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2021/22 School of Chinese Research Student Seminar

Care (Ai) in Early Ruism and Mohism 

先秦儒、墨家的「愛」觀之比較

Speaker: Mr. WONG Sun Tik  

Date & Time: Apr 1, 2022 (Fri) 5:30-6:45pm

Language: English

Mode of Delivery: 100% Online (via Zoom)

Zoom Meeting Link:

https://hku.zoom.us/j/91771674507?pwd=TzZRVGFYTEwxR25lVTZYRVJreHE3UT09

Meeting ID: 917 7167 4507

Password: 963435

Ruism and Mohism are two well-known schools of thought in early Chinese philosophy. For Mohists, their ethics centres on the doctrine of inclusive care. However, this doctrine has provoked sharp criticisms from early and contemporary Ruists. They argue that it brings about theoretical and practical problems. My chief concern in this presentation is to address the criticisms about Mohist care from Ruists. I first introduce Ruist and Mohist models of care. Then, I explore the Ruist challenges in three directions. They concern the inclusive attitude, impartial treatments, and the role of benefit in Mohist care. Finally, I argue that Mohists have plausible replies to Ruist challenges through textual analysis and philosophical reconstructions.

在先秦時期，儒家和墨家均為當世之顯學。就墨家而言，其倫理學的中心奠基於「兼愛」。可是，此一學說受到早期及現代儒者的批評，他們指出此說會導致理論及實踐上的困難。本次報告旨在回應儒家對兼愛的批評。報告將分為三部份。第一部份會著重於介紹墨家及儒家的「愛」觀。第二部份將會總結儒家對墨家的三個批評，分別為兼及的態度、一視同仁的對待、以及將利益視為兼愛的誘因。隨後，報告將會通過文本分析及哲學重構，提出墨家如何回應儒家的批評。

ALL are welcome*

*Pre-registration (Click HERE) is requested.