Getting Rich is Glorious!

Abstract

The ancient Chinese “Legalist” thinker Han Fei Zi’s philosophy represented the governing philosophy of the Qin dynasty that, though short-lived, had a long-lasting impact in traditional China. Of the two key figures in “New China,” Mao Zedong often labeled himself, and is labeled, as a Legalist, although Deng Xiaoping may be a far better one than Mao. Han Fei Zi’s philosophy of work is based on an apparently dehumanized understanding of human beings, and it assigns no higher value to work than, primarily, the animalistic pursuit of material gains and, secondarily, human vanity. Though obsessed with the strength of the state, he rejected any form of collectivism, and for him, the strength of the state should only come from individuals pursuing their self-interests. Despite this reliance on the rational choices of individuals, he also advocated state regulations that would discourage useless works and encourage useful ones. One can find resonance between his philosophy of work and economics and the ideas the French physiocrats promoted two thousand years later, and the updated version of the former can still be used to offer powerful criticisms of contemporary economies. His peculiar position that advocates an individualism-based statism and mixes state control with the market may also broaden one’s conceptual imaginations.