The residents of Hong Kong construct their families and home life around the teachings of a sixth-century B. C. philosopher named Confucius. Although some people in Hong Kong worry that the tight family values Confucianism encourages are loosening under the pressures of twenty-first-century life, most agree with writer Elsie Tu, who says, "Confucianism is very deep in the Chinese mind. The Chinese are still following the Confucian ideal, even if they cannot articulate the specifics of the philosophy."

Confucianism

Confucius taught that good families were built on the principles of respect for each other and obedience of the young to their elders; a society would prosper as a result because each family would be a self-governing unit. If anyone in the family caused trouble in the community, shame would fall on the entire family. In this environment, the male family head was...