Shuoyuan

4 ideas

1. Six Upright and Six Corrupt Ministers

   Ministers are graded by how they relate to the ruler's errors and interests, not by talent. The upright types run from the sage minister, who foresees trouble and steers the ruler away before it forms, down to the loyal and the upright, who openly oppose error at risk to themselves. The corrupt types run from the time-server, who merely fills a post, through the flatterer who echoes the ruler's wishes, to the traitor who divides the court and the ruinous minister who leads the state to destruction.

2. Mantis, Cicada, Oriole, and the Slingshot

   The King of Wu had forbidden anyone to argue against his attack on Chu. A young retainer stood in the palace garden with a slingshot until the king asked why. He described a mantis intent on a cicada, unaware of the oriole behind it, and the oriole unaware of his pellet. Each hunter fixed on its prey is blind to the one stalking it, and the king called off the campaign.

3. Explaining Only Works Through Analogy

   A king told Hui Shi to speak plainly, without analogies. Hui Shi replied that telling someone who has never seen a tan that it is 'shaped like a tan' conveys nothing. Saying it is 'like a bow with a bamboo string' makes it understood at once. Explanation works by leading the listener from what they already know to what they don't, so banning comparison bans understanding.

4. Late Learning as Candlelight

   Duke Ping of Jin feared that at seventy he was too old to begin studying. Shi Kuang answered that learning in youth is like the rising sun and learning in one's prime is like the noon sun. Learning in old age is like candlelight, dimmer but far better than walking in the dark. The value of learning is judged against ignorance, not against having started earlier.

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