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Entry 48 of 240War

The Warring States and the Legalists

475–221 BCE/East Asia/Warring States China
Today China (the competing states of the Yellow River basin)Span Warring States · 475–221 BCE

As Zhou authority collapsed, seven states fought for two and a half centuries — and the pressure produced an explosion of thought as rulers hired anyone with a theory of how to win. Confucians argued for virtue, Daoists for withdrawal, Mohists for universal love and better siege engineering. The Legalists argued that human nature is selfish, so build a machine of exact laws and harsh punishments that works regardless of anyone's character. The state that adopted Legalism most ruthlessly was Qin, and Qin won.

◆ Worth knowingA Legalist reformer tested a new law by offering a reward to anyone who moved a pole from one city gate to another. People assumed it was a trick until one man did it and was paid — the point was not the pole. It was proving the state did exactly what it said it would.
◆ The mechanismElite overproduction

More aspirants to elite positions are produced than there are seats; surplus elites turn to factional conflict.

Also: Ideological movement · State formation & institutional founding · Military-technological disruption

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