Andrew Wilkins Prof. Konopka FILA 24 October 2014 “The Nature of Man” The excerpt “Man’s Nature Is Good” by Mencius and the excerpt “Man’s Nature Is Bad ” by Hsun Tzu both, unknowingly, agree that the nature of man is flexible. Throughout the excerpts, deep analysis into the nature of man (whether good or bad) is prevalent. This analysis is necessary due to the vagueness of Confucius who had not taken a stance on the nature of humans. This aspect of Confucius led to a split amongst his followers; those who believed human nature was good, and those who believed human nature was bad. The works of Mencius and Hsun Tzu were intended to prove whether human nature was good or bad, however when comparing the two it seems as if they may have unknowingly …show more content…
The first point of comparison is that both Mencius and Hsun Tzu believed that man was capable of both good and evil. Mencius constantly made claims that the nature of man (which is good) can be swayed to be evil just as water can be forced east or west. Hsun Tzu adamantly believed that following the rituals and tradition of our ancestors will sway us from evil to good, This shows that they both believe man is capable of both good and evil. Being capable of two polar opposite ideologies is in itself an act of flexibility. This draws the question: how can the nature of something be guaranteed yet able to be altered? While mere speculation, it’s possible that this question challenges the very fundamentals of their logic. The second point of comparison is that Mencius and Hsun Tzu both valued the force of influence. They both understood that influence had a major role on the direction of man to either good or evil. Hsun Tzu saw the tradition as a way to subdue the evil of man, and Mencius saw tradition as a way to perpetuate the goodness of man. This shows that both Mencius and Hsun Tzu could see how human nature could be influenced. The fact that influence causes the nature of man to budge could potentially serve as proof that the nature of man is extremely flexible. And to acknowledge the power of influence, Mencius and Hsun Tzu have no choice but to acknowledge that something has to be maleable to