Chinese have a strong history with rich traditions developed over thousands of years. These traditions were based on philosophies that constructed social structures in the Chinese communities. Among the aspects that shaped Chinese society is Confucianism, which features prominently in Chinese history. It was a concept that solely focused on ensuring hierarchical arrangement in the society was achieved to achieve stability. The concept had five distinct relationships. However, this paper will only focus on two: ruler-subject relationships and parent-child relationships. This paper will also analyze the strengths and weaknesses of these relationships concerning ancient Chinese society. Through this analysis, the paper can draw insights into Confucianism’s impact on Chinese culture. The paper will also try to contemplate the aspects that have held American society together and examine whether they help strengthen American society.
Ruler-Subject Relationship
The subject-ruler relationship was the cornerstone of Confucianism as it was the critical component of Chinese society. According to this thought, the Chinese believed that with a benevolent leader, it was easy for them to inspire their subjects and thus ensure an organized society. It is a concept that seems realistic and can easily achieve its intentions. However, it portrays many flaws, and it involves a complex approach.
The merits that these approaches had to society include stability and order. Within Chinese society, the strict adherence to the ruler-subject code of conduct ensured that centralized authority gave decision-making to a centralized authority. With this setup, society could minimize conflicts and hence, prosperity and co-existence were realized. The subjects were able to respect the centralized authority. A deep respect for authority made it easy to achieve law and order. It helped prevent anarchy and maintain social cohesion with minimum rebellion. It was also able to enhance ethical governance in Chinese society. The approach insisted that the rulers were responsible for leading their subjects with wisdom and compassion. This eventually led to the emergence of ethical and just leaders who did everything to protect the interests of their leaders.
Weaknesses
It led to many instances of oppression and autocracy. The hierarchical leadership was rigid and could often slide to autocratic rule because the ruler’s authority was not checked. The tyrants could easily oppress their subjects because the leaders tended to act on their interests. It also led to limited social mobility, where even gifted leaders from the poor social class could not get a chance to lead or ascend to a place of influence.
Parent-Child Relationship
Confucianism considered the parent-child relationship as an integral part of Confucianism. This approach impacted ancient Chinese society both positively and negatively. Of the merits, it strengthened the Moral and ethical education where parents had the opportunity to be the primary educators of their children. They could then take this opportunity to ensure they instilled proper behaviour and ethics in their children. Additionally, it served as a filial piety where children were encouraged to exercise piety and were expected to respect their parents and obey their instructions. This approach helped nurture a strong sense of family unity and improve moral values.
Weaknesses
It encouraged gender inequality because, through the parent-child relationships, strong gender traditional roles were reinforced. Of these gender roles was the subservience of women to men. This approach excluded women from opportunities and hence entrenched gender inequality. It also overemphasized obedience and discouraged logical reasoning. It affected the children’s critical thinking because they were told to respect societal norms and not question their parents.
When these aspects are compared to modern American society, it hints at what keeps it together. Compared to Confucianism, America has a diverse society that has remained intact over the years, and it is attributed to democratic culture, its principles and values. Americans are brought together by equality, freedom and justice. The strain in these values in the recent past indicates that the future of American society should be looked into.
With America facing increased divisions ranging from unequal economic growth, political intolerance and increasing social class gap, the country’s cohesion is at stake. Like the Chinese society, the United States faces challenges and must develop ways of keeping the society together. Because it has done so before, these challenges can be faced and used as a strength. America must accept these changes to adapt to the ever-changing world.
In summary, the strengths and weaknesses of the parent-child and ruler-subject relationships in ancient Chinese society give insights into how Confucianism has helped shape Chinese society. Despite the shortcomings of this approach, it brought about authority and stability. In America, the principles and the fundamental values guarantee unity. America has no choice but to protect these values to keep its society together. It must formulate ways of keeping up with the changing world while at the same time protecting the principles that have kept the United States intact over a long time.
Work Cited
Billioud, Sébastien. “Confucianism in Chinese society in the first two decades of the 21st century.” The Cambridge History of Confucianism (2021): 1-16.
Lambert, Andrew. “Friendship in the Confucian Tradition.” The Routledge Handbook of Philosophy of Friendship (2022).
Makeham, John. Lost soul: “Confucianism” in contemporary Chinese academic discourse. Brill, 2020.
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