| Abstract |
In prevailing interpretations of the Xunzi, the concept of qun (群)—commonly rendered as “association” or “community”—has often been framed as the ideal social configuration in which the normative values of li (ritual propriety) and yi (righteousness) are fully actualized. Within this normative paradigm, qun is typically regarded as the teleological culmination of royal governance and the institutionalization of moral-ritual order. However, a philological and philosophical reexamination of the occurrences of qun in the Xunzi reveals a more complex semantic and conceptual structure. The polyvalence of the term suggests the need for a differentiated analysis that attends to its layered ethical functions and evolving philosophical significance. This study undertakes a conceptual reconstruction of qun in the Xunzi, elucidating the internal logic and dialectical progression among three distinct yet interrelated dimensions: the capacity to associate (neng qun), the ethical cultivation or guidance of association (shan qun / shi qun), and the ideal of harmonious community (qun he). By tracing this trajectory, the paper argues that Xunzi articulates a vision of human cultural transformation that moves from the natural propensity for sociality to the normative ideal of harmonious integration. |
