Han Fei

Names

Han Fei is also known respectfully as Hanzi ('Master Han') or as Han Feizi ('Master Han Fei'). In Wade–Giles transcription, his same name is written Han Tzu, Han-tzu, Han Fei Tzu, or Han Fei-tzu. The same name—sometimes as "Hanfeizi" or "Han-fei-tzu"—is used to denote the later anthology traditionally attributed to him.

Legitimacy

Early scholarship was not very open the idea there was a real Han Fei, but modern scholarship has been open to the idea. Masayuki Sato (2013) does not consider it likely all of Sima Qian's literal details of Han Fei's life were historically accurate, considering them too dramatic, with Han Fei and Li Si set up to become destined opponents.

Sinologist Goldin (2013) was open to the idea that details of Han Fei's life were "probably not far from the truth", just not considering it very important for interpreting the Han Feizi; that "Han Fei was descended from the ruling house of Hán", and seeking office in Qin, was "executed in 233 B.C.E., after being entrapped by Li Si".

Shang Yang and Shen Buhai

As chancellors of neighboring states, the doctrines of Shang Yang of the Qin state, and Shen Buhai of the Han state (associated with shu administrative technique), would have intersected before imperial unification. The Han Feizi is Shang Yang's first preserved reference outside Qin, the Book of Lord Shang likely going into broad circulation alongside the Guanzi at that late time.

As argued by Sinologist Herrlee Creel (1970), it is geographically plausible that there was someone like a real Han Fei. A scion of the Han state, he would have been well positioned to learn of Shang Yang and Shen Buhai, and then write parts of the Han Feizi. Most notably chapter 40, which discusses the two figures. It is also plausible to have been familiar with chapter 43's Shen Dao, who was better known in the Warring States period.

Although Han Fei advocates both law and shu technique, the Han Feizi's Chapters 30 (“Inner congeries of explanations A”) and 38 ("Objections III") expresses a shu-centric point of view. Chapter 30 considers making punishments clear and inevitable a subset of techniques. Chapter 38 considers "clarifying rules and measures" a subset example of techniques of rule requiring the ruler assign duties. Thus, Han Fei seems here to be a more direct philosophical descendant of his Han state forbear Shen Buhai, just as tradition would place him.

Life

The exact year of Han Fei's birth remains unknown, however, scholars have placed it at .

Unlike the other famed philosophers of the time, Han Fei was a member of the ruling aristocracy, having been born into the ruling family of Han during the end phase of the Warring States period. In this context, his works have been interpreted by some scholars as being directed to his cousin, the King of Han. The Records of the Grand Historian say that Han Fei studied together with future Qin chancellor Li Si under the Confucian philosopher Xun Kuang. It is said that because of his stutter, Han Fei could not properly present his ideas in court, but Sima regards him as having been very intelligent. His advice otherwise being ignored, but observing the slow decline of his Han state, he developed "one of the most brilliant (writing) styles in ancient China."

Sima Qian's biography of Han Fei is as follows:

Rather, the king employed the corrupted and treacherous and put them in higher positions over the wise. He regarded the intellectuals as a disturbance to the law by employing their literature and thought that knights violate the prohibition of the state by using armed forces. While the state was in peace, the king liked to patronize the honored; while in need, he employed warriors with armor and helmet. So the cultivated men could not be employed and the men employed could not be cultivated. Severely distressed over the reality that men of high integrity and uprightness were not embraced by the subjects with immorality and corruption, he observed the changes in the gaining and losing of the past. Therefore, he wrote several papers like "Solitary Indignation", "Five Vermin", "Inner and Outer Congeries of Sayings", "Collected Persuasions", and "Difficulties in the Way of Persuasion", which amount to one hundred thousand words. However, while Han Fei himself knew well of the difficulty of persuasion for his work on the difficulties in the way of persuasion was very comprehensive, he eventually met an untimely death in Qin. He could not escape the trap of words for himself.}}

His works ultimately ended up in the hands of King Ying Zheng of Qin, who commented, "If I can make friends with this person [Han Fei], I may die without regrets." and invited Han Fei to the Qin court. Han Fei presented the essay "Preserving the Han" to ask the king not to attack his homeland, but his ex-friend and rival Li Si used that essay to have Han Fei imprisoned on account of his likely loyalty to Han. Han Fei responded by writing another essay named "In the first time of meeting Qin king", hoping to use his writing talent to win the king's heart. Han Fei did win the king's heart, but not before Li Si forced him to commit suicide by drinking poison. The Qin king afterward regretted Han Fei's death.

Summary of his legalism

Xunzi formed the hypothesis that human nature is evil and virtueless, therefore suggesting that human infants must be brought to their virtuous form through social-class-oriented Confucian moral education. Without such, Xunzi argued, man would act virtueless and be steered by his own human nature to commit immoral acts. Han Fei's education and life experience during the Warring States period, and in his own Han state, contributed his synthesis of a philosophy for the management of an amoral and interest-driven administration, to which morality seemed a loose and inefficient tool. Han agreed with his teacher's theory of "virtueless by birth", but as in previous Legalist philosophy, pragmatically proposed to steer people by their own interest-driven nature.

Notes

1. Watson, Burton, Han Fei Tzu: Basic Writings. 1964, p. 2. The king in question is believed to be either King An of Han (238–230 BC) or his predecessor, King Huanhui (272–239 BC).

References

Sources

References

1. 2018 Henrique Schneider. p.1. An Introduction to Hanfei's Political Philosophy: The Way of the Ruler.
2. Watson, Burton. (2003). "Han Feizi – Basic Writings". Columbia University Press.
3. "Han Feizi".
4. Nguyển Hiến Lê, Giản Chi (1995). Hàn Phi Tử. NXB Văn hóa thông tin.
5. "PGS – TS Trần Ngọc Vương: Ngụy thiện cũng vừa phải thôi, không thì ai chịu được!".
6. The biography by Sima Qian is presented in "The Biography of Han Fei Tzŭ By Ssŭ-ma Ch'ien" chapter of ''The Complete Works of Han Fei Tzu'', translated by W.K. Liao, 1939, reprinted by Arthur Probsthain, 1959. https://books.google.com/books?id=op8KAQAAIAAJ http://www2.iath.virginia.edu/saxon/servlet/SaxonServlet?source=xwomen/texts/hanfei.xml&style=xwomen/xsl/dynaxml.xsl&chunk.id=d1.4&toc.depth=1&toc.id=0&doc.lang=bilingual
7. Tae Hyun KIM 2010 p.15, Other Laozi Parallels in the Hanfeizi
8. Hanfeizi By: Luo, Wei, World Philosophers & Their Works,
9. ''Hàn Phi Tử'', Vietnamese translation by Phan Ngọc, Nhà xuất bản Văn học, HCMC 2011