#103 The Universalist Alternative: Mozi

"Mozi Saves the Song"《墨子救宋》, a graphic novel (lianhuanhua 連環畫) originally published in 1951 by the Chaohua Fine Arts Publishing House and reissued in 2005 by the People's Fine Arts Publishing House.

Background:

Life of Mozi:

• Lived from about 470–391 BCE, meaning he was born not long after Confucius’s death in 479 BCE and was contemporaneous with Socrates (470–399 BCE). See our China's Axial Age timeline (JPG).
• Do not know much about him personally. “Mo” (墨) may or may not have been his real surname.
  • May mean “tattoo,” indicating he was a convict.
  • May indicate he was of the artisan class.
• Educated in the Classics.
• His ideas come to us through the eponymous text, The Mozi, of which 53 out of 71 chapters have survived. Important parts have been lost, including the first section of his attack on Confucius.
• What survives shows a style of argumentation that is more logical (and perhaps more boring) than that of Confucius.

Times of Mozi:

• No immediate change occurred in the transition between the Spring and Autumn (Chunqiu 春秋) and Warring States (Zhanguo 戰國) periods, but it did signal a gradual escalation of warfare among the would-be successor states of the Zhou (周) dynasty.

The Mohists:

• One of the many “Hundred Schools contending” (baijia zhengming 百家爭鳴) during the period, though only one of two, along with the Confucians, that had enough substantial numbers of self-identified followers to produce real internal factions.
• Developed the first known articulation of what we know today as consequentialism, i.e. “the ends justify the means” (I mention this so we do not simply equate Mohism with Gandhism).
• Mohists largely disappeared and were forgotten by the end of the Han (漢) dynasty (206 BCE–220 CE), revived only after contact with the West and Christianity.

Scenarios

Tackle together:

• Scenario Jia 甲: “One hundred and seventy members of the School's 125th graduating class collected their diplomas under bright skies on June 2. In the days leading up to Commencement, grads-to-be relaxed and celebrated their achievements in the senior awards ceremony, but most importantly, they took time to appreciate the beauty of the campus and the friendships they've formed over the past four years. During the Baccalaureate Ceremony, held in the Chapel before Commencement, Senior Class Co-President Sally Kuehn spoke about how her final weeks at Hotchkiss gave her the opportunity to slow down and notice the things that she had taken for granted.” --“Hotchkiss Celebrates its 125th Graduating Class,” The Hotchkiss School, 2 June 2017.
  • How might Mozi appraise this situation? What about Confucius?
  • What specific textual evidence supports your conclusions?

Consider in small groups:

• Scenario Yi 乙: “Edward Snowden, a former contractor for the CIA, left the US in late May [2013] after leaking to the media details of extensive internet and phone surveillance by American intelligence. Mr Snowden, who has been granted temporary asylum in Russia, faces espionage charges over his actions.” --“Edward Snowden: Leaks that exposed US spy programme” from BBC News, 17 January 2014.
  • How might Mozi appraise this situation?
  • What specific textual evidence supports your conclusion?
  • How might additional information or factors about this topic sway your interpretation?
• Scenario Bing 丙: “The last couple weeks alone have seen a series of devastating climate disasters in various parts of the world. The hurricanes close to home – Harvey, Irma, and possibly Jose – are part of a growing, global trend of more intense and destructive storm cycles. From Houston to Haiti to Mumbai, millions of homes are underwater or blown over, and millions of people are homeless and impoverished.” —Mary Babic, “Harvey, Irma, Jose and the shocks and hazards of place,” published on the Oxfam website, 8 September 2017.
  • How might Mozi appraise this situation?
  • What specific textual evidence supports your conclusion?
  • How might additional information or factors about this topic sway your interpretation?

Exploration of key themes:

• Recall the following passage from Mengzi (孟子):
  • “The reason why I say that all humans have hearts that are not unfeeling toward others is this. Suppose someone suddenly saw a child about to fall into a well: anyone in such a situation would have a feeling of alarm and compassion—not because one sought to get in good with the child's parents, not because one wanted fame among one's neighbors and friends, and not because one would dislike the sound of the child's cries. From this we can see that if one is without the feeling of compassion, one is not human.” (Mengzi 2A6; Van Norden 2008, 46)
    • Having reviewed the passage, examine how Mozi might respond.
    • Can you explain how Mozi’s notion of “impartiality” or “universal love” (jian’ai 兼愛) are similar to and different from the Confucian notion of “benevolence” (ren 仁)?
• As you read the text, what were some other key ideas that we might want to take note of?
• How is Mozi’s vision of good society similar from that of the Confucians? How is it different?
• What might Mozi’s ideal state look like? What might be be its organizing principles?