Legalist Treatises (fajia lei 法家類)

Legalist Treatises (fajia lei 法家類) is a subcategory in traditional Chinese bibliographies and part of the category of Masters and Philosophers (zibu 子部). Although the Confucians always despised the legalists because of their non-moral methods to create stability in state and society, the teachings of the legalists had a deep impact on the practical administration of the Chinese empires. Therefore the legalist writings have always been granted an own category. The compilers of the series Siku quanshu 四庫全書 included 8 legalist books, of which not all are really representing a pure legalist attitude. The most important of these books are the Guanzi 管子, Shangjunshu 商君書 and Hanfeizi 韓非子.