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Analects of Confucius
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BetaBooks 16-20Chapter Summaries & Analyses
Book 16 Summary
In this book, Confucius elaborates further on what distinguishes the moral character of the one who possesses “manhood” and how it relates to the governance of a people. Rather than governing by an iron fist, Confucius makes the following observation:
If every man keeps to his own land, there will be no poverty, with harmony there will be no lack of population but tranquility without upsets (subversions). It’s just like that. Therefore if distant people do not conform, one should attract them by one’s own disciplined culture, and by honest action, when they have come in, they will quiet down (109).
Moreover, just as the one who governs in the manner of the virtuous individual, the same individuals will be capable of distinguishing that which aids and that which hinders the moral development of themselves and the people in general:
There are three pleasures which augment a man, three that harm. The pleasure of dissociating perceptions of rites and music; pleasure in other men’s excellence; the pleasure in having a lot of friends with talent and character, augment; the enjoyment of swank, loafing and debauchery, harm” (110).
Confucius also adds that “[t]he proper man has three awes: he stands in awe of the decrees of destiny [...] he stands in awe of great men, and of the words of the sages” (111). Thus, for Confucius, the most just governing style is the form of government that leads and educates the populace by example as opposed to force or deception.
Book 17 Summary
In this book, Confucius treats the subject of “manhood” and the necessity of practice in the process of its cultivation. As he puts it, “[m]en are born pretty much alike, it’s practicing something that puts distance between them” (114). With respect to both the individual and society as a whole, Confucius argues that it is precisely this need to practice at behaving in a moral and virtuous manner that should be extended to the whole of society. As Confucius puts it:
To be able to practice five things (all together) would humanize the whole empire [...] Sobriety, magnanimity, sticking by one’s word, promptitude (in attention to detail), kindliness. Serenity will shape things so that you not be insulted. With magnanimity you will reach the mass. Keep your word and others will confide. By promptitude you will get through your jobs [...] Kindliness is enough to get results from those you employ (115).
What is fundamental to this discussion regarding the practice of acting in a virtuous manner is the role played by the observation of tradition and rituals, since these communal activities aid in the formation of the habits that are trademark of the one who is said to possess “manhood.”
Book 18 Summary
Confucius returns to the theme of the relations between the older and the younger generations in the midst of the decline of the Yin Dynasty. Due to the corruption of the Yin Dynasty, Confucius opens this book with the following remark regarding Liu-Hsia, the chief criminal judge, who was fired three times from his job for failing to participate in the empire-wide corruption at every level of government:
Hui of Liu-Hsia, chief criminal judge, was dismissed three times. Someone said: Isn’t it about time for you to clear out? [Confucius] said: Going straight and being useful to others, where would I go and not be fired three times? If I want to go crooked, what need of leaving my parental country? (123).
Through this example, we see that even in old age manhood and moral character mean acting in such a way that one does not compromise on the honesty and truth value of one’s commitments. Additionally, the example of Liu-Hsia, says Confucius, must be circulated among the younger generations so that they may be able to grasp what it means to remain steadfast and honorable in one’s commitments:
You can’t neglect the right relation between old and young, how can he neglect the right relation between prince and minister, wishing to conserve his personal purity, he lets loose chaos in the great order. A proper man takes a government job, goes straight. He knows perfectly well perfect principles are not followed (125).
Ultimately, it is through this image of Liu-Hsia that Confucius aims to educate younger generations in the requirements for governing society in a just and harmonious manner.
Book 19 Summary
Confucius provides some of his final comments on the nature of the gentleman, or the one who possesses manhood in his descriptions of the “scholar-gentleman”:
To be daily aware of what he lacks, not forgetting what he can make function [...] can be defined as loving study (128).
Extending study, keeping the will hard yet supple; putting a fine edge on one’s questions, and sticking close to what one really thinks. Manhood takes root in the centre of these (128).
A proper man keeping his word [...] can make the people work hard; if he don’t keep his word they will consider the same work an oppression. A man who keeps his word can remonstrate with his prince, if he does not keep it, the remonstrance will be taken for insult (129).
Given these remarks, what becomes clear is that, for Confucius, the one who possesses manhood can be called the “scholar-gentleman” precisely because they are the individual who combine filiality and brotherhood with the lifelong commitment to the cultivation of moral character (lifelong study) into their persons. In this way, the Confucian emphasis on ritual and practice come together with the moral development of individual character.
Book 20 Summary
In the final book of the Analects, Confucius outlines the five excellences that should be followed in governing and the evils that must be avoided. Regarding the five excellences, or virtuous principles, he says: “How do you define the five excellences? He said: The proper man [...] is considerate without being grumbling, desires without greed, is honourable without hauteur, and boldly protective without ferocity” (134). And with respect to the four evils, Confucius says:
Not to teach people and then put them to death is cruelty; not to warn people and then expect them to have things finished perfectly, is called oppression [...] To be dilatory in giving orders and exigent in expecting them carried out at the precise date is cheating (134-35).
And regarding the evils to be avoided, Confucius says that they are “[n]ot to know the rites is to be without means to construct. Not to know words (the meaning of words) is to be without the fluid needful to understand them” (135). These comments serve as Confucius’s final remarks regarding the highest virtue that is the basis of both civic and political order: manhood.
Books 16-20 Analysis
In Books 16-20, Confucius delivers his final remarks on the relationship between manhood, governance, the cultivation of moral character in one’s private life and in one’s professional/public dealings. In Book 16, we read the following iteration of this relationship:
If every man keeps to his own land, there will be no poverty, with harmony there will be no lack of population but tranquility without upsets (subversions). It’s just like that. Therefore if distant people do not conform, one should attract them by one’s own disciplined culture, and by honest action, when they have come in, they will quiet down (109).
For Confucius, the most just governing style is the form of government that leads and educates the populace by example as opposed to force or deception.
In Book 17, Confucius addresses the necessity of practice in the process of its cultivation. As he puts it, “Men are born pretty much alike, it’s practicing something that puts distance between them” (114). Due to the necessity of practicing (i.e., cultivating) moral behavior, Confucius emphasizes the need for tradition and rituals in which individuals can participate and cultivate their “manhood.” Because of the need for practicing moral behavior, the observation and reverence of traditional ritual becomes so important in Confucian thought.
In Book 18, and through the image of the life of Liu-Hsia, Confucius aims to educate younger generations in the requirements for governing society in a just and harmonious manner. The story of Liu-Hsia is crucial for Confucius, since it portrays the life of someone who was resolute in values and resisted all participation in corrupt government (a refusal that ultimately led to his getting fired from his position).
In Book 19, Confucius develops the argument that the one who possesses manhood can be called the “scholar-gentleman” precisely because they are the individual who combines filiality and brotherhood with the lifelong commitment to the cultivation of moral character into their person. In this way, the Confucian emphasis on ritual and practice comes together with the moral development of individual character.
And in Book 20, Confucius provides the five excellences and four evils that should be avoided by one who holds political office. What comes through in these final remarks is the re-emphasis on the necessity of rituals and tradition whose function is to aid individuals in the cultivation of moral character. Hence, he says, “Not to know the rites is to be without means to construct” (135).
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