| Li Si | |
|---|---|
| Born | 280 BC Shangcai County, Chu (state) |
| Died | 208 BC (aged 71-72) Xianyang, Qin Empire |
| Employer | Qin Shi Huang, Qin Er Shi |
| Title | Chancellor of Qin Dynasty |
| Political movement | Legalism (Chinese philosophy) |
Li Si (Chinese: 李斯; pinyin: Lǐ Sī; Wade–Giles: Li Ssu) (ca. 280 BC – September or October 208 BC) was the influential Prime Minister (or Chancellor) of the feudal state and later of the dynasty of Qin, between 246 BC and 208 BC. A famous Legalist, he was also a notable calligrapher. Li Si served under two rulers: Qin Shi Huang, king of Qin and later First Emperor of China—and his son, Qin Er Shi.[1] A powerful minister, he was central to the state's policies, including those on military conquest, draconian centralization of state control, standardization of weights, measures and the written script, and persecution of Confucianism and opponents of Legalism. His methods of administration of China is seen by some as being an early form of totalitarianism.
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Li Si was originally from Shang Cai (上蔡) in the State of Chu.[2] As a young man he was a minor functionary in the local administration of Chu. According to the Records of the Great Historian, one day Li Si observed that rats in the outhouse were dirty and hungry but the rats in the barnhouse were well fed. He suddenly realized that "there is no set standard for honor since everyone's life is different. The values of people are determined by their social status. And like rats, people's social status often depends purely on the random life events around them. And so instead of always being restricted by moral codes, people should do what they deemed best at the moment." He made up his mind to take up politics as a career, which was a common choice for scholars not from a noble family during the Warring States Period.
Li Si was unable to advance his career in Chu. He believed that achieving nothing in life while being so intelligent and educated would bring shame to not just himself but to all scholars. After having finished his education with the famous Confucian thinker Xun Zi, he moved to the State of Qin, the most powerful state at that time in an attempt to advance his political career.
During his stay in Qin, Li Si became a guest of Prime Minister Lu Buwei and got the chance to talk to the ruler of Qin, King Zheng who would later become the first emperor of a unified China, Qin Shi Huang. Li Si expressed that the Qin state was extremely powerful, but uniting China was still impossible if all of the other six states united to fight against Qin. Qin Shi Huang was impressed by Li Si's view of how to unify China. Having adopted Li Si's proposal, the ruler of Qin spent generously to lure intellectuals to the state of Qin and sent out assassins to kill important scholars in other states.
In 237 BC a clique at the Qin court urged King Zheng to expel all foreigners from the state to prevent espionage. As a native of Chu, Li Si would be a target of the policy so he memorialized the king explaining the many benefits of foreigners to Qin including "the sultry girls of Zhao".[1] The king relented and, impressed with Li Si's rhetoric, promoted him.[2] The same year, Li Si is reported to have urged King Zheng to annex the neighbouring State of Han to order to intimidate the other five remaining states. Han Fei, a minor prince in the State of Han was asked by the Han king to go to Qin and resolve the situation through diplomacy. Li Si, who envied Han Fei's intellect, persuaded the Qin king that he could neither send Han Fei back (as his superior ability would be a threat to Qin) nor employ him (as his loyalty would not be to Qin). As a result, Han Fei was imprisoned, and in 233 BC convinced by Li Si to commit suicide by taking poison. The State of Han was annihilated in the same year.
After Qin Shi Huang became emperor Li Si persuaded him to suppress intellectual dissent.[1] Li Si believed that books regarding things such as medicine, agriculture and prophecy could be ignored but political books were dangerous in public hands. It was hard to make progress and change the country with the opposition of so many "old school" scholars. As a result only the state should keep political books, and only the state run schools should be allowed to educate political scholars. When Confucian scholars protested, 460 of them were buried alive. Li Si himself penned the edict ordering the destruction of historical records and literature in 213 BC, including key Confucian texts, which he thought detrimental to the welfare of the state.
When Qin Shi Huang died whilst away from the capital, Li Si and the chief eunuch Zhao Gao suppressed the late emperor's choice of successor, which was Fusu. At that time Fusu was close friends with Meng Tian. If Fusu became the next emperor there was a high chance Meng Tian would replace Li Si as prime minister. Fearing a loss of power, Li Si decided to betray the dead Qin Shi Huang. Li Si and Zhao Gao tricked Fusu to commit suicide, and installed another prince, Qin Er Shi (229B.C-207B.C) in his place. During the tumultuous aftermath, Zhao Gao convinced the new emperor to install his followers in official positions. When his power base was secure enough, Zhao Gao charged Li Si with treason. Qin Er Shi, who viewed Zhao Gao as his teacher, did not question his decision. Zhao Gao had Li Si tortured until he admitted the crime. In 208 BC Zhao Gao had Li Si executed by way of The Five Pains. Zhao Gao in turn was killed by Ziying in revenge for Gao's killing of Ziying's uncle Emperor Fusu.
Believing in a highly bureaucratic system, Li Si is considered to have been central to the efficiency of the state of Qin and the success of its military conquest. He was also instrumental in systemizing standard measures and currency in post-unified China. He further helped systemize the written Chinese language by promulgating as the imperial standard the small seal script which had been in use in the state of Qin all along. In this process, variant graphs within the Qin script were proscribed, as were variant scripts from the different regions which had been conquered. This would have a unification effect on the Chinese culture for thousands of years.[A][3]
Li Si was also the author of the Cangjie Pian (仓颉篇/倉頡篇), the first Chinese language primer of which fragments still exist.[4]
Li Si is mentioned in Elias Canetti's novel: Auto-da-fe (1935). Li Si is one of the 32 historical figures who appear as special characters in the video game Romance of the Three Kingdoms XI by Koei.
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| Political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Lü Buwei |
Chancellor of China 246 BC – 203 BC |
Succeeded by Zhao Gao |