순자는 왜 ‘성악’을 주장해야 했는가

Abstract

Xunzi had set its socio-political ideals based on experience from the practical world and formulated a philosophical framework that seeks the origin of contemporary issues in human nature. Xunzi’s notion of “good” and “evil” is related to the order and chaos of All-under-Heaven. It was conceived to legitimatize the raison d'être and the pivotal role of the “sage-kings” and “ritual and righteousness.” The sociopolitical goal of Xunzi was to take “the concept of artificial order” as a ground to control and discriminate humans and their desires rigidly with the means of “classification.” This was to aid the ruling class (rulers, service-gentlemen) in ruling the ruled, uniformly and efficiently, in the anticipated new era. This line of thought runs consistently throughout the entirety of Xunzi. The significance of Xunzi’s theory on “human nature” is that it criticized previous discourses such as Mengzi’s thought on the “concept of natural order,” Zhuangzi’s thought on the “division between the natural and the artificial,” and Mozi’s “criticism on Confucians.” It is also in that it yearned to establish an “artificial order,” in which the ruler and service-gentlemen are the principal agents.