Legalism (Chinese philosophy)

Legalism
Statue of the legalist Shang Yang
Chinese法家
Literal meaningSchool of law

Fajia (Chinese: 法家; pinyin: fǎjiā), often translated as Legalism,[1] was a school of thought derived of classical Chinese philosophy. It represents several branches of thought of early thinkers mainly from the Warring States period, such as Guan Zhong, Li Kui, Shen Buhai, Shang Yang, Shen Dao, and Han Fei, whose reform ideas contributed greatly to the establishment of the bureaucratic Chinese empire. With an influence in the Qin, it formed into a school of thought in the Han dynasty. The Qin to Tang were more characterized by the tradition.

Though the origins of the Chinese administrative system cannot be traced to any one person, prime minister Shen Buhai may have had more influence than any other for the construction of the merit system, and could be considered its founder. His philosophical successor Han Fei, regarded as their finest writer, wrote the most acclaimed of their texts, the Han Feizi, containing some the earliest commentaries on the Daodejing. Sun Tzu's Art of War recommends Han Fei's concepts of power, technique, inaction, impartiality, punishment and reward.

Concerned largely with administrative and sociopolitical innovation, Shang Yang's reforms transformed the peripheral Qin state into a militarily powerful and strongly centralized kingdom, mobilizing the Qin to ultimate conquest of the other states of China in 221 BCE. With an administrative influence for the Qin dynasty, he had a formative influence for Chinese law. Succeeding emperors and reformers often followed the templates set by Han Fei, Shen Buhai and Shang Yang.

  1. ^ Pines 2023; Goldin 2011; Creel 1970, p. 93,119–120.