If you want to talk about someone who can make a difference in a society and culture, you want to talk about Confucius. Confucius made a set of rules and standards that the Chinese people were supposed to live by. Confucius had an opinion on all major issues that were present in a country then and are present in a country today. It is amazing how well his theories and thoughts have withstood the test of time. Even after hundreds of years of cultural changes, Confucius" views on many of China's issues are still in use today not only in China, but around the world as well.
Ethics.
Confucius was quite clear about what he thought was good and bad or right and wrong. Cruelty and other acts of hate and violence were not a part of a Confucian life style. In fact, he condoned people for using those kinds of behavior. Confucius taught people to be polite. Confucius started the idea of respect inside of a family. (Cotterell) In fact, family values are where Confucius says a country's success begins. First you take care of your family and the rest of the country will fall into place. In class we have discussed how Chinese are some of the most courteous, polite, and forgiving people in the world. All of these important virtues became popular because of Confucius. I think that a big issue today for Confucius would be China's human rights policy. I don't believe Confucius would be a supporter of the extremely cruel punishment of criminals in China today.
Culture.
Confucius was not a founder of any Chinese culture. Culture in China dates back thousands of years, way before Confucius" life. Because of this he did try to leave the rich Chinese culture, of which the Chinese people were proud, unchanged as much as possible. He was successful for the most part, yet if you change the way people behave, it is hard to keep the same culture for too long. People in China became more open to different things. They looked at other cultures from a different perspective under Confucian influence.
