Confucius Essay

Confucius Essay

During Spring and Autumn Period (722-481 BCE) of Ancient China, the people developed unique culture and knowledge. However, this information was all over the place, there were no stable records. Confucius (551-479 BCE) was a Chinese scholar who had huge influence in Chinese history. Confucius knew the importance of putting them into books, so people could learn from them and prevent losses in future generations. Confucius definitely was one of the greatest contributors in Chinese history because of his dedication to make China a better place. Confucius became the first person in China to record ancient Chinese knowledge into books, Five Classics. With his extensive knowledge, Confucius contributed to ancient China by providing quality private education for everyone. Through his teaching, he moulded his students into citizens who were beneficial to society. His teaching/philosophy was Confucianism, and it still influential in Chinese culture today.

Confucius was the first person to begin private education for the public in China, which helped everyone to realise its importance. Before Confucius started teaching, education was something that only aristocrats enjoyed. Poor people could not attend school; without education, they could not move to a higher level in society. In ancient China, a civil service exam was held at the capital city every few years. Students from all over the country would gather at the city during this time and participate in the exam. They would be ranked from the top to lowest; people who had reached above certain rank will be able to work in the civil service. Top three of the exam would automatically receive a high position in the government. His family and he would be highly respected, and they would instantly become rich. Many people spent entire lifetime trying to achieve the top three on the exam. ''Providing education for all people without discrimination'', Confucius once said. (http://history.cultural-china.com) He wanted all Chinese to be able to receive education whether they were rich or poor. For example, there was a man called Yan Hui, who wanted to be Confucius' disciple but he was poor. Confucius told him that he would accept any student if they bring him ten pieces of preserved meat. Yan Hui and his friends then became his students. (http://www.chinavoc.com)By making education available to everyone, each person would have equal chance to achieve greatness. "Educating someone according to his natural abilities", was one Confucius' teaching methods. (http://history.cultural-china.com) He found out about what his students were good at and interested in before the real teaching started, then helped them to develop in those area. Attitude towards studying was very important to Confucius as a teacher, if the student's mind is not focused, he would not be able to remember what he is learning. There was a student of his named Zai Yu. He was not working as hard as he should and he often slept during class. One day when Confucius and his students were reading, Zai Yu slept in class again. Confucius was very mad and rebuked him. Zai Yu realised his mistake and never done it again. Confucius ensured his student remembered everything that was taught by educating them with real life scenarios. Confucius and his students were passing by Mount Tai. They saw a woman weeping near a grave, and asked her what happened. The woman's family was eaten by tigers from the mountains, and she was afraid to move away because the government did not allow it. Confucius used this opportunity to teach his students about how harsh the Chinese government was. Additional, Confucius helped his students to study harder and more effective by sharing his own personal learning experience. For instance, he told his students that he used to sit alone and think about things, and reading is no use unless you think about what you read in your head. (http://history.cultural-china.com) Confucius did not just want his students to accept everything that was taught to them. He encouraged his students to argue and discuss with respect, and they had to decide whether they should believe it. Without standards, people can do anything they want and they would not be wrong. Confucius made it clear to his students that there need to be standards to obey, and he taught them five virtues that he thought was very important, which were gravity, generosity of soul, sincerity, earnestness and kindness. They must be followed under all circumstances. These virtues were highly valued by his students, and helped them to be good citizens. Confucius was a dedicated and successful educator. He accepted three thousand students during his lifetime, seventy-two of them became famous scholars. (www.1000ventures.com) One of this outstanding students was Duan Mu Ts'u. Confucius helped Duan Mu Ts'u to realise his talent in public speaking, and continued to help