Editing Xunzi (philosopher) (section)

==Sources and context==
Detailed information concerning Xunzi is largely nonexistent.{{sfn|''Britannica''|2017|loc=§ para. 2}} Yet when compared to the scarcity of knowledge for many other ancient Chinese philosophers, there is meaningful and significant extant information on the life of Xunzi.{{sfn|Knoblock|1988|p=3}} The [[sinologist]] John H. Knoblock asserts that the sources available "permit not only a reconstruction of the outlines of career but also an understanding of his intellectual development".{{sfn|Knoblock|1988|p=3}} Xunzi's writings have survived in exceptionally good condition, and while they provide biographical details, the authenticity of this information is sometimes questionable.{{sfn|Goldin|1999|p=xiii}}{{sfn|Knoblock|1982–1983|p=29}}{{efn|{{harvnb|Goldin|1999|p=xiii}} notes that the information on Xunzi in his writings may have never been intended as biographical, and rather served as anecdotes for the sake of teaching.}} In addition to these, the main source for Xunzi's life is [[Sima Qian]]'s ''[[Shiji]]'' ({{lang|zh-Hant|史記}}; ''Records of the Grand Historian''), which includes a biography of Xunzi (''SJ'', 74.12–14) and mentions of him in the biographies of both [[Li Si]] (''SJ'', 78.15) and [[Lord of Chunshen]] (''SJ'', 87.1–2, 14).{{sfn|Knoblock|1982–1983|pp=29–30}}{{sfn|Knoblock|1988|p=256}}{{efn|It is worth noting that historical accuracy in the ''[[Shiji]]'' is also sometimes questionable, especially on its coverage of philosophers such as Xunzi.{{sfn|Goldin|2018|loc=§1 "Xunzi and ''Xunzi''"}}}} The [[Western Han dynasty]] historian [[Liu Xiang (scholar)|Liu Xiang]] revised and expanded Sima Qian's initial biography for the preface of the first edition of Xunzi's writings.{{sfn|Knoblock|1982–1983|p=30}} Some minor references to Xunzi also exist in [[Ying Shao]]'s paraphrase of Liu Xiang's preface, as well as brief mentions in the ''[[Han Feizi]]'', ''[[Zhan Guo Ce]]'' and ''[[Discourses on Salt and Iron|Yantie Lun]]''.{{sfn|Knoblock|1982–1983|p=30}}{{efn|Scholars such as Wang Zhong and Hu Yuanyi later improved the outline of Xun Quang's life, culminating in a synthesis of information by the [[Qing dynasty]] historian {{ill|Wang Xianqian|de}}.{{sfn|Knoblock|1982–1983|p=30}} The early 20th century saw a new generation of scholars, particularly from the [[Doubting Antiquity School]], improve the information and as recently as the late 20th century scholars from [[Beijing University]] have improved these outlines further.{{sfn|Knoblock|1982–1983|p=30}}}}

The [[Warring States period]] ({{circa|475–221 BCE}}), an era of immense disunity and warfare, had been raging for over a hundred years by the time of Xunzi's birth in the late 4th century BCE.{{sfn|Knoblock|1988|p=3}} Yet this time also saw considerable innovations in [[Chinese philosophy]], referred to as the [[Hundred Schools of Thought]]. The primary schools were [[Confucianism]], [[Daoism]], [[Legalism (Chinese philosophy)|Legalism]], [[Mohism]], the [[School of Names]], and the [[School of Naturalists|Yin–Yang School]].{{sfn|Cheng|2016}} Xunzi was a philosopher in the tradition of Confucianism, begun by [[Confucius]] who lived over two centuries before him.{{sfn|Goldin|1999|pp=xii–xiii}}