be cut in two. Legalists taught that rulers should reward people who do their duty.
Legalists do not want people to complain about the government or question
what it did. They favored arresting people who questioned the government or
taught different ideas. They also taught that rulers should burn books that
contained different philosophies or ideas.
Unity and efficiency were also important to Legalists. They wanted to
appoint officials, not nobles, to run China. Legalists wanted the empire to continue
to expand. Therefore, they urged the state to always prepare for war.
Daoism
Daoism is said to have begun with Laozi. No one knows if he really existed,
but some say he lived in the 500s B.C.E. The name Laozi means “Old Master”. The
book of his teachings is the Dao De Jing (The Book of the Way of Virtue). Daoism
developed in part as a reaction to Confucianism. Daoists didn’t agree with the idea
that active, involved leaders brought social harmony. Instead, they wanted the
government to stay out of people’s lives. The ideas of Daoism differ greatly from
the philosophies of Confucianism and Legalism.
Daoists believed that people should avoid interfering with nature or each
other. They should be more like water and simply let things flow in a natural way.
For Daoists the ideal ruler was a wise man who was in harmony with the Dao. He
would govern so effortlessly that his people would not even know they were being
governed. Daoists taught that the universe is a balance of opposites: female and
male, light and dark, low and high. In each case, opposing forces should be in
harmony.
The most notable symbol the Daoists are known for is the Yin and Yang. The
outer circle represents “everything”. The inner shapes represent the interaction of
the forces---Yin and Yang. The yin (black) stands for all that is cold, dark, and
mysterious. The yang (white) represents all that is warm, bright, and light. The
forces complement each other. The forces are always changing and evolving.
Understanding yin and yang helped a person understand how he or she fit into the
world.
While Confucianism focused its followers’ attention on the human world,
Daoists paid more attention to the natural world. Daoists regarded humans as just
part of nature, not better than any other thing. In time the Dao, represented by
nature, became so important to the Daoists that they worshipped it.
Laozi was the most famous Daoist teacher. He taught that people should not
try to gain wealth, nor should they seek power. Laozi is credited with writing the
basic text of Daoism, The Way and Its Power. Later writers created many legends
about Laozi’s achievements.