CONFUCIUS & THE PRINCIPLE OF THE ARISTOCRATIC 1% & THE TIMOCRATIC 9%
Confucius (551 to 479 BCE), philosopher and statesman, was the first private teacher in China who offered the classical education or the aristocratic education, privilege of the hereditary nobility, to everyone. He was the fountainhead of the meritocratic attitude which is at the core of the longlasting Chinese mentality. It is still in operation, so to speak, when the Chinese high school students attend the redoutable but highly respected Gao Kao 高 考 Gao1 Kao2, meaning the College Entrance Examination which will determine in large part their futures.
The scholars of the past having attended the 3 levels (prefectural, provincial & metropolitan) of the Imperial Examination System were beyond doubt their close comrades.
That is only **the first step** of the perennial Chinese Way for discovering the aristocratic 1% (people endowed with the Mind powers of valor, humanity, playful exploration, creativity, inventivity, discovery) and the timocratic 9% (people endowed with the Mind powers for upholding sincerely justice).
The expression 1% doesn’t evoke the same thing in the West nowadays.
Below is the link to a movie on Confucius by director Hu Mei (2010)
Chinese Film Culture and History Series: “Confucius” directed by Hu Mei (2010, with English subtitles), as explained by Dr. Quan Le. China Rising Radio Sinoland 210507