ABSTRACT
This chapter discusses the ideas on leadership that are to be found in the works of Han Fei, the pre-eminent philosopher of Legalism in ancient China. The philosophical school known as Legalism originated in China in the fourth century BC during the Warring States period. During the period of the Qin dynasty, Legalism became the state philosophy, largely displacing Confucianism and Daoism. The most prominent early Chinese philosophical schools, Daoism and Confucianism, emerged towards the end of the Zhou Dynasty in what later became known as the spring and Autumn Period, at a time when the Zhou dynasty was in decline. As a young man, Han Fei had studied with the Confucian philosopher Xunzi, and some Confucian influence is also apparent. Leadership plays an extremely important role in Han Fei's thinking. Han Fei borrows concepts from Daoist leadership, including specifically the principle of non-action. Han Fei draws on the Confucian principle of 'rectifying names'.
