Plants Metaphor and Moral Cultivation in Mencius’ Ethics
Keywords:
Mencius, imagination, metaphor, moral cultivationAbstract
Objectives: This research paper aims to study and analyze the significant roles of metaphorical imagination in the process of moral cultivation in Mencius’ ethics, especially the process of making a philosophical understanding regarding human nature and the nature of moral cultivation.
Methods: This paper mainly examined such issues from the Mencius.
Results: Mencius uses plant metaphor to make a clear understanding about human nature and moral cultivation using three points: 1) the important components in the process of moral cultivation, such as a continuous effort in procedural moral development, 2) the reasons to why nourishing sprouts of virtues in the heart–mind should be concerned as the priority in the process of moral cultivation, and 3) the socio-cultural environment to support the ethical growth of the people requires a ruler and government policies that promote the people’s welfare.
Application of this study: The study of plant metaphor in this paper can serve as a guide for the study of other metaphors in the process of moral cultivation in Confucian ethics.
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