Ancient China

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Ancient China

• Unit 4

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The Environment - China

• Desert
• Gobi Desert

• The Land
• 4th Largest Country in the world. (area)
• 12 of the land is suitable for farming despite
  the large size.

• Mountains
• Himalaya Mountains

• Bodies of Water
• The Huang (Yellow) River Yellow soil
• Yellow Sea
• Yangtze River

• The Climate
• Varies from region to region.
• Next Page will define.

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The Huang (Yellow) River
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CHINA Climate Control

• NORTH CHINA PLAIN warm hot summers/cold
  winters. Chief crops are wheat and millet.
  Beijing is the capital in the North.
• SOUTH CHINA PLAIN richer in farming and more
  industrialized. They grow rice, cotton, tea,
  veggies and more.
• MANCHURIA (North East) very cold climate makes
  it pretty unpopulated.
• MONGOLIA (The Far North Region) encompassed by
  the Gobi desert, its climate is very hot in the
  summer and cold in the winter.

• GroupWise

The Yangtze River serves as China's official
dividing line between north and south
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Dynasty in China

• The Xia over four thousand years ago?
• The Shang (1750 to 1122 B.C.) (628y)
• The Zhou (1122 to 256 B.C.) (866y)
• The Qin (221 to 206 B.C.) (15y)

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Xia Dynasty

• Legend says earliest Chinese ruled by Xia dynasty
• No written, archaeological evidence Xia dynasty
  existed
• Most historians date beginning of Chinese
  civilization to rise of Shang dynasty

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The Shang Dynasty

• Overview
• Mostly a farming society with huge walls (lower
  class lived outside of), royal palaces and tombs.
• King ruled with the help of aristocratic
  chieftains called warlords.
• Strong sense of supernatural forces explaining
  the unexplainable
• Divided kingdom into numerous territories led by
  appointed officials
• Religion
• Veneration of ancestors - ancestor worship.
  Belief was spirits of family ancestors could
  bring good or evil fortune to the living members
  of the family.
• Spirits were worshipped to persuade divine forces
  to do good.

• Key People
• Fu Hao
• woman who led military campaigns
• Shang Di
• One superior god

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Excavating Fu Hao's tomb 
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Shang Elite

• Leisure
• Ruling elite had free time to pursue leisure
  activities, hunting for sport
• Wealthy enjoyed collecting expensive bronze, jade
  objects

• Artifacts
• Much of what is known comes from studying royal
  tombs
• Contained valuable items made of bronze, jade

• Afterlife
• Tombs held remains of sacrificed prisoners of war
• Believed in afterlife where ruler would need
  riches, servants

• Ancestor Worship
• Shang offered gifts to deceased ancestors to keep
  them happy in afterlife
• Steam from ritual meals nourished ancestors
  spirits

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Oracle Bones

• As part of worship, Shang asked ancestors for
  advice
• Sought advice through use of oracle bones
• Inscribed bits of animal bone, turtle shell
• Living person asked question of ancestor
• Hot piece of metal applied to oracle bone
  resulting in cracks on bones surface
• Specially trained priests interpreted meaning of
  cracks to learn answer

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The Shang Dynasty Continued

• 1st civilization in China to write things down.
• They used pictographs, or pictures, to represent
  objects.
• They also used ideographs to represent ideas such
  as beauty, joy, and justice.
• They are also responsible for developing an
  accurate calendar.
• Finally, they are also responsible for improving
  the art of bronze-making.
• Out of bronze, they created weapons, vessels for
  religious purposes, and everyday objects such as
  cooking pots.

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Shang and Zhou Dynasties
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The Zhou Dynasty

• The Zhou overthrow the Shang Dynasty
• Lasts for nearly 900 years
• Like the Shang, they divided the kingdom into a
  number of territories governed by officials
• These officials (hereditary aristocracy) were
  appointed by the king.
• Continued to farm (millet in the North and rice
  in the marshy regions in the south)
• The use of iron c. 550 B.C. assisted farming
  methods (plow). Created more food, created more
  population.
• Farmers learned new techniques, increased size of
  harvest, created food surpluses cities also grew
• Population grew under Zhou
• Trade began locally and eventually moved to
  distant regions
• Roads, canals allowed better transportation,
  communication
• Introduced coins, use of chopsticks
• New ideas in government emerge Next Page

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The Zhou Dynasty Continued

• The Mandate of Heaven
• Mandate means order, permission, authorization
• The Mandate of Heaven is based on four
  principles
• The right to rule is granted by Heaven.
• There is only one Heaven therefore there can be
  only one ruler.
• The right to rule is based on the virtue of the
  ruler.
• The right to rule is not limited to one dynasty.
• Positive and Negative sides
• Mandate of Heaven for a Dynasty
• It gives the ruler prestige and religious
  importance.
• It gives the ruler supreme power.
• It allows a new ruler to gain power quickly
  because everyone believes he has the Mandate of
  Heaven.
• The rulers power must be kept in check by virtue.
  
• It justifies rebellion as long as the rebellion
  is successful.

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• Dynastic Cycle
• Period of wise and efficient rulers
• Leaders begin to decline intellectually and
  morally
• Central government begins to collapse
• Rebellion or invasion take place creating a new
  dynasty.
• The Dynastic cycle lasts until
• 1912 A.D.
• (Yes, really!)

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The Zhou Dynasty Continued

• Technology
• Canals and large scale water projects
• Iron Plow
• Silk

• Family Life
• Loyalty to the family was equally as important to
  the state
• Filial Piety
• All members of the family had to subordinate
  their needs and desires to those of the male head
  of the family.
• The Five Relationships
• Son was subordinate to the father
• Wife was to husband
• Younger brother to older brother
• All were to the king
• Friend to friend

• Chinese Written Language
• Pictographic and Ideographic
• Pictographs are picture symbols representing
  objects.
• Ideographic are two or more pictographs combined.
  See textbook for example. (p.99)

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New Philosophies
The conflicts of the late Zhou period led many
Chinese thinkers to question the nature of
society and peoples roles in it.
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Development of Chinese Traditions

• Confucianism
• Taoism
• Legalism

Cultivate Virtue in your own person, And it
becomes a genuine part of you. Cultivate it in
the family, And it will abide. Cultivate it in
the community, And it will live and grow.
Cultivate it in the state, And it will flourish
abundantly. Cultivate it in the world, And it
will become universal.
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Confucius

• Confucius is considered by the Chinese as the
  first teacher.
• Interest was political and ethical, not spiritual
• Belief was The universe was made in such a way
  that, if humans would act in harmony with its
  purposes, their own affairs would prosper.
• To be good, you had to behave according with the
  Tao (Way)
• Two Concepts of Tao- Duty and Humanity

• Humanity
• Belief in the concept
• Treat others the way you want to be treated or
• Dont do something to others that you would not
  want done to yourself

Wisdom

• Duty
• People had to follow the Five Relationships Rule
• Belief in 100 Work Ethic
• If everyone does their duty to the fullest, then
  society will prosper. If not

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Crosswords with a Pen

• If there is righteousness in the heart, there
  will be beauty in the character. If there is
  beauty in the character, there will be harmony in
  the home. If there be harmony in the home, there
  will be order in the nation. If there be order in
  the nation, there will be peace in the world.

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Taoism

• Founder
• Lao Tzu
• Text
• Tao Te Ching
• (The Way of the Tao)
• Seeks to set forth proper forms of behavior
  (morality)

• The Tao encompasses all opposite and
  complementary forces, which are collectively
  referred to as yin and yang. As represented in
  the familiar symbol (seen above)
• Yin is associated with darkness
• Yang is associated with light
• The best way to act in harmony with the universal
  order is to act spontaneously and let nature take
  its course by not interfering with it
• This means the true way to follow the will of
  Heaven is through inaction
• So what does either of those mean? Keeping your
  life simple!

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Daoism-Highlights
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Taoism wrap up

• Taoists believe it's very important to understand
  The Way Things Are. This does not mean that there
  are not things we need to change about ourselves,
  but it's important to recognize and trust our own
  Inner Nature, and discover who we are. In the
  story of "The Ugly Duckling", when does the
  duckling stop feeling ugly?
• When he discovers he's a Swan.
• When he recognizes who he really is, a beautiful
  swan, he finds his Way to happiness.

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Some Lasting Effects

• Daoism eventually proved less influential than
  Confucianism in Chinese history
• Still played major role in later dynasties
• Idea of balance key concept in China for
  centuries as result of Daoist teaching
• BUT
• Daoist philosophy led many followers to work for
  preservation, protection of natural environment

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Chinese Philosophers
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Quick Review
Contrast What is one difference between
Confucianism and Daoism?
Answer(s) Daoismretreat from society and
commune with nature Confucianismimprove society
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Legalism

• Belief that human beings are innately evil.
• People can only be brought to follow the correct
  path by harsh laws and stiff punishments because
  people by nature were not capable of being good
  without incentive. (Incentive is they didnt want
  to be punished!)
• Legalists obviously believe in strong
  authoritarian rule with strict rules

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The Zhou Dynasty Continued

• The End of the Dynastic Cycle for The Zhou
  Dynasty
• Civil War will break out (403 B.C.)
• Becomes known as the Period of Warring States
• Nature of warfare begins to change- Birth of the
  Personal Weapon
• And the winner of the warring states is
• Qin Shi Huangdi- The first Qin Emperor (Tseen
  Shih Hwahng Di),
• The Qin Dynasty will emerge to take control

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The Qin Dynasty

• Achievements
• Ordered the construction of the Great Wall of
  China
• Standardized coinage
• Standardized weights
• Standardized measurements
• Standardized axle length and road planning
• Other items
• Conducted first book burning due to legalism

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Qin Shi Huangdis Tomb
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The Worlds Oldest Noodles
Scientists found the ancient noodles preserved in
an overturned, sealed bowl at an archaeological
site near the Yellow River in northwestern China.
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