先秦早期法家以李悝、吴起、商鞅等人为代表,他们的法家思想皆起源于儒家,与儒家思想具有某种天然的联系;其立论宗旨皆为富国强兵,制定的法律政令多涉“兵法”,带有战时法令的性质;其论述则常以治乱、虚实、强弱、贫富诸范畴肯定国家走向治强的主张,而否弃导致国家政治混乱和贫弱败亡的思想。《商君书》对先秦诸子学术批评的主要指向,是先秦孔孟儒家的礼义教化等核心价值观和“不轻不重”的执法与量刑公平的原则。《商君书》对道家使民“愚”“朴”观点有所继承,但否定了老子“法令滋彰,盗贼多有”的观点;吸收了墨家的“尚同”说及人性论观点,但对墨子本人“兼爱”、“非攻”、“尚贤”等核心价值和好辩、“外交”等行为,都给予了明确的批评;继承了名、法家与“礼”“法”等上下等级制度和法令制度相关的思想,而对其“烦言饰辞而无实用”的“名辩”则给予了坚决的批判和否定。此外,《商君书》还明显有农家重农思想的影响。

In the early period of pre-Qin, legalists were represented by Li Kui, Wu Qi and Shang Yang, etc. Their legalism originated from Confucianism, which has a natural connection with Confucianism. The purpose of their arguments is to enrich the country and strengthen the army, and their laws and decrees are mostly related to the “Law of war”, essential to wartime laws and decrees. Their argumentation often affirms the idea that the country is going to be strong in terms of managing chaos, nihility and reality, being strong and weak, rich and poor, but rejects the idea that leads to the political chaos and defeat of the country. The main direction of the academic criticism of the pre-Qin scholars in the Book of Lord Shang is the core values of Confucianism, such as etiquette and education, and the principle of justice in law enforcement and punishment, which is neither light or heavy. The book of Lord Shang inherits the Taoist view of making the people “foolish” and “simple”, but negates the view of Laozi that “The more laws and regulations, the more thieves and robbers.” It has absorbed Mohism's harmony and the view of human nature, but it has given clear criticism to Mohism's core values such as “universal love”, “non-offensive”, “meritocracy” and “diplomacy”. It inherits the thoughts of the famous legalism, the upper and lower hierarchy and the legal system such as “rites” and “laws”, while resolutely criticizing and rejecting his “famous arguments”, which were “too much rhetoric but not practical”. In addition, the Book of Lord Shang is also clearly influenced by the idea of the peasant family emphasizing agriculture.