成书

背景

对于孟子游历列国的顺序，历年来有许多不同看法。《史记》记载，孟子游说齐国的齐宣王、魏国的梁惠王皆未果，于是返回家乡邹国著述《孟子》；钱穆认为孟子约在燕昭王即位前后离开齐国，返回邹国度过晚年，此时已年过七十。近代学者则认为孟子离开齐国后，还去了滕国与鲁国，最后才返回邹国 。

孟子的生存年代属于战国时期，列国以合纵连横的战争谋略为主要政策，于是孟子的儒家理念无法得到伸张。《孟子》即为一本阐明《诗经》、《尚书》以及孔子之道，并统整孟子思想的书。

作者

《孟子》的作者一般认为包含孟子弟子与再传弟子，其中万章与公孙丑两人应为主要编写者，咸丘蒙、浩生不害、陈臻等人也有参与，但究竟孟子本人是否参与编写，则争议不休。现今学者多认为孟子没有直接参与，但仍未有定论。

第一种说法认为《孟子》是孟子晚年与弟子万章等人的作品，最早可见于西汉时司马迁所著的《史记》，并受到赵岐、应劭 、苏洵、苏辙 、朱熹、赵顺孙、陈士元 、阎若璩、魏源、钱基博、钱穆等人的赞同。焦循则进一步认为，书中孟子与诸弟子的答问为弟子所辑录，不含答问的论说部分则为孟子自撰。支持此说的证据如下：

• 《史记》成书于西汉，与孟子生活的年代最近，史料最完备，所以其说法也最可信。

• 《孟子》全书笔势连贯如熔铸而成，不像是多位作者编辑之作，而孟子门生也未必写作能力如此高明，能写出如此气势雄厚之作。

• 若与记述孔子言行的《论语》相比，《孟子》较少纪录孟子的容颜表情，因为孟子自己即为作者。

• 《论语》之所以不称《孔子》是因为该书乃由孔子弟子论辩所得；而《孟子》与《荀子》等书皆为本人所著，故以作者之名命名。

第二种说法认为《孟子》是由弟子所记，最早可见于三国时孙吴人姚信所著的《士纬》，并有林慎思 、晁公武 、周广业、崔述、蒋伯潜等人持相同看法，但日后又可分为书成于孟子死后与孟子生前两种论点。唐代的韩愈指出《孟子》是在孟子过世后由弟子所著，元代袁俊翁则因书中未见孟子临终的记载，故认为书成时孟子应仍在世，后者得到梁启超 、罗根泽 等人认同。支持此说法的证据如下：

• 书中可见许多关于其志向与品性的描述，而不只有劝诫弟子的言词而已。

• 书中每章的开头皆为「孟子曰」，且各章皆有「孟子曰」、「孟子对曰」，若为孟子自述则应为「轲曰」、「孟轲曰」，故可以得知皆是由门生所记。

• 书中孟子多以諡号称呼国君，而这些人未必都比孟子早逝。

• 孟子常以「子」称呼弟子，此与《论语》中孔子直呼弟子名字不同；且书中关于万章、公孙丑的问答最多，亦不以「子」称呼此二人，所以此书应为此二人所主编。

• 朱熹的注本之中，有两处注解认为该章句是门生记述的遗漏，造成其说法矛盾。

内容

《孟子》一书为语录体，以答问方式展开，主要论证方法为驳论。其学说出发点为性善论，提出「仁政」、「王道」，主张德治。

据《史记》记载，《孟子》一书共七篇，分别为〈梁惠王〉、〈公孙丑〉、〈滕文公〉、〈离娄〉、〈万章〉、〈告子〉、〈尽心〉，篇名取自各章开头的几个字，没有特别的含意。东汉赵岐在《孟子章句》中，又将每一篇分为上下两卷，全书共七篇十四卷。

风格特色

《孟子》文气雄健，气势磅礴，词锋犀利，如决江河而下，浩浩荡荡，笔锋所至，万物披靡。感情洋溢，爱憎分明，波澜曲折壮阔，词采华瞻，有时宽厚弘博，有时轻松幽默，明白晓畅，明朗简洁，流畅疏荡，极少生僻字词。

《孟子》长于辩论；逻辑严密，善用问答方式的表现方法，逐步深入问题，层次清晰，一问一答穿插变化，制造气势，分清层次，突出主题。辩论方法灵活多样，或开门见山，单刀直入，或虚实莫测，欲擒先纵，处处显出机敏和智慧；尤善设机巧，引人入彀，不惮反覆，说理详尽。

《孟子》善用比喻和寓言，使抽象的道理具体化，如「挟泰山以超北海」、「椽木求鱼」、「五十步笑百步」。举例取譬时，又富于幽默，如牵牛过堂、齐人妻妾诸段。《孟子》修辞技巧甚高，善用反问句、对比、排偶句，又善用虚字和语气词。

注疏

• 《孟子注疏》--东汉赵岐注《孟子章句》；北宋孙奭疏《孟子正义》。十三经注疏之一。

• 《孟子章句》--赵岐

• 《孟子注》--东汉郑玄

• 《孟子章句》--高诱

• 《孟子注》--刘熙

• 《注孟子》--扬雄

• 《刺孟》--王充

• 《孟子注》--綦母邃

• 《孟子注》--陆善经

• 《孟子音义》--张镒

• 《孟子手音》--丁公

• 《翼孟》--刘轲

• 《续孟子》--林慎思

• 《孟子集注》十四卷--南宋朱熹著《四书章句集注》。

地位

《孟子》一书的地位一开始并没有很高，《汉书·艺文志》仅仅把《孟子》放在诸子略中，视为子书。汉文帝把《论语》、《孝经》、《孟子》、《尔雅》各置博士，叫做「传记博士」。

到五代十国后蜀时，后蜀主孟昶命令人楷书十一经刻石，尽依太和旧本，历时八年才刻成。其中包括了《孟子》，这可能是《孟子》列入经书之始。

后来宋太宗又翻刻了这十一经。到南宋孝宗时，朱熹将《孟子》与《论语》、《大学》、《中庸》合在一起称「四书」，以孟子为孔子道统传人，并成为「十三经」之一，《孟子》的地位才被推到了高峰。在明清时四书被列为公家科举取士的教科书，《孟子》也成了读书人必读之书。明朝洪武年间，明太祖朱元璋由于不满《孟子》一书中民贵君轻等轻视君权的内容，下令对该书进行删节，并要求科举考试不得涉及被删内容。

注释

延伸阅读

外部链接

• 《孟子》全文

• 何沛雄：〈从句式论孟子的「文气」〉。

• 黄俊杰：《孟学思想史论》卷一。

• 黄俊杰：〈论东亚儒家经典诠释与政治权力之关系——以《论语》、《孟子》为例 〉。

• 黄俊杰：〈东亚近世儒学思潮的新动向─—戴东原、伊藤仁斋与丁茶山对孟学的解释 〉。

• 艾兰：〈《老子》与《孟子》中的基本喻象〉。

• 朱荣贵：〈从刘三吾《孟子节文》论君权的限制与知识份子之自主性〉。

History

Mencius' core ideas on education and human nature were largely shaped during the Warring States period (c. 770–221 B.C.).  The period marks the transition of China's system of slavery to that of feudalism, one that expanded the accessibility of culture and education to various sectors of society.  It was during this time, that Mencius was able to access, and further developed the philosophical doctrines of Confucius. The creation of the Mencius, serves as a further elaboration on the Confucian school of thought called 'subjective idealism'. Through this work, Mencius developed the theory of natural goodness (xingshan), that confers that all people have an intrinsic cardinal virtues, and that these virtues are developed in the same way that knowledge is cultivated.

The Mencius came to be regarded as one of the most important texts that explores the philosophy of Confucianism. Mainly, due to its philosophical dialogue with the Analects of Confucius. Despite this noted importance, the Mencius was not canonized as one of the Chinese Classics until over 1,000 years later during the Song-dynasty.

Interpretations

Various interpretations exist of the Mencius as a philosophical and literary text. Academics E. Bruce and A. Taeko Brooks state that these various interpretations belong to a continuous discourse that represents each new generation of readers. Examples are scholars such as James Legge, who opened the text to Western readers by comparatively exploring the Mencius through a Victorian missionary perspective. The text's ability to transcend culture and time is seen by scholars such as Behuniak Jr. as what canonises the Mencius as a world classic.

Contents

There are seven chapters within the Mencius, each divided into two halves. The book's narrative depicts its characters' extensive dialogues on specific philosophical arguments, alongside Mencius's own reflections upon them in the form of short sentences. Most of the chapters that explores Mencius' moral philosophy, are structured in the form of a conversation between Mencius and other philosophical thinkers. While chapters that offer Mencius' political advice and counsel are depicted as conversations with various rulers and himself.

The book explores Mencius' most famous idea, in that there exists an intrinsic human nature that is good. His argument that each person possessed an inborn potential of virtue, contrasts with the position of contemporary figure Yang Zhu, who argued that that human nature is motivated by self-interest. Alongside this, the Mencius largely expands on Confucian ideas of political ruling, and benevolent politics.

Moral Philosophy

In the Mencius, debates about morality and human nature are in direct dialogue with Confucian views. The theory of 'natural goodness', where human beings are inherently good, are explored through a concept of "sprouts". According to Mencius, "sprouts" are unlearned moral habits that are inborn and present at a person's birth. These moral habits are related to one's "family affection" ( 亲), and like "sprouts", grow out within the environment of familial activities.  

There exists four virtues of morality that makes up one's "sprouts" ( 端):

• "humanity" ( 仁)

• "appropriateness" ( 义)

• "ritual propriety" ( 礼)

• "wisdom" ( 智)

The four sprouts are what distinguish humans from other beings. However, there exists a distinction in that they are not what constructs humanity, but rather, something innate in which all humans already have. The Mencius states that these virtues develop in the acculturation of one's environment, "just as we have four limbs" (Mencius 2A:6). This environment being family affection, where the "four sprouts" activates amongst other unmonitored impulses.  

Mencius also thinks that there exists a common human nature that causes for people to respond the same way to certain ethical situations. One of the most famous arguments for this is presented within the Mencius in the chapter 1A:6, where Mencius successfully predicts an observer's immediate reaction to seeing a child about to fall into a well. Mencius argues that all people have a biological or inborn compassion, and goes further to imply that this inborn compassion is also a universal duty.  Mencius refers to the idea of a biological sense of compassion as a form of duty in:"our sense of duty pleases the heart just as meat pleases the tastebuds." (Mencius 4A:2)In other words, in doing compassionate things, we not only pleases ourselves biologically but also dutifully.

Political Philosophy

The Mencius expands on the Confucian claims about the necessary practices of a good ruler. This consists of "virtue politics" (de zheng 德政), "benevolent politics" (ren zheng 仁政), or "politics that is sensitive to the suffering of others" (bùrěn rén zhī zhèng 不忍人之政). These terms refers to the ideal way of governing politically, which is that a society must have policies that extends benevolently. These consists of fairness in goods distribution, and mainly policies that protect the most marginal societal members. Confucius, and in extension, Mencius contends that a good ruler must gain the devotion of the people through the exertion of benevolence and goodness. Mencius asserts Confucian ethics as the basis to achieving an ideal state.  

Within the Mencius, this is expressed in his encounter with King Xuan of Qi, who rules over the Central Kingdom without practicing "benevolent politics". In this chapter, Mencius refers to the King's action as:"looking for fish by climbing a tree." (yuán mù qiú yú 缘木求鱼) (Mencius 2A:4)Other passages within the Mencius addresses benevolent politics more directly:"An Emperor cannot keep the Empire within the Four Seas unless he is benevolent; a feudal lord cannot preserve the altars to the gods of earth and grain unless he is benevolent; a Minister or a Counsellor cannot preserve his ancestral temple unless he is benevolent; a junzi or a commoner cannot preserve his four limbs unless he is benevolent. Now if one dislikes death yet revel in cruelty, he is just like someone who drinks alcohol beyond his capacity while he dislikes drunkenness." (Mencius 4A:3)Mencius also counsels against the political use of violence and force:"When one uses force to win people's allegiance (yǐ lǐ fú rén 以理服人), one does not win people's heart and mind (xīn fú 心服); they submit to your force because they are not strong enough." (Mencius 4A: 7)

Influences on Hermeneutics

Asides from its influences on Neo-Confucianism. The Mencius has also had an effect on the field of literary discourse in China. Mainly, in the advancement of Chinese literary criticism into a direction that resembles the methods of Western intentionalist hermeneutics. These intentionalist concepts of interpretation (termed Mencian literary criticism), are seen as having dominated the methodology of literary criticism and interpretation in China ever since.

The Western intentionalist position traditionally judges the meaning of a literary work by the intentions of the author at the moment of its conception. Jane Gearney notes, that there exists various passages within The Mencius that proposes a theory of literary interpretation that resembles this tradition. An example being:". . . one who explains poetry should not let the form obstruct the phrases or let the phrases obstruct the drift. One should meet the drift with one's own thoughts—that's how to obtain it." (Mencius 5A:4)In her evaluation of this passage, Gearney notes that the "drift" being referred to here can be understood as the author's intention. In this passage, Mencius poses that when it comes to evaluating a text, its form or structure should not come before the individual phrases. While the individual phrases should not obstruct the authorial intention (the drift) of the work, where the intention is met with the reader's own thoughts to form meaning. Mencius also encourages a friendship-based approach to literary criticism: "The good scholars of a village befriend other good scholars of the village. The good scholars of the world befriend other good scholars of the world. If befriending the good scholars in the world isn't enough, they also proceed to consider the ancients. But how can they recite their poetry and read their books without knowing what kind of people they are? Therefore, they consider their age. This is "proceeding to befriend" ancients." (Mencius 5B:8)The idea of knowing authors as people, is seen by Gearney as Mencius' suggestion for the reader to attempt to learn, as best they can, the author's intention when they were creating the text.  Mencius emphasises knowing the author as a person, to suggest the importance of the setting and temporal context of a literary work in one's evaluation of it.  

Though Mencian literary criticism is seen as having fostered intentionalist hermeneutics in China. Gearney notes that the form of intentionalism within the book differs from the style of traditional Western intentionalist modes of criticism. This difference is mainly to do with Mencius' emphasis on learning the author's contextual settings during the conception of the work, instead of the author's own feelings during its conception. Hence, the standard by which a work should be analysed does not involve the sentiments of the author at the exact moment of conception (as characterised by E.D Hirsh). But rather, Mencius' standards posits that one should become acquainted with the author's personal, cultural, and political context, before evaluating the literary work.

Selected translations

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