What is the meaning of the Analects? How is the argumentation style of the Analects different from that of Mencius?

Since the Song Dynasty, The Analects has been listed as one of the "Four Books" and has become an official textbook in ancient schools and a required book for the imperial examinations. So, what does The Analects mean? How is the argumentation style of The Analects different from that of Mencius? Let's take a look at the introduction of Encyclopedia Knowledge Network to answer these questions!

Contents of this article

1. What is the meaning of the Analects?

2. What is the difference between the argumentative style of the Analects and Mencius?

3. Quotations from the Gentleman in the Analects

What does the Analects mean?

The Analects was compiled by Confucius' disciples and their disciples, and was completed in the early Warring States period. It mainly records the words and deeds of Confucius and his disciples, and reflects Confucius' thoughts in a relatively concentrated manner. It is one of the classic works of the Confucian school. It is mainly in the form of quotations, supplemented by narrative, and concentrates on Confucius' political propositions, ethical thoughts, moral concepts and educational principles. Together with The Great Learning, The Doctrine of the Mean and Mencius, it is called the "Four Books", and together with the Five Classics, including The Book of Songs, The Book of History, The Book of Rites, The Book of Changes and The Spring and Autumn Annals, it is collectively called the Four Books and the Five Classics. The book has 20 chapters and 492 articles, and it is the first to create the quotations. It is one of the ancient works that is now spread and studied in China. There were three versions of the Analects in ancient times, including Gu Lun, Lu Lun and Qi Lun. The current version of the Analects is the version compiled by Lu Lun and Gu Lun, while Qi Lun was lost during the Han and Wei dynasties.

How is the argumentation style of the Analects different from that of Mencius?

The Analects mainly records the words and deeds of Confucius and his disciples. It is in the form of a collection of quotations, either recording Confucius's words or recording the dialogues between Confucius and his disciples. They are all relatively short and concise, and have not yet formed a single, complete chapter. However, the Mencius is already a relatively mature argumentative text in the form of a collection of quotations, and shows signs of transition from the collection of quotations to the monograph. Its argumentative skills are meticulous and sophisticated, its style is majestic, and it uses a lot of rhetorical devices such as parallelism and repetition, which has the nature of literary prose.

The Gentleman's Quotations in the Analects

A gentleman is open and honest, while a villain is always worried.

A gentleman does not seek to be full when eating, nor does he seek to be comfortable when living. He is quick to act and cautious in speech. He follows the Way and corrects it. He can be said to be studious.

Heaven moves forward, and a gentleman should constantly strive to improve himself.

Be quick to learn and not ashamed to ask questions.

A gentleman cherishes virtue, a villain cherishes land; a gentleman cherishes punishment, a villain cherishes favors.

Confucius said: "When substance prevails over refinement, the man will be uncouth; when refinement prevails over substance, the man will be pedantic. Only when substance and refinement are in perfect harmony can one be called a gentleman."

Only a man of refined and elegant manners can be called a gentleman.

The gentleman is concerned with righteousness, while the villain is concerned with profit.