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Confucianism and Animal Ethics

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Encyclopedia of Food and Agricultural Ethics
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Synonyms

Animal rights; Animal welfare; Confucian philosophy; Confucian tradition; East Asian cultures

Introduction

Confucianism has more than 2000 years of history and is one of the most important schools of thought in East Asia. Confucius (551–479 BC) is usually considered as the founder of Confucianism, and Mencius (372–289 BC) is the second most important Confucian (the “Second Sage”). After Confucius and Mencius, there are also many Confucians throughout Chinese history. They claim that they are followers of Confucius and Mencius and they develop Confucianism further into a big school. Since Han Dynasty (206 BC–220 AD), Confucianism becomes the official school in China. Although Confucianism originated from China, it has also influenced other regions in East Asia. Confucianism is still one of the main schools of thought in contemporary East Asia such as Japan, South Korea, Taiwan, and Singapore. In Mainland China, Confucianism is rising again after the era of “cultural revolution”...

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Correspondence to Benedict S. B. Chan .

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Chan, B.S.B. (2016). Confucianism and Animal Ethics. In: Thompson, P., Kaplan, D. (eds) Encyclopedia of Food and Agricultural Ethics. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-007-6167-4_546-1

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-007-6167-4_546-1

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