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Differences between Chinese philosophy and western ones - Coggle Diagram
Differences between Chinese philosophy and western ones
The Purpose of human existence
fragmentary
western philosophy aims at specific knowledge
only focuses on certain aspects of the human condition
Aristotle works emphasize how one should conduct one's self to live well among others (fragmentary)
holistic
eastern philosophy is concerned with general knowledge
addresses the whole of human existence
eg. Confucius analects deal with both the inner and outer life of a person (holistic)
In fact, human beings are essentially the same the world over, only the details and customs differ, and the philosophies of eastern and western thinkers make this quite clear.
WRONG
Comparison
presenting the same basic concepts
Both Confucius and Aristotle believed that virtue was the highest goal one could strive for and that lasting rewards came to a person who put virtue above worldly possessions
Innate Morality
Both Wang Yangming and Plato argue for the existence of innate knowledge
that human beings are born knowing right from wrong, and good from bad, and need only be encouraged to pursue goodness in order to live a fulfilling life
In Plato's view, a person already knows what is good because that person will respond innately to the quality of goodness in the writing and will also respond to the concept of goodness in one's life. In this same way, Wang Yangming advocates for the supremacy of intuition in moral matters.
Conclusion: one must know what is good in order to pursue what is good, and this knowledge of the good must be innate in order for people to have the desire to pursue it in the first place. The same could applied on the contrary.
There is no division between eastern or western philosophy when it comes to the most basic questions of what it means to be a human being.