Abstract

Recently, there has been a revival of interest in Confucius. However, the focus of discussion has been on the ethical aspect of the Master's teaching. Notwithstanding differences in interpreting Confucius, scholars generally agree that the dominant theme in Confucius' teaching is self-cultivation and moral preaching. This "interpretive consensus" has important ramifications. For example, in some rare cases in which Confucius' views on politics are discussed, scholars tend to argue that Confucius sees political issues through a moral perspective. To him, there is no difference between politics and morality. ;This dissertation adopts a different approach by arguing that the central theme in Confucius' thought is not ethical, but political. The central concern of Confucius as reflected in the dialogue of his Analects is on some key issues confronting the stability of a political regime--love, knowledge, justice--and their relations to the "city." Facing the unprecedented crisis in sixth-century B.C. China, the urgent task for Confucius was not moral preaching, but the restoration of the "city" which was breaking apart due to the collapse of traditional way of ruling. This is not to say that there are no discussions of moral values, religious feelings, and rituals in the Analects. Rather, the author argues that discussion of these subjects revolves around politics, not the other way around. ;There will be six chapters in this dissertation. Following the Introduction, three chapters will be devoted to the discussion on several important notions in the Analects--jen , li , religion, and on the three types of men and how they fit in Confucius' political thought. The author will then make some reflections on Confucius' political thought, particularly the question of how Confucius thought would bear upon issues such as democracy and tradition. In the concluding chapter, the author will summarize some of the main points discussed in previous chapters and point out some of the contributions made by this study. ;Through these discussions, the author wishes to lay down some ground work in this dissertation so that it can serve as a stepping stone for future projects on Confucius