恕와 죄수의 딜레마

Abstract

This study attempted to reinterpret ‘reciprocity’ which has long been understood as ‘generosity,’ ‘sympathy’ or ‘yeokjisaji’ from the perspective of ‘defect’ and ‘cooperation.’ This attempt started with a critical view on the fact that ‘reciprocity’ disguises the defect-cooperation problem as a form of need and desire in “do unto others as you would have them do unto you.” This study investigated the details of ‘reciprocity’ stated by Confucius, analyzed the related phrases in the Analects of Confucius, Doctrine of the Mean and Great Learning and reviewed previous studies. Then, the pondered ‘reciprocity’ was interpreted as an act of ‘measuring with a ruler.’ Zhu Xi metaphorically described ‘reciprocity’ as ‘unripened (raw).’ Because it is not ripened yet, a measuring squire (i.e. ‘measuring with a ruler’) is needed. In addition, the ruler, the measuring standard, refers to ‘zhi (upright).’ The principle of ‘zhi’ can be stated as follows: ‘If you are qualified to receive the award, you will get it. If you are qualified to survive, you will be freed. If you are worthy of the punishment, you will get it. If you become worthy enough to die, you will get killed.’ Under ‘zhi,’ in other words, ‘cooperation’ refers to ‘cooperation’ while ‘defect’ means ‘defect.’ In contrast, ‘reciprocity’ is the execution of ‘zhi,’ ‘personal emotion-less rational principle.’ The execution of ‘zhi’ is similar to Tit For Tat (TFT), the winning strategy for the prisoner’s dilemma. In the later part, therefore, this study interpreted ‘de (virtue)’ and ‘yuan’ as ‘cooperation’ and ‘defect’ respectively in the idiom ‘以德報怨’ roughly translated as "with virtuous acts, we repay maltreatment" in the Analects of Confucius as ‘cooperation and examined the accessibility of the TFT strategy. In the concept “do unto others as you would have them do unto you,” therefore, ‘reciprocity’ could be understood as the message of “do not betray others for your own interests. Be cooperative and collaborative.”