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Worth Vs. Power: Han Fei’s “Objection to Positional Power” Revisited

Worth Vs. Power: Han Fei’s “Objection to Positional Power” Revisited AbstractThis article discusses the chapter “Objection to Positional Power” (Nan shi 難勢) of Han Feizi 韓非子. It provides a full translation cum analysis of the text and explores systematically the chapter’s structure, rhetoric, and its political message. The discussion, which contextualizes the chapter’s message within broader trends of the Warring States-period political debates, demonstrates that beneath the surface of debates about “positional power” (shi 勢) versus “worth” (xian 賢), the chapter addresses one of the touchiest issues in Chinese political thought: that of the intrinsic weakness of hereditary monarchy. Furthermore, “Objection to Positional Power” also addresses problems of the meritocratic system of rule and elucidates some of the reasons for Han Fei’s dislike of meritocratic discourse. By highlighting some of the chapter’s intellectual gems I hope to attract further attention to the immense richness of Han Feizi as one of the most sophisticated products of China’s political thought. http://www.deepdyve.com/assets/images/DeepDyve-Logo-lg.png Asiatische Studien - Études Asiatiques de Gruyter

Worth Vs. Power: Han Fei’s “Objection to Positional Power” Revisited

Pines, Yuri
Asiatische Studien - Études Asiatiques , Volume 74 (3): 24 – Mar 26, 2021
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Publisher
de Gruyter
Copyright
© 2020 Walter de Gruyter GmbH, Berlin/Boston
ISSN
0004-4717
eISSN
2235-5871
DOI
10.1515/asia-2019-0040
Publisher site
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Abstract

AbstractThis article discusses the chapter “Objection to Positional Power” (Nan shi 難勢) of Han Feizi 韓非子. It provides a full translation cum analysis of the text and explores systematically the chapter’s structure, rhetoric, and its political message. The discussion, which contextualizes the chapter’s message within broader trends of the Warring States-period political debates, demonstrates that beneath the surface of debates about “positional power” (shi 勢) versus “worth” (xian 賢), the chapter addresses one of the touchiest issues in Chinese political thought: that of the intrinsic weakness of hereditary monarchy. Furthermore, “Objection to Positional Power” also addresses problems of the meritocratic system of rule and elucidates some of the reasons for Han Fei’s dislike of meritocratic discourse. By highlighting some of the chapter’s intellectual gems I hope to attract further attention to the immense richness of Han Feizi as one of the most sophisticated products of China’s political thought.

Journal

Asiatische Studien - Études Asiatiques – de Gruyter

Published: Mar 26, 2021

Keywords: Han Feizi; meritocracy; positional power ( shi 勢); ruler; Shen Dao

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