A Comparison Between the Confucianism’s and Aristotle’s View of Distributive Justice — The Thoughts Based on Contemporary Development

Abstract

Throughout the over 2000 years of feudal rule in ancient China, the Confucianism’s distributive justice has played an important role. The principles of Humanity, Differential Distribution and Equal Opportunity had a lasting impact on social development even in modern times. While in ancient Greece, Plato and Aristotle has specifically discussed the view of distributive justice, especially in the content of the distribution principle of “Equality of Values and Proportional Equality” and "Principle of Differential Distribution", whose content was later being developed and enriched continuously by various schools of thought. This paper has systematically introduced the contents and principles of the Confucianism’s and Aristotle’s view of distributive justice. Aimed at the historical background and the view of the theory of the comparison of existing value and its limitation, this paper reveals the value of the view of distributive justice. This paper reveals the value of distributive justice in different times, cultures and systems. By studying the view of distributive justice at all times and in all over the world, the paper is intended to seek solution to the increasing social disparities and injustices in modern states in their processes of building harmonious societies, so that the theory of distributive justice will display a new vitality.