Was The Analects written by Confucius?

The Analects of Confucius is the earliest recorded prose collection in the pre-Qin period in China and an important classic of Confucianism in the pre-Qin period. It was written by Confucius, a thinker, educator and founder of Confucianism in the Spring and Autumn Period. Confucius, whose real name is Qiu, was born in 55 1 year BC and died in 479 BC. At the end of the Spring and Autumn Period, he was born in (now Qufu, Shandong). Ancestors are aristocrats of the Song Dynasty. Confucius lost his father in his early years and made a living by handling weddings and funerals for others. He has been engaged in private speeches for a long time and traveled around the world to publicize his political opinions. Before Confucius, culture and education were monopolized by slave owners and nobles, and only noble disciples had the right and opportunity to receive education. Confucius recruited disciples regardless of family background. He trained and educated 3,000 students, 72 of whom made contributions to the society at that time and were called "sages". According to legend, Confucius once deleted poems and wrote books, set rites and music, and wrote spring and autumn annals.

There are three different versions of The Analects of Confucius in Han Dynasty: The Analects of Lu, The Analects of Qi and The Ancient Analects. The current edition of The Analects of Confucius is the Analects of Confucius by Lu at that time. During the Southern Song Dynasty, Zhu included four works, The Analects of Confucius, Mencius, Daxue and The Doctrine of the Mean, and made a collection of notes for them.

The Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period is a period of great historical changes in China. The disintegration of slavery and the emergence of the new landlord class changed the basic contradictions of society. Social progress has promoted the prosperity and development of science and culture. There were many new ideas and ideas at that time. Some intellectuals established their own systematic theory according to their own political opinions and ideas, and vigorously publicized their political opinions, thus forming a political and cultural situation called "a hundred schools of thought contend" in history. Confucius' theory is one of the most representative schools that appeared in this period and had great influence on society-Confucian school.

Confucius lived in an era when slavery declined, the landlord class rose, and social contradictions and social struggles were relatively acute and complicated. Confucianism, represented by Confucius, is a faction system that stands on the position of slave owners and nobles and aims at maintaining old slavery. In Confucius' thoughts, it is obvious that he worships the great slave-owner politician Zhou Gong. He believed that the slave society in the early Western Zhou Dynasty was the most ideal social system, and Confucius' thoughts of "benevolence", "courtesy" and "love" were all based on slavery and aimed at maintaining and saving the slave-owning class facing collapse.