Summary The Analects of Confucius PDF

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Journal –The Analects (Books 4 & 12) As we learned in large group, Confucius can be considered China’s version of Socrates, which becomes very apparent when reading The Analects. In Book four it reads, “’The gentleman thinks about punishments whereas the petty person thinks about exemptions’” (Confucius 4.11). This means that a man is a gentleman if he commits a wrongdoing and then thinks about how he will be punished. However, if a man does something wrong and only worries about how he can get away with it or how he can be excused from punishment, then he is a petty person. This is much like something Socrates says in the Gorgias which we read in World of Rhetoric. Socrates believes it is better to commit an injustice and be punished than to commit an injustice and get away with it. He believes that if a person is not punished for a wrongdoing then his soul will become more evil. Being punished may be painful, but it is necessary in order to make the soul good again. The second part of 4.11, “The gentleman cherishes virtue, whereas the petty person cherishes physical possessions’”, is also similar to Socrates’ beliefs ( Confucius 4.11). Confucius felt that virtuous qualities were more important than material wealth. Socrates firmly believed in this concept as well and was often found on the streets talking to anyone who would listen. He did not dress nice because he could not afford it. In The Trial and Death of Socrates that we read in World Cultures, we learned that Socrates could not even afford to pay a fine to dispute the death penalty he was given for corrupting the youth. Overall, Socrates and Confucius are very similar in their belief systems and the lessons that they taught to their disciples and students....