At the heart of the text stands Mencius himself, the Confucian master whose voice shapes almost every exchange, whether directly or through the recollections of disciples. Around him gathers a circle of interlocutors who draw out different dimensions of his thought. Foremost among these are rulers and political figures, especially King Hui of Liang and King Xuan of Qi, who appear as central partners in dialogue on questions of governance, benevolent rule, and the moral responsibilities of kings. Their courts provide the stage on which issues of political legitimacy and the welfare of the people are tested against Mencius’s teachings.

Alongside these rulers stand Mencius’s disciples and close associates, whose questioning gives the work much of its philosophical texture. Figures such as Gong Sun Chou and Wan Zhang, as well as others like Gaozi, engage Mencius in more analytical and probing discussions. These conversations turn from immediate political counsel toward deeper explorations of human nature, moral psychology, virtue, and self-cultivation. Rival thinkers and alternative schools also appear, with Gaozi in particular serving as a foil in debates over whether human nature is good, thus sharpening the contours of Mencius’s own position.

The written work arranges these voices in a carefully structured way. It is divided into seven books, each further split into A and B sections, and many of these sections bear the names of the principal interlocutors who dominate them, such as “Liang Hui Wang,” “Gong Sun Chou,” “Wan Zhang,” and “Gaozi.” Within these named sections, the text unfolds as a series of short, self-contained dialogues: audiences with rulers, question-and-answer exchanges with disciples, and more theoretical debates with rival thinkers. The organization is not strictly chronological; rather, it clusters related discussions so that political philosophy, ethical cultivation, ritual concerns, and reflections on human nature each find their own center of gravity. Through this pattern of encounters, the reader is invited to see how a single teaching takes on different colors when addressed to kings, students, and critics.