Confucius mini biography samples

First published Wed Jul 3, 2002; substantive revision Tue Sep 5, 2006

Confucius (551-479 BCE), according to Chinese tradition, was a thinker, political figure, educator, and founder of the Ru School of Chinese thought.

His teachings, preserved in the Lunyu or Analects, form the foundation of much of subsequent Chinese speculation on the education and comportment of the ideal man, how such an individual should live his life and interact with others, and the forms of society and government in which he should participate.

Fung Yu-lan, one of the great 20^th century authorities on the history of Chinese thought, compares Confucius' influence in Chinese history with that of Socrates in the West.

1.

Confucius mini biography samples

Confucius' Life

The sources for Confucius' life are later and do not carefully separate fiction and fact. Thus it is wise to regard much of what is known of him as legendary. Many of the legends surrounding Confucius at the end of the 2^nd century BCE were included b