Publication Type
Journal Article
Version
acceptedVersion
Publication Date
1-2001
Abstract
In Thinking from the Han, David Hall and Roger Ames compare Plato's - and Confucius's views of friendship in relation to the question of transcendence and arrive at the sad conclusion that Socrates and Confucius could not be friends. "Socratic irony would not allow the inequality Confucius requires as a means of self-betterment. Confucius would not permit he and Socrates to hold all things in common." Along the way, they articulate an understanding of Confucius’ view of friendship as "a one-directional relationship in which one extends oneself by association with one who has attained a higher level of realization." Hall and Ames explain their omission of Aristotle on the grounds that Plato provides a better contrast with respect to the notion of transcendence. To contribute to a broader understanding of Confucius' view of friendship, I wish to compare Confucius' and Aristotle's view of friendship in relation to the question of equality in excellence and, through the comparison, to understand its impact on ethical development.
Keywords
Friendship, Confucius, Aristotle, equality, ethics
Discipline
Philosophy
Research Areas
Humanities
Publication
International Studies in Philosophy
Volume
33
Issue
4
First Page
99
Last Page
121
ISSN
0270-5664
Identifier
10.5840/intstudphil200133448
Publisher
Philosophy Documentation Center
Citation
TAN, Sor-hoon.(2001). Mentors or friends: Confucius and Aristotle on equality and ethical development in friendship. International Studies in Philosophy, 33(4), 99-121.
Available at: https://ink.library.smu.edu.sg/soss_research/2613
Copyright Owner and License
Authors
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-No Derivative Works 4.0 International License.
Additional URL
https://doi.org/10.5840/intstudphil200133448