Abstract

The essay interprets Mencius' moral thinking as a theory of character development. Such a theory has three main components--a description of the virtuous person, an account of how one can become virtuous, and a discussion of related theoretical issues. These three aspects of Mencius' moral thinking are discussed in chapters 2, 4 and 5 respectively. Chapter 2 considers the four Mencian virtues, Mencius' conception of the unmoved mind, his discussion of fear and temptation, his idea that virtuous action is enjoyable, and his various observations concerning the motivation of the virtuous person. Chapter 4 considers his account of what one needs to do to become virtuous, the justification one has for so behaving, and the explanation of why people may fail to so behave. Chapter 5 considers his conception of human nature and the role his metaphysics plays in his moral philosophy. A greater part of Mencius' view of morality is shaped by his conception of the relation between morality and the mind. This conception is discussed in chapter 3, and its relation to other parts of his moral philosophy is discussed in chapters 4 and 5. ;A study of Mencius' moral thinking, and of Confucian ethics generally, has significant implications for contemporary moral philosophy. It deepens our understanding of character development, an aspect of our moral life relatively neglected by contemporary moral philosophers. This observation about the significance of the study is defended in chapter 1, and the idea of a theory of character development is explored further in chapter 6. Chapter 6 argues that we should work with the idea of a theory of character development in our attempt to do justice to the importance of the virtues to our moral life, and it clarifies certain aspects of the idea using Mencius' moral theory as an example of such a theory. However, this chapter is not intended to provide an exhaustive discussion of the idea. Instead, the present study of Mencius is intended only as a first step in a larger project which will explore in greater detail the idea of a theory of character development and the various ways in which a study of Confucian ethics helps us better understand the nature of such a theory.