Xunzi: Basic Writings (Translations from the Asian Classics) First Edition

by Xunzi (Author), Burton Watson (Translator)

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ISBN-13: 978-0231129657

ISBN-10: 9780231129657

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Xunzi asserted that the original nature of man is evil, differing on this point from Mencius, his famous predecessor in the Confucian school. In the most complete, well-ordered philosophical system of his day, Xunzi advocated the counteraction of man's evil through self-improvement, the pursuit of learning, the avoidance of obsession, and observance of ritual in life. Readers familiar with Xunzi's work will find that Burton Watson's lucid translation breathes new life into this classic. Those new to Xunzi will find his ideas on government, language, and order and safety in society surprisingly close to concerns of our own age.

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Editorial Reviews

Review

Burton Watson...possesses all the qualities which distinguish a master translator. As a craftsman and as a poet, he has inspired and challenged two generations. (Asian Affairs)

Translation of any of the classics...from the hand of Burton Watson is an event to be welcomed with gratitude. (Journal of Asian Studies)

Language Notes

Text: English (translation)
Original Language: Chinese

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Product details

Series: Translations from the Asian Classics
Paperback: 160 pages
Publisher: Columbia University Press; First edition (April 15, 2003)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 9780231129657
ISBN-13: 978-0231129657
ASIN: 0231129653
Product Dimensions: 5.2 x 0.5 x 8 inches
Shipping Weight: 10.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
Average Customer Review: 3 customer reviews
Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #771,596 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #130 in Books > Religion & Spirituality > Other Eastern Religions & Sacred Texts > Confucianism
- #152 in Books > Textbooks > Humanities > Literature > World Literature > Asian
- #315 in Books > Politics & Social Sciences > Philosophy > Good & Evil

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Confucian thought continued

May 26, 2004

Format: PaperbackVerified Purchase

Xunzi followed Mencius, Confucius, and the other better-known names of Chinese philosphical history. He represents an interesting departure from them, though.

He holds the same high regard for order, hierarchy, and ritual as the earlier Confucians. He combines it with some of the thinking from other schools, though. He flirts with Han Fei Tzu's Legalist pessimism about human nature. Xunzi, however, asserts that proper behavior can be learned and taught. Deep understanding would be best, but even rote performance of one's proper roles and rituals are enough to save people from their innate flaws. He also takes on some of Chuang Tzu's mysticism. Xunzi's "sage" seems almost to spread his upright influence just by standing among the lesser people, with a magical lack of causal relationship.

It's clear that Xunzi wrote as one among many different schools of thought. He spends a good bit of time explaining the errors of the competing philosophers, making it clear that his own thinking needed justification in that environment. He does, however, add a few notes of his own. For example, section 9 describes a king's duties. The king, through his deputies, is expected to regulate fishing, forestry, and other use of renewable resources. This is not meant to deprive anyone or to enrich the king artificially, but to keep the resources productive for the long term. How I wish that today's leaders would learn from the knowledge of 300BC.

Xunzi was not among the first rank of influential thinkers, but well up in the second rank. If you are building a library of Eastern classics, this certainly has a place on your shelf.

//wiredweird

PS: This appears to be the same material as Watson's "Hsun Tzu" (ISBN 0231086075). The only difference seems to be the romanization, the convention for English spellings, used in the two books.

17 people found this helpful

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Roman Frackowski

Sources for Xunzi

January 5, 2011

Format: PaperbackVerified Purchase

This book gives an easy access in English to the highlights of Xunzi's thought in his own authorship. A must for those who study Xunzi.

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laurens van den muyzenberg

Man's Nature is Evil?

June 7, 2013

Format: Paperback

Xunzi, 321 BC, is one of he very few philosophers that declares Man's nature is evil to which he adds, "Goodness is the result of conscious activity." That is not as far removed from for example Buddhism as one might think. Buddhism teaches that man has good and bad tendencies and must train their mind with meditation to overcome the negative ones. Xunzi like Buddha insists even more on the necessity of training the mind to become a good person.
Xunzi describes man as " The nature of man is such that he is born with a fondness for profit. If he indulges this fondness, it will lead him to wrangling and strife, and all sense of courtesy and humility will disappear. He is born with feelings of envy and hate. Man is born with the desires of the eyes and ears. The eye's fondness for beautiful forms, the mouth fondness for delicious flavors, or the body's fondness for pleasure and ease-these are all the products of the emotional nature of man. They are instinctive and spontaneous". "If he indulges in these, they will lead him into violence and crime."
"Therefore man must be transformed. That part of man, which cannot be learned or acquired by nature, is called human nature; that part of him which can be acquired by learning and brought to completion by effort is called conscious activity. This is the difference between nature and conscious activity." This description is also very similar to Buddhism.
Xunzi also makes interesting comments about rulers and ruling a country. " The legitimacy and survival of the ruler rests ultimately upon the support of the people: he is a boat, they the water which may bear him up or capsize him as they choose. No claims of hereditary right or iron discipline can hold out forever in the face of popular indifference or anger. A King enriches his people, a dictator enriches his soldiers, a state that is barely managing to survive enriches its high officers, and a doomed state enriches only its coffer and stuffs its storehouses. "
"The ruler is one who is good at organizing men in society. There has never been an enlightened ruler who succeeded by keeping secrets from his ministers. If the ruler is open with his ministers, then honest advice will reach his ears and slanderous reports will cease. Gentlemen will draw close to him and petty men will disappear."
Xunzi was one the first that recognized the importance of people understanding a word the same way which he referred to as "rectifying names". "If there are no fixed names but men begin to discriminate on the basis of their own particular observations, each applying his own names, and interpreting the different phenomena in his own fashion, then the relationships between names and realities will become obscured and entangled, the distinction between "eminent" and "humble" will become unclear." A good example to day is the word "liberal" in politics.
If you like these comments, you should buy the book and find many, many more. The book shows that even though a lot changed since 321 BC, human nature is still the same.
Xansa's ideas had considerable influence on the rulers of the Han Dynasty. He was a follower of Confucius but differed on several important points. He criticized some of the teachings of Mencius, Mo Tzu and Han Feizi, some of it, in my view justified, in others not.

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