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Master Mozi Analysis

Decent Essays

Masters Mozi and Laozi are two famous philosophers from the Warring States Period; however, their theories about how to govern a state are opposed. Master Mozi advocates for impartial caring and non-offence in the application of enforceable rules, while Master Laozi favors “trying not to try”. In this paper, I will analyze these two Chinese philosophers’ ideas regarding solutions to crime. This analysis will include a brief comparison and comments on their thoughts.
Mozi, when emphasizing his state view, argued that “social good and harm”, which means societal benefits should be the main goal of a state. According to this view, a increasing crime rates may be effectively solved by enforcing rules and punishing people who harm societal benefits. …show more content…

In chapter 3, Laozi explains that sages should be “opening people’s hearts”, “filling their bellies”, “weaken the people’s commitments”, and “strengthen their bones” (Ivanhoe and Norden 164). These four points are general conditions when performing a non-action strategy. People who are rich enough will not steal from or cheat others because they are not struggling to live. Also, people who do not measure their worth by material objects will not fight for luxury goods, and that is because they know what is truly precious and what is truly cheap. Trying to banish awareness of outside materialism and making sure that every citizen can eat their fill and keep their bodies warm are two main targets for sages in ruling …show more content…

However, Mozi’s idea of enforcing rules on people can be merciless in some conditions. For example, when unexpected meteorological impacts cause crop failure, poor people do not have enough food to live, while some selfish people store up plenty of grains and are not willing to share with others. To survive this famine, hungry poor people rob others who have a great deal of grains. Should we just kill them because they violated the rules? Moreover, when authoritative structures gain too much force, social stratification is created, as well as unequal distribution of political powers. In this kind of society, social problems like stealing and robbing are more likely to happen because of envy and desire. For the two reasons I mentioned above, Mozi’s ideological views may not be a perfect way to decrease crimes. However, Laozi’s thoughts may also not work for normal citizens because most of us have something that we want in our lives, such as a high grade on a test, a delicious meal for dinner, or a good working position after we graduate. It seems impossible to achieve Daoism’s ideology of a world with no demands or desires; yet, Laozi’s ideas can be a lifelong goal to perfect ourselves. To decrease crime in society, Mozi’s strategies will work immediately but only in the short term, whereas Laozi’s strategies will not have an instantaneous

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