Is Confucius against profit? Two short passages from Book 4 take on one of the most common misconceptions about Confucianism.

In passage 4.12, Confucius warns that acting purely for personal advantage leads to resentment — but who exactly is he warning, and why? In 4.16, he draws a sharp line between the great and the small, the exemplary and the petty. There are two ways to read it, and both turn out to be right.

Along the way, we dig into the etymology of 利 and 義, revisit the two faces of 君子 and 小人, and find out what Gordon Gekko and Confucius actually agree on.

Follow along with the episode guide at analects.net.