Communication Between Cultures

wars, unjust societies, numerous forms of humans’inhumanity to one another, discord

in families, and neglect of scholarship, writing, and the fine and performing arts.”^241

In response to these observations,“Confucius asserted that government must be

founded on virtue, and that all citizens must be attentive to the duties of their

position.”^242 McGreal points out,“People were impressed by his integrity, honesty,

and particularly his pleasant personality and his enthusiasm as a teacher. Three thou-

sand people came to study under him and

over seventy became well-established

scholars.”^243 Those followers are important

to Asian history because they carried on

the work of Confucius after his death.

Core Assumptions

There are a number of principles that help explain Confucianism. First, Confucius

was a teacher and philosopher, not a religious figure. Confucianism primarily“focuses

on what happens in this world, not the afterlife.”^244 Because of this emphasis, Con-

fucius was more interested in issues related to education than theology. Second, it was

his hypothesis that people are basically good and only have to learn what constitutes

correct behavior. He suggested a means of bringing about this correct behavior, saying

that the best“way to actualize this goodness is through education, self-reflection, self-

cultivation, and by behavior in accordance with the established norms of the cul-

ture.”^245 Third, as noted, Confucius had great faith in learning. He stressed that

even a common man could greatly benefit from information and formal instruction.

Fourth, Confucius stressed a deep commitment to social harmony. That harmony

meant fulfilling the familial and secular obligations needed to live and work together.

In carrying out these relationships, Confucianism“emphasizes the individual’s social

relations and social responsibility over self-consciousness: people perceive themselves

according to their social relationships and responsibilities as opposed to their individ-

ual being.”^246 “Proper”relationships involve such things as the protection of“face,”

dignity, self-respect, reputation, honor, and prestige. Finally, because Confucius

strongly believed in a rigid hierarchy for all relations, he put forth five specific rela-

tionships where inferior members had the duty to respect, honor, and obey superior

members. These relations were“ruler-subject, husband-wife, elder brother-younger

brother, elder friend-junior friend, and father-son.”^247 This notion of“honoring

upper members”often affects how Chinese interact with people of another culture.

For example, Chinese students who attend universities in the United States might

be reluctant to contradict, question, or even approach an American professor for

fear that their action might be taken as displaying a lack of respect.

Analects

While there are many writings attributed to Confucius, it is the wisdom contained in

the compilation calledAnalects(sayings) that is most significant. This collection has

influenced East Asian thinking and teaching for thousands of years. Because Confu-

cius did not commit his philosophy to writing, it was his students and disciples who

recorded his advice. These“sayings”were not written down in a systematic and

REMEMBER THIS

Why do cultures conceive of death in so many different ways?

Which orientation comes closest to your conception of death?

Analects 153

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