Philosophy East and West

Abstract:

Some scholars claim that the early Confucians did not have the notions of agent, action, and choice. Others disagree, arguing that not only did the early Confucians have such notions, but aspects of their conceptions of agency are in fact similar to contemporary causal conceptions of agency. In the face of this interpretative divide, an "intermediate" account of the early Confucian conception of agency is off ered, focusing on the relationship between agent and deed, with the view that the relationship between agent and deed is best understood in terms of expression (or actualization). This interpretation is defended on the basis of a careful reading of important sections of the Analects. Finally, the moral-psychological implications of the Confucian-accountdeveloped implications are considered, in particular for our understanding of three phenomena: weakness of will, self-deception, and moral regret