对外经济贸易大学University of International Business and Economics欧美文化概论论文Comparisons between two shining stars in philosophyComparisons between two shining stars in philosophyAbstractAs we all know, philosophy is the origin of all subjects. So, telling the differences between two philosophic thinking is the key to compare different cultures. This thesis is generally about the introductions and the comparisons between the philosophy of the Greek mythology and themiddlebrow from the Confucius, two shining stars of their own culture. Firstly, the thesis will give a brief introduction about the middlebrow philosophy and its social background. Tell the readers why does the middlebrow philosophy come into being and give a detailed expression about it from Confucius’s saying. Then introduce the philosophy of the ancient Greek, its stories, and show how the philosophy come into being and develops, analyzing the embodiment of its value . At the same time, do comparisons between the philosophy of the Greek mythology and the middlebrow from the Confucius which comes from the different times, areas, and civilizations.Confucius and his philosophyAlthough Confucianism is often followed in a religious manner by the Chinese, arguments continue over whether it is a religion. Confucianism lacks an afterlife, its texts express complex and ambivalent views concerning deities, and it is relatively unconcerned with some spiritual matters often considered essential to religious thought, such as the nature of the soul.Confucius' principles gained wide acceptance primarily because of their basis in common Chinese tradition and belief. He championed strong familial loyalty, ancestor worship, respect of elders by their children (and, according to later interpreters, of husbands by their wives),and the family as a basis for an ideal government . He expressed the well-known principle, "Do not do to others what you do not want done to yourself" (similar to the Golden Rule). He also looked nostalgically upon earlier days, and urged the Chinese, particularly those with political power, to model themselves on earlier examples.The Confucian theory of ethics as exemplified in Lǐis based on three important conceptual aspects of life: Ceremonies associated with sacrifice to ancestors and deities of various types, social and political institutions, and the etiquette of daily behavior. It was believed by some that lǐoriginated from the heavens. Confucius's view was more nuanced. His approach stressed the development of lǐthrough the actions of sage leaders in human history, with less emphasis on its connection with heaven. His discussions of lǐseem to redefine the term to refer to all actions committed by a person to build the ideal society, rather than those simply conforming with canonical standards of ceremony. In the early Confucian tradition, lǐ, though still linked to traditional forms of action, came to point towards the balance between maintaining these norms so as to perpetuate an ethical social fabric, and violating them in order to accomplish ethical good. These concepts are about doing the proper thing at the proper time, and are connected to the belief that training in the lǐthat past sages have devised cultivates in people virtues that include ethical judgment about when lǐmust beadapted in light of situational contexts. Confucius also articulated an early version of the Golden Rule:"What one does not wish for oneself, one ought not to do to anyone else; what one recognizes as desirable for oneself, one ought to be willing to grant to others."Greek mythologyGreek mythology is the body of myths and legends belonging to the ancient Greeks concerning their gods and heroes, the nature of the world and the origins and significance of their own cult and ritual practices. They were a part of religion in ancient Greece. Modern scholars refer to the myths and study them in an attempt to throw light on the religious and political institutions of Ancient Greece and on the Ancient Greek civilization, and to gain understanding of the nature of myth-making itself. Greek mythology is embodied explicitly in a large collection of narratives and implicitly in representational arts, such as vase-paintings and votive gifts. Greek myth explains the origins of the world and details the lives and adventures of a wide variety of gods, goddesses, heroes, heroines, and other mythological creatures. These accounts were initially disseminated in an oral-poetic tradition; the Greek myths are known today primarily from Greek literature. The oldest known Greek literary sources, the epic poems Iliad and Odyssey focus on events surroundingthe Trojan War. Two poems by Homer's near contemporary Hesiod, the Theogony and the Works and Days, contain accounts of the genesis of the world, the succession of divine rulers, the succession of human ages, the origin of human woes, and the origin of sacrificial practices. Myths are also preserved in the Homeric Hymns, in fragments of epic poems of the Epic Cycle, in lyric poems, in the works of the tragedians of the 5th century BC, in writings of scholars and poets of the Hellenistic Age and in writers of the time of the Roman Empire, for example, Plutarch and Pausanias. Archaeological evidence is a principal source of detail about Greek mythology, with gods and heroes featuring prominently in the decoration of many artifacts. Geometric designs on pottery of the 8th century BCE depict scenes from the Trojan cycle as well as the adventures of Heracles. In the succeeding Archaic, Classical and Hellenistic periods, Homeric and various other mythological scenes appear, supplementing the existing literary evidence. Greek mythology has had extensive influence on the culture, the arts and the literature of Western civilization and remains part of Western heritage and language. Poets and artists from ancient times to the present have derived inspiration from Greek mythology and have discovered contemporary significance and relevance in classical mythological themes. Expressions from Confucius and comparisons between the two philosophies :1.To learn without thinking is labor in vain, to think without learning isdesolation.2.To acknowledge what is known as known, and what is not known asnot known is knowledge.3.Men live with honesty. The dishonest live, spared by fortune.4.Knowledge is not equal to devotion. Devotion is not equal to joy.Conclusion and personal viewsThis Chinese man was a well-known leader in philosophy and he also made many wise phrases and theories about the law, life, and the government. Philosophy is a kind of a system of ideas and thoughts that talk about the human's behavior, the rules that you should follow to make a successful life, and about the government. In other words, it's about thoughts and theories that teach other people lessons about principles, or rules, about life and it also teaches you a moral ( sort of like the morals that are at the end of a fable). Confucius is famous for his philosophy because he made many wise sayings in ancient China that helped many people learn about nature, the world, and the human behavior. He also helped the government and the emperor by teaching them lessons on how the emperor should rule his kingdom successfully.A sage once reduced all virtue to the golden mean. Push right to the extreme and it becomes wrong; press all the juice from an orange and itbecomes bitter. Even in enjoyment never go to extremes.You should learn to seize things not by the blade, which cuts, but by the handle, which saves you from harm; especially is this the rule with the doings of your enemies. A wise man gets more use from his enemies than a fool from his friends. Their ill will often levels mountains of difficulties which one would otherwise not face... Flattery is more dangerous than hatred because it covers the stains which the other causes to be wiped out.Everyone would have excelled in something if he had known his strong point. Notice in what quality you surpass, and take charge of that. In some, judgment excels, in others valor. Most do violence to their natural aptitude and thus attain superiority in nothing. Time disillusions us too late of what first flattered the passions.The contrast between light and darkness was the first mental germ that developed afterwards into the contrast between good and evil.And by slow degrees that lead inevitably to the highest abstraction of religion, morality and philosophy. And the culture of today is nothing else than putting old thoughts into new words, old wine into new bottles. That is the answer to those who ask: why do we study ancient religions and philosophy? Because all what we think and do today was written long ago in the ancient books of mythology and philosophy. The greatest of all arts is the art of life, and the best of all music is the harmony of spirits. It is on this view that is looking for great creative writers tocompose high quality articles on Greek Mythology and General Philosophy. Greek mythology was the Greeks' religion and the fundamental of every religion of the past, and also of the religions of the present. Because the past is not passed, it belongs to us more than the present; we feed on it as long as we live. All religions had the same purpose; all were links in a chain which connects heaven and earth. The Gods in the Greek mythology were much more human than the God of the actual religions, but in the Greek mythology there are old stones that we cannot reject. The same and even more so for Philosophy. How actual is Aristoteles? Man is the measurer of all things, and what is science but the reflection of the outer world on the mirror of the mind? Or Plato? All here on earth tends toward right, and truth and Perfection, nothing here on earth can ever be quite right, quite true, and quite perfect. We are still in a cave seeing but the light of the ideal truth.。