A Source Book in Chinese Philosophy Legalism推荐.pdfVIP

••• 12 ••• LEGALISM TH E L E G A L I S T S CHOO L was the most radical of all ancient Chinese schools. It rejected the moral standards of the Confucianists and the religious sanction of the Moists in favor of power. It accepted no au- thority except that of the ruler and looked for no precedent. Its aim was political control of the state and the population, a control to be achieved through an intensive set of laws, backed up by generous rewards and severe punishments. According to their theory, aggression, war, and regimentation would be used without hesitation so long as they con- tributed to the power of the ruler. It can be readily seen that Legalism is entirely incompatible with other schools, especially Confucianism, which it bitterly attacked. The Con- fucianists were dedicated to the cultivation of virtue, the development of individual personality, government for the people, social harmony, and the use of moral principles, moral examples, and moral persuasion. On the contrary, the Legalists were primarily interested in the accumulation of power, the subjugation of the individual to the state, uniformity of thought, and the use of force. It is not surprising that they were instru- mental in setting up the dictatorship of Chin (221-206 B.C .), in uni- fying China in 22 1 B.C., and in instituting the tightest regimentation of life and thought in Chinese history. The brutality and violence of the Chin brought its early downfall in 206 B.C., and the Chinese, fearful of the ruthlessness of the Legalists, have ever since that time rejected them. There has been no Legalist School in China in the last two thousand years, or even any Legalist scholar of any prominence.