Human nature is evil; its goodness is the result of deliberate effort.
人之性悪、其善者偽也。
.webp&w=256&q=75)
Philosophers
Xunzi
A Confucian scholar born in the state of Zhao during the late Warring States period, 3rd century BCE. Xunzi directly opposed Mencius's doctrine of innate human goodness, declaring that 'human nature is evil; its goodness is the result of deliberate effort.' He argued that only acquired self-cultivation — through ritual practice and ceaseless study — can elevate human beings into moral agents. Through his pupils Han Fei and Li Si he exerted a decisive influence on Legalist thought, making him both the greatest heretic and the greatest innovator in the history of Confucianism.
View this figure's profile
Xunzi's Other Quotes
Related Quotes
No one desires evil.
-- Socrates
Compassion is the foundation of morality.
-- Arthur Schopenhauer
Two things fill the mind with ever new and increasing admiration and reverence: the starry heavens above me and the moral law within me.
-- Immanuel Kant
Decent business management is the most profitable approach in the long run, and business morality need not be as impoverished as it is often portrayed.
-- Robert Bosch
Every man has his price, or a guy like me couldn't exist.
-- Howard Hughes