When I first opened the pages to Confucius' analects and read the first paragraphs, I was immediately stricken by how immediate and real Confucius' insights felt. This stood in stark contrast to my encounters with western philosophy. The writings of western philosophy simply reiterated the assumptions and arguments I saw embodied in the problematic social structures and relationships I saw in the world around me. Western philosophy seemed both naïve and paternalistic, and insisted on simplifying problems I thought were more complex or that could be solved by intellectual compromise. Most of all, western philosophy seemed devoid of insights drawn from experience, and my experience felt at odds with large portions of the western tradition.
By comparison Confucius and his disciples seemed to walk off the page and into the world. Their own discussions had an immanence that I never felt in most western thought. Much of this was due to the narrative style. The analects are written as vignettes. They contain much more than simple records of his pronouncements and sayings, although they do this too. They contain descriptions of Master Kong and his students; they contain accounts of his travels and his responses to diplomatic encounters; they contain discussions between sagely exemplars and a cast of students, some adept in the ways of Dao and others struggling for approval. At times we see Confucius talking to his students, and at times we see him standing in reflection of the world around him. But no matter who is talking or what is happening, we engage the philosophy as a set of encounters that draws a shared space between ancient China and the modern reader. The analects were a collection of experiences, and even if entirely fictional they still presented a way to engage the thought being put forward in a way that was immediately engaging.
But this was, I believe, intentional. Writing aphorisms provided models for Confucius' disciples, and presumably for the people who heard the stories. Confucius speaks about the importance of providing sagely examples for the people: a single sage can transform the behavior of an entire community simply by participating in a standard of excellence. By observing deference and ritual propriety the sage does not simply demonstrate - the sage inspires.
This strikes at one of the major differences between eastern and western philosophy - the analects of Confucius seek to change behavior through the power of example and inspiration. The writings of most philosophers in the western cannon seek to change behavior through rational deliberation and argumentative discourse. Argument and discourse certainly have their place and are inherent tools of academic writing. However, they also reflect the western tradition's overriding belief in rationalism, that everything can be understood and controlled through the power of reason alone. While this may be incredibly optimistic it also contains deep flaws. Not only is the human animal not a perfectly rational being, but attempts to dictate all activity through reason end in failure - reason cannot predict all situations, account for all variables, nor make all distinctions. And while reason may be a vital tool to overthrowing oppression it can just as easily become a tool of oppression.
But this is not about the shortcomings of western philosophy. The reason I write this is to explain my appreciation for the vitality of Chinese philosophy. The engagement with experience is at the core of Chinese thought. This is true not only with the analects of Confucius but also the cryptic riddles of the Dao De Jing and the fantastic wanderings of Zhuangzi. It is true for the followers of Confucius, Mencius and Xunzi, as well as the Moists and the Legalists. All these schools of thought understood that human activity occurred within a complex world of nature, politics, emotion, and language. They understood that the human desire for harmony occurred in a world of turbulence and change. Their writing reflects this, and it was this engagement with the complexities of experience that drew me into Chinese philosophy.
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