Chapter 3: Reflection on Governing a Chinese Empire

Han Fei's Legalism is called that because it is "hardheaded" and "practical" and lies in rewards and punishments that come from following or breaking the rules. Han Fei believed that in order to have an effective government, there needed to be rules that came with some serious consequences. He wrote that "if rewards are high, then what the ruler wants will be quickly effected if punishments are heavy, then what he does not want will be swiftly prevented" (169). Simply put, Han Fei loved rules and he loved to enforce them.
Han Fei speaks of the "two handles" in his writings. The first handle is chastisement and the other handle is commendation. For those who break the rules, they will experience chastisement: death or torture. And for those who "men of merit," they will receive encouragements and rewards. By having these two handles, Han Fei felt confident that his country would be strong due to the strong law-abiding citizens.
By reading Han Fei's writings, I think that he believes that the rules should apply to everyone but the intelligent rulers. I don't think that these rules apply to the  nobles but perhaps I am reading it wrong. He seems to attempt to make things somewhat equal when he says that "if the punishment is severe, the nobles must not discriminate against the humble" (151). I am honestly kind of confused by who Han Fei is directing this to. I am having trouble discerning whether or not he is excluding the nobles from the rules and punishments or if they are, in fact, included.
Han Fei and other Legalists of the time had a very pessimistic view of human nature. He thought that nobles, such as himself, were the best kind of people and that most other people were "stupid and shortsighted" (169). The Legalists believed that the aristocrats and the thinkers had no purpose in their society. Instead, they believed that the only valuable ones were the farmers and the soldiers. While those are definitely important roles in society, Han Fei was being a little ignorant in not acknowledging everyone else as being useless. Because he believed that everyone was stupid, he was a firm supporter of Legalism and the strict rules that his people were forced to follow.