Reappearance of Confucianism in China: Impact on Relationships - Research Paper

Introduction

Since the current modern reforms in China began in the 1970s, the country has witnessed increased cases of the reappearance of Confucianism in its politics, education, health care, and social relations (Duan 147).

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Confucianism has enabled China mainland to improve the relationship of its citizens. There is showing that those who practice Confucianism in the country relate in a better way with each other than those who do not. Therefore, the promoters of Confucianism in the country are considered more righteous because of the integrity and faithfulness seen in their interactions with each other.

Confucianism in China is family-oriented, and it gives a different perspective on the things meant for community good. Through the family, the Chinese health care department finds the solutions to complicated problems in its system (Onsman 169). Confucianism teaches that there is no wrong in talking about common goods. That way, it helps in promoting the idea of 'we' instead of 'I' which glorifies individualism.

Confucianism promotes the culture of intellectual property protection in China (Li 271). Hence, China is able to control and regulate the culture of imitativeness and innovations, which are great contributors to the future growth of the country's economy.

Also, the ethics of Confucianism helped in promoting the recent growth of the country's education sector. The principles will help in ensuring that the country grows an education system that is centered on the interest of the students (Duan 153).

Lastly, through Confucianism ethos, China has been establishing a democracy focused on the people. The country will be able to develop a culture of integrity and transparency, where everyone is honest in their day to day dealings with both individuals and government institutions.

Confucianism in the Modern Day China

Confucianism in Politics

At the start of the nineteen nineties, Jiang started to develop a system of Confucianism. The system Jiang was put together in line with the Confucian listed a couple of things about politics. There were requirements it had to fulfill so as it would be implemented in the Chinese political system. One of the requirements is that it had to be approved by Dao, the leader, which is heaven (Chung 661). Secondly, for the policy of the political legitimacy principles Jiang proposed to be implemented in the country, it had to be in accordance with the leading national cultural heritage. Further, Jiang proposed in his Confucianism ideologies that for the principles of early Confucianism to be implemented in the Chinese political system, they had to agree with people's present will. With the three sides of Confucianism's legitimacy, Jiang helped in putting together a legislature that had a balanced perspective on the politics of the country and also which checked and balanced the political system of the country.

Further Confucian theory emphasized conflict resolution in the country through mediation. It replaced the application of abstract rules to get to know the wrong from the right in the country. Among the advantages of mediation that Confucian proponents fronted include the edge where mediation allows a room where the litigant's parties can restart a positive relationship once the dispute has been settled (Ho 541). The parties in the conflict can be able to re-establish a positive connection because as opposed to cases in the general law where one can have settlement imposed upon them in the mediation. There are no settlements that are imposed on the litigants. Also, the Confucian theory supports negotiation because, in the mediation policies, the cost incurred by the parties in the disputes is small. Lastly, the happenings of the proceedings are privately conducted, so the parties involved are able to control their positions.

Common Good and Health Care

Further, in line with the traditional Mainland Chinese culture, Confucianism puts more emphasis on the human being as social groups and not as individual human beings. The social groups consist of the clan, the family, and the political community. In contemporary China, the idea of Confucianism has its relevance in the common good relationships, in healthcare, and in public relations. The Confucianism theory emphasized the common good of all people in the community or the common good for the most people in the community (Zhang 263). The common ethical philosophy in the Confucianism theory also emphasizes fairness the relationships. The level of justice emphasized cuts across both the relations of government institutions and the individual associations. In the government relations with the country, men's Confucian stressed that the government should not discriminate against any section of the citizens in the provisions of services. All citizens are required to be given the same measure of treatment and care by the governments, regardless of their income levels, education levels, or geographical location.

Further Confucian stressed the importance of the critical common right approach in the complicated matters in the society, such as the provision of education. In the healthcare sector, Confucian emphasized the principles of mercy and fulfillment of responsibilities for those entrusted with the health sector. In the ethical policy of tolerance, Confucianism stressed that those that are assigned with the people's healthcare sector should show mercy to the sick and the vulnerable. The health professionals in the country should show care in the practice of their profession. At the same time, they should not show any sign of discrimination against anyone in any condition. Also, Confucian emphasized the idea of increased social order in the activities of healthcare services. It stressed that the idea of social order could be implemented through the structural organization of the hospital sector in the country. Confucianism was of the idea that this can be achieved if and when every person's role is appropriately defined in the health care sector. In modern China, the concept of mercy and fulfillment of responsibilities are being fulfilled in today's health care sector as they were proposed in Confucianism.

Intellectual Property System

The intellectual property litigations in China are still largely influenced by Confucian laws and culture. The Confucian philosophies on the implementation of legal actions on intellectual property disputes emphasized fairness, care, mercy, and the consideration of the significant and common good (Li 1). Regardless of the strides the country of China has made on the intellectual property laws, the Confucianism principles inspire the principles of their laws. In recent times there has been increased activism for the tightening of the intellectual property resources. The intellectual properties include the patents and copyrights in the country. As a positive step in enhancing the protection of the intellectual properties, the Republic of China has been able to set up an intellectual property court which is formed under the supreme people's court. The laws and the mandate of the court are to protect the intellectual properties of both the foreign innovators and the Chinese citizens. The establishment of the court in contemporary China and the institution of intellectual property laws have been able to boost technology and innovations in the country.

Confucian in Education Management

Furthermore, as part of recognizing the ordinances of heavenly principles proposed by the Confucian, the government of China has started a long-term program to change the entire education structure (Onsman 170). The change plan is intended to take ten years. The program is designed to open up and develop the whole higher education sector of China. The principal objective of the program is to increase resourcing in the industry, reduce direct official interference, improve results, and increase access to education. The Confucian principles and aspects would underpin the entire education sector. The Confucian principles entrenched in the education sector include a learner-centered education system, a system where learners would be equipped with skills that would empower them to realize and enhance their capabilities. The activities in the education sector, the learning environment are customized such that they are able to produce learners who are ren and individuals who conduct themselves with courtesy ( Zhai 397). Teachers are also urged to be sensitive to the learner's needs such that they are able to know the student's heart and mind. The teacher should also seek to develop what is right in the learners and rescue them from that which is terrible and evil. Further, the principle urges the teachers not to rush into telling students what to do so that the learner's mind remains undisturbed. The laws would help in ensuring that the teachers know their students well. That means that the teachers would get to see the learner's mental and emotional states because they have an impact on the learner's performance in school. In addition, the teacher should refrain from evaluating students early in their study. The theory suggests that evaluating students fast would make them anxious and, therefore, not able to study leisurely.

Instead, the Confucius principles proposed that the teacher should only evaluate the learner's mental development. The objective of the teacher is to only information about the development of the students at each level, e.g., the growth in cognitive abilities such as abilities to analyze texts and also the cognitive development in terms of the desire and the willingness of the student to study seriously. According to Confucius, the approach helps the teachers only to guide the students instead of spoon-feeding them with education or indoctrinating them. Further, the principles dictate that the teacher's word should be brief yet penetrating. And while employing the laws, the teacher should not arrive at the answers and conclusions on the student's behalf. Instead, the teacher should promote independent thinking in the classrooms. The principles of Confucius are still widely applied in the modern-day China education sectors.

Confucianism and Democracy in Contemporary China

The question of whether Confucianism is compatible with the modern-day democracy has attracted big debates in contemporary times. The concepts discussed by Minben relate closely to the relationships of Confucianism and democracy (Duan 148). The idea of Minben states that the people are the power. In the thoughts of Minben, a view of the sources of the ruling power is discussed, and in the Minben, the causes of ruling power are to be from heaven. According to Minben, a person cannot have ruling power excepts from the sky. And in the Minbens philosophy, it is stated that the incumbent ruler can choose their successor, but such a successor cannot ascend to the ruling office excepts with the blessings from the heavens. In the order of the most important, the Mencius states that the people of a particular country are the most important, followed by the nation itself, that is, the soil, altars, and the grains of a country. Lastly, in the order of importance, Mencius states that the ruler is the third in the ranks.

Further, in his texts, we find Mencius requiring that the rulers should be right in their everyday dealings. In the modern world, the idea of the Confucian concept of Minben is different from what we experience in modern-day democracies. The thoughts are different in that in the Minben concepts, we have the ruler ranking third in the order of priorities of importances. Whereas the case in the contemporary world is that the leader is the priority in the order of importance, they are the ones ranked first. Secondly, there is a difference between the modern democracies and the Confucian...