chinese Philosophy

1. What is your interest in Chinese Philosophy? If you dont have one, what do you hope  to get out of this class?

2. How can learning Chinese philosophy help us live our lives today? There are some general suggestions in Chapters 1 and 2 of The Path, but I want to know what you think.

3. Describe the Confucian theory of psychology in The Path. What role do our emotional responses play? How can we gain some control over our lives?

4. Chapter 3 of The Path never defines what a ritual is for Confucius. Give two examples of a ritual and then write your own definition.

5. Pick one aphorism from Book III of The Analects. Describe the philosophical point that this passage is making. How does it make this point?

6. Pick another aphorism from Book III of The Analects. Describe the philosophical point that this passage is making. How does it make this point?

7. Write three Confucian aphorisms of your own – short vignettes that convey a philosophical idea in the same way as you find in The Analects.