ABSTRACT
Classical Chinese philosophy of governance revolved around three sets of questions: (1) How should a state be organized and governed? In particular, who or what should the people be expected to take as authoritative? (2) What are the proper goals of governance? Which goals are most fundamental? (3) How are the answers to the previous questions justified? What renders the means and ends of governance legitimate? The following sections will examine the range of answers to these questions found in the philosophical classics of the Warring States period (479-221 B.C.E.) in China.
