PS113A: East Asian Thought/Comparative Perspective

Professor Victor Magagna

Fall 2016
Midterm Examination
GENERAL INSTRUCTIONS
1. You must submit your paper as a Turn-It-In assignment on the course (TED)
website by 2:00 pm PST on November 4, 2016. A hard copy is not required. The
Turnitin link will be available beginning after the prompt is posted. It will remain
available even after the deadline has passed, so please be sure to upload your exam even
if you are turning it in late.
2. Late papers will be penalized by a third of a grade for each day it is late. The
deadline for turning in your exam will be strictly enforced. Unless you have made prior
arrangements with us, it is very unlikely that we will make an exception for late exams. If
you receive an exception from Professor Magagna, please be sure to notify the TAs via
email as well.
3. Please use citations and include a full bibliography. There is no specific format
required, but we must be able to find the source to which you are referring. Only include
sources that you have cited in the text. You are not encouraged to use any outside
readings. Please use citations both from the readings and lectures. When citing lectures,
please use indicate the date and/or the title of the lecture.
4. Responses should be five to six pages in length. This is a minimum length and will
be strictly enforced. It refers to FULL pages of text and does not count pages with large
amounts of white space, title pages (which are not necessary), bibliographies, large block
quotes, or anything else that is not the body or your original text. You may write more
than this page minimum, but you will not receive extra credit for doing so. Please use
Times New Roman (or similar), size 12 font, double spaced, 1 inch margins on all sides.
DO indent at the beginning of every paragraph. DO NOT skip lines between paragraphs.
5. Academic dishonesty will not be tolerated. You must write your own exam, and it
must be new. You may not use text that you have written for a previous assignment or for
another class. You may not use text from the internet or other sources without quoting
and citing appropriately. Students who turn in plagiarized exams will not pass the class,
and we may pursue additional disciplinary sanctions. If you have questions about what
constitutes plagiarism please ask the TAs and we will be happy to clarify. Please note that
each student is responsible for knowing and abiding by UCSD's policies on Academic
Dishonesty and on Student Conduct. UCSDs academic dishonesty policies may be read
online at http://www-senate.ucsd.edu/AcademicIntegrity/AcademicIntegrity.htm.

EXAM INSTRUCTIONS
Write an essay to answer ONE of the following questions. Please indicate in the
heading of the essay the number for the question you are answering.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

Explain the why and how of proper order. (sources: lectures, and Mencius or Xun-zi)
Explain five Confucian (East Asian) concepts. (sources: lectures, Yao)
Explain elite regulation. (sources: lectures, Mencius or Xun-Zi)
Explain the paradox of Confucian rule. (sources: lectures, Yao)
Explain the role of the district magistrate, specifically the magistrates role in material
and moral management. (sources: lectures, Yao, or Mencius or Xun-Zi)
6. Explain the conception of human nature in Mencius and Xun-Zi. (sources: lectures, Yao,
Mencius, Xun-Zi)
7. Explain the East Asian conception of knowledge and action. (sources: lectures, Yao)
*Note: All references to Mencius and Xun-Zi are in de Bary Vol. I