Bodily Reflections on Living Organ Donors Through the Lens of Confucian Body Philosophy

The body of a living organ donor is not merely a medicalized object but also a vessel for nurturing familial ethical bonds and reconstructing the self. The Confucian perspective on the body offers a unique lens for interpreting the donor's physical and existential situation. Confucianism interweaves the act of bodily donation with the harmony and continuity of the moral individual within the family, the production of ethical relationships, and the formation of self-awareness, thereby providing a multidimensional interpretation of the donor's bodily experience. Through their bodily sacrifice, living donors manifest three dimensions of bodily existence: the situated body, the ethical body, and the practical body. Their bodily practices uphold the family's ethical order and assert personal agency, highlighting the role of emotional practices and moral embodiment in Chinese families' medical decision-making.