The steadfast decline of the Chou Dynasty, signed by the Warring States period,.
was followed by the fall of the old feudal structure held together by interconnected.
religious and social rituals. Freedom from the forms of the past expressed skeptic.
attitudes. A "hundred schools" of thought arose, each wanting to provide a base for social.
and political life and each wanting to achieve the adherence of rulers and governments.
Hsun-Tzu found China in a virtual intellectual and social vortex, which threatened to.
weaken its spiritual vision and moral solidarity. With that, Hsun-Tzu believed that man.
was by nature evil. He believed the only way for one to escape this natural depravity was.
through education and the practice of ritual and custom. Although he thought man could.
better himself through conscious application, he was still skeptical of man's "ren," or.
human kindness (Head, Lecture 4-16-03). While defining the differences between perverse.
and virtuous people, Hsun-Tzu reminds his reader continuously in his writings with the.
emphasis that it is possible for people to be perfected through study and the guidance of a.
teacher. With Confucius schools being dominant in his time, Hsun-Tzu's views were not.
as widely accepted when concerning human nature, being that he held different views of.
the latter. He was, however, thought highly of in his guidance in government to rulers. .
Throughout Hsun-Tzu's Basic Writings, he separates people as either a gentleman,.
he who is virtuous, or as the petty man, he who is perverse. He characterizes a virtuous.
person as being obedient, respectful to the hierarchy of kings and family, and one that.
practices ritual. One with good nature is obedient to his father, elder brother, grandfather,.
the king, and the laws of the king. Along this, a man must also be respectful to and.
recognize these hierarchical divisions, since, according to Hsun-Tzu, a stable society is.
based on them.
