Robert André LaFleur

What was the point of gaining knowledge, according to Confucius? Professor LaFleur reveals the answer in this pointed discussion on putting the teachings in the Analects into practice. In a close reading of several passages, you'll get to the heart of how Confucius's teachings relate to the wider world.

Meet two of the most important and memorable students featured in the Analects. The first is Zai Wo, a devoted (but prickly) student who functions as a sort of trickster character. The second is Yan Hui, Confucius's favorite student and the model for what the thinker valued in his students.

Continue unpacking the concept of consummate conduct by breaking it down into smaller social and moral skills that should always be properly cultivated. As Professor LaFleur reveals, consummate conduct is more than an individual quality; it's profoundly social to its core, tying together family, community, and even the state itself.

Who was Confucius? How did he manage to become one of the most important figures in world history? Get the full backstory on what historians know about the man called Confucius, including the opinions of thinkers like Mencius and Xunzi, and several illuminating passages from Chapter 10 of the Analects.

For those readers who've never encountered the Analects before, there's no better way to approach it than through its first five statements - which contain an entire world of philosophical knowledge. Join Professor LaFleur as he unpacks core themes in these iconic passages, including individual conduct and effective statesmanship.

View the life and works of the Chinese historian Sima Guang as a window into neo-Confucianism: the revived form of Confucianism that emerged in the 11th century. You'll learn how this historian took the lessons of the Analects and adapted them to fit new social, economic, and political complexities.

In Confucian learning, the greatest challenge is the act of governing. How are we supposed to rule ourselves, our families, and our communities - all under the authority of heaven? Using pointed examples from the Analects, examine Confucian ideas about proper leadership, the importance of advisors, and the need for constant self-correction.

How does the Analects define an exemplary person? Find out by examining a series of key concepts that work together to shape a "whole person" who can properly function as a social and political being. Among these are loyalty (zhong), sincerity (cheng), trust (xin), and virtue (de).

In this lecture, meet two more students who accompanied Confucius on his journey of enlightenment: the difficult (and often criticized) Zilu and the mistake-prone (but fiercely loyal) Zigong. Both students, as you'll learn, are surprisingly nuanced followers, and they both experience a powerful intellectual evolution as the Analects progresses.

The ideas espoused in the Analects had their share of critics. Here, take a look at some of the most prominent of these, including Xunzi, who felt that humans were born flawed; Daoist critics like Zhuangzi; and the Legalist philosopher Han Fei, who considered Confucius to be a fuzzy-minded dilettante.