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Document Details : Title: Can Confucianism Morally Justify Just Hierarchies? Subtitle: Mohism as an Alternative Solution Author(s): LEE, Ting-mien Journal: Ethical Perspectives Volume: 29 Issue: 4 Date: 2022 Pages: 439-453 DOI: 10.2143/EP.29.4.3291689 Abstract : Inspired by Confucianism and contemporary Chinese Confucian culture, Daniel A. Bell and Wang Pei argue that an age-based hierarchy between intimates, meritocracy-based hierarchies between governments and citizens, and reciprocity-based international hierarchies are morally desirable. Without intending to challenge the normative implications of these theses, this article disputes Bell and Wang’s Confucian groundwork. First, I argue that their interpretation of Confucian filial piety is problematic and leads to an invalid argument for age-based hierarchies within families. Next, by showing that their ‘Confucian arguments’ for just hierarchies in domestic and international political organizations resonate with Mohism, I argue that Mohism is a better normative theory for grounding their arguments than Confucianism. Thus, Bell and Wang may want to reconsider whether their arguments are ‘Confucian’ and whether Confucianism is the only or the most reliable source of traditional Chinese insights for addressing contemporary social-political issues in Chinese terms. |
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