Individual Autonomy and Responsibility in Late Imperial China By ...

1. What we call Confucianism includes various ethico-political systems in continuous evolution according to historical changes through various hermeneutical strategies of Confucian Classics.

2. Yet Confucian basic morality has been defined as a “natural” morality, not because it contains universal and eternal rules, as morals obviously change with times and societies. From a rational analysis, it is a practical and realistic morality that takes into account the constructive sides of humans while not ignoring the differences among them. According to some modern biological and psychological studies on the human evolutionary path, the value of social bonding derives its strength from the emotions of love and empathy, with consequent care for those with whom we bond, and the positive impact in social and individual well-being.⁵² These elements are very important in Confucian morality of any period.

3. The evolution of the human genre, beyond social and economic historical changes, is rooted in the control of destructive and aggressive tendencies, as well as an individual’s ability to cooperate with others, starting from their inner circle of family and friends. This evolution does not necessarily follow the rationalistic cliché that believes in the progress of the rational over the irrationality of passions but takes into account the greater efficiency of communities able to solve their inner contradictions. This analysis is far from contrasting positive reason and dangerous emotions, and considers the affective sphere as the dynamic force at the individual and social levels, because the cognitive elements of emotions embody rationality.⁵³ Emotions reflect the prevalent values in society, but emotions may also contribute to change these values. Social cooperation as well as individual autonomy improvement—against individual and collective violence—favor the development of both small and large social groups. Filial piety and friends’ loyalty, for instance, are formulations to indicate the first level of love toward close relatives and intimate associates, and thus can be adapted to the evolution of sensibilities and family concepts (thus, for instance, filial pity would not be automatically due to the role in the family but would be the result of a shared relationship). These relationships can vary according to the changes