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Created page with "*''Died: 208 BCE'' Li Si was one of the chief advocates of the Chinese political philosophy of Legalism, and a prominent official under the [[Qin Shihuangdi|First Emperor..."
*''Died: 208 BCE''

Li Si was one of the chief advocates of the Chinese political philosophy of [[Legalism]], and a prominent official under the [[Qin Shihuangdi|First Emperor of Qin]].

Along with [[Han Feizi]] (d. 233 BCE), the other chief advocate of Legalism, Li Si supported the notion that it is human nature to be selfish, to enjoy rewards and dislike punishments. Putting aside notions of Heavenly morality asserted by [[Confucianism]] and [[Taoism]], the Legalists advocated that the people, i.e. society, and the state, be regulated through systems of rewards and punishments.

Li Si rose to prominence in court politics around 238 BCE, when the Emperor appointed him chief minister, after the previous minister, Lü Buwei, was implicated in a plot against the throne. In 233 BCE, wary of Han Feizi's growing influence at court, Li Si arranged to have Han poisoned and killed. Li Si died himself in 208 BCE as the result of a political struggle against a court [[eunuch]].

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==References==
*Albert Craig, ''The Heritage of Chinese Civilization'', Third Edition, Prentice Hall (2011), 21-23.

[[Category:Scholars and Philosophers]]
[[Category:Yayoi Period]]
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