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Ha Jin’s “Flame” explores the story of a couple, Nimei and Hsu, who were once in love; however, their ill-fated relationship soon becomes full of revenge and Hsu seeks revenge on Nimei. Early on in the short story, things are going well in their relationship and the couple meets each other in secret. But then,… Continue reading Ha Jin “Flame” Reflection

I think the two readings were super interesting. In my high school history class, we talked a lot about whether humans were inherently evil or good. Then we looked at a bunch of different philosophers like Hobbes and Locke who had vastly different opinions. So, these readings reminded me a lot of past high school… Continue reading Good vs Evil

Man is a confusing subject and I think we all know that. Is Man inherently good? Is Man inherently bad? Is man born with a certain intent? There are so many questions that we can hypothetically ask ourselves to try and better understand one another but at the end of the day, I would like… Continue reading Inherently

One of the most interesting parts of this passage says, “If someone were to go around telling people ‘I can give you wisdom and long life!’ then the world would regard him as an impostor. Wisdom is a matter of man’s nature, and long life is a matter of fate, and neither human nature nor… Continue reading Eminence in Learning

One of the concepts I have struggled the most with this semester is from the “Man’s Nature is Evil” reading. The author, Hsun Tzu, says that man’s nature is evil and that goodness can only be achieved with conscious activity. At first thought, this idea seems far-fetched. How can every person be predisposed to evil?… Continue reading Man’s Nature is Evil

Mencius was a Chinese Confucian philosopher, commonly referred to as “the second Sage.” Mencius believed that man and other things are born or created as being good, and lose their way later in life when they fall off the path of righteousness. He validates his point on page 283 of The Wisdom of Confucius when talking… Continue reading Mencius, “Man’s Nature is Evil”, and “Eminence on Learning” Analysis

The 7 pages regarding the thoughts of Mencius are somewhat repetitive I believe. Mencius believes in a sense that humans are not inherently good or bad rather neutral at birth and it is more outside influences and the values that one places on thoughts or actions that sways one to either side as their life… Continue reading Mencius Reflection

After reading and watching videos on Xunzi and Mengzi’s stances on humanity and human nature, I had to think to myself about whether I thought humans were born with the tendency for good or bad. I thought both philosophers made valid points. For Mengzi, I agree that with the right nurturing and upbringing (such as… Continue reading Human Nature: Inherently Good or Bad?

I enjoyed watching the documentary because I find it fascinating to hear how prominent people in history get to be so important and learn about how they grew up. I thought it was interesting that Confucius was always into much more mature ways of spending his time–like learning new concepts and ideas while other kids… Continue reading BBC Documentary on Confucius

These two readings have very interesting arguments that contradict some of Confucius’s teachings while also agreeing with them. In the Man’s Nature is Evil reading, the author claims that man’s nature is inherently evil, meaning that man will always have an instinct to profit. In order to combat this, a man must produce good through… Continue reading “Man’s Nature is Evil” & “Eminence in Learning” Blog