Transcript Chapter 17 Empire of the Middle: China to the Mongol Conquest

OVERVIEW
ANCIENT AND MIDDLE CHINA
EARLIEST CHINA: THE SHANG ERA
Introduced little if any cultural change
 China was extremely isolated from outside
influences
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Strictly hierarchical society
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Agriculture, metalworking originated independently
No connection with Indian or Mesopotamian cultures
Powerful king with warrior court
Skilled artisans, small traders
Peasants (great majority)
Fundamental aspects of Chinese life
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Supreme importance of family
Reverence for ancestors and aged
Emphasis on this world
Importance of education, literacy
WRITING
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Beginnings date to about 1500 BCE
Originally pictographic, then
developed huge vocabulary of signs
called logographs
Single logographs may represent
several words
Students had to memorize about
5000 logographs to be literate
Earliest writing was on oracle bones
used to discern divine wishes
Writing was so difficult that there
were very low literacy rates
ZHOU DYNASTY
Greatly extended China’s borders
 Extensive literature survives – history, records of all
kinds
 Mandate of Heaven
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Vote of confidence for ruler from gods
As long as he ruled well, justly, he kept the mandate
If he betrayed the mandate, he had to be replaced
Highly influential idea in Chinese history
First rulers were powerful military men
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Feudal society developed – local aristocratic power increased
Control of area by royal government weakened
By 400 BCE, central power broke down completely
CULTURAL AND DAILY LIFE
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Great advances in all arts and crafts
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War chariot was technical breakthrough
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Silk
Bronze work
Iron for tools, utensils, plowshares
Wars were common
Use of horse harness meant horses could pull better
Transformed the value of horses
Peasants were moderately prosperous, rarely enslaved,
most were sharecropping tenants
Literary arts
Earliest surviving books date to 800s BCE
Professional historians wrote chronicles of rulers
 Poetry made first appearance
 calligraphy
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SILK ROAD
 Caravan
route to the Near East and the Black
Sea
 Used to trade many kinds of goods but silk was
the most important and valuable
 From the Black Sea goods would travel to
Rome (paid a pound of gold for a pound of
Chinese silk
CONFUCIUS AND CONFUCIAN
PHILOSOPHY
 Extremely
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influential figure
Molder of patterns of education
Authority on actions of true Chinese
 Interests
were practical, centered on
ethical, political relations
 His model was the Chinese family – state
should be like harmonious family
Headed by males
 Each person has rights and duties
 Women scarcely existed
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CONFUCIUS’ 5 KEY RELATIONSHIPS
Ruler
 Husband
 Parent
 Elder Brother
 Friend
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Ruled
Wife
Child
Younger Brother
Friend
Filial Piety- children demonstrate devotion and dedication to
their parents in both thought and actions from childhood to
adulthood
CONFUCIUS AND CONFUCIAN
PHILOSOPHY
 Gentility
(courtesy, justice, moderation)
was chief virtue
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Rich, strong had obligation to poor, weak
Proper role for gentleman was government
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to have enormous influence
Rulers were judged according to his guidelines
Educated officials (mandarins) were governing
class
Rulers came to prefer status quo, harmony
over change, new ideas
RIVALS TO CONFUCIUS
 Daoism
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Concentrated on nature, following the “Way”
Based on Lao Zi’s The Way of the Dao
Sees the best government is the least
government
Way of Nature is perceived through
meditation, observation
Man must seek harmony of parts of the whole,
avoid all extremes
Eventually degenerated into peasant
superstition
RIVALS TO CONFUCIUS
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Legalism
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Philosophy of government rather than private life
Popularized during Era of the Warring States
Primarily a justification for applying force when
persuasion fails
Sees most people as inclined to evil selfishness,
government must restrain them
Strict censorship, crushing of any independent
thought
Strict Law
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State should have as much power as possible
Would lead to stable government
EMPIRE OF THE MIDDLE:
CHINA TO THE MONGOL
CONQUEST
CHINA UNDER THE QIN AND HAN
DYNASTIES
QIN DYNASTY
THE QIN EMPEROR – FOUNDATION
OF THE STATE
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After Era of the Warring States, Qin ruler
reunified country through military force,
administrative reorganization
First Emperor had great influence
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Centralization along legalist lines
Country divided into administrative units
Weights and measures standardized
First standard units of money
Writing system standardized
QIN DYNASTY
 Great
Wall and other public
works started
 China expanded to north and
south, first contacts with
Vietnamese
 Reigns had negative aspects
too
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Torture, harsh treatment
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 Burning of the books to combat
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AB
Confucianism
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 Overthrow
Dynasty
led to Han
HAN DYNASTY
HAN DYNASTY
202 BCE TO 220 CE
 Simultaneous
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with Rome, aspects in common
Basically urban
Depended on non-hereditary officials
Taxed peasants heavily
Collapsed under internal, external pressures
 Chinese
frontiers greatly expanded
Ended Chinese isolation
from rest of world
 Massive cultural influence
On Japan, Korea, Vietnam
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HAN DYNASTY
Confucianism
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Became semi-official
philosophy of Han regime
More emphasis on
obedience than before
Renewed emphasis on
Mandate of Heaven
 Mandate of Heavenunder Zhou Dynasty,
deities give leader
mandate to rule, as
long as they protect
people from invaders
they keep the mandate
Arts and Sciences
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History – kept careful
records
Mathematics, geography,
astronomy
Invention of paper
Medicine – acupuncture
Fine arts –silk, bronzes,
jade, ceramics
Poetry, landscape
painting, instrumental
music became prominent
HAN DYNASTY
ECONOMY, GOVERNMENT, FOREIGN
AFFAIRS
Canals, roads improved communications, commerce
 Large cities, numerous market towns and impressive
urban markets
 Government functioned through bureaucracy,
members (mandarins) chosen by examination
 China absorbed, assimilated nomadic invaders
 Peaceful contacts with India by traders, Buddhist
monks
 Heavy taxation eventually caused rebellion
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END OF THE HAN DYNASTY
Broke down into anarchy
 Two political divisions then appeared – North
and South
 Paddy rice farming entrenched in South, made
population growth possible
 Peasants Revolt
 95% of People in China consider themselves Han
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Culture was primarily established under dynasty