Traditional China Family-Centered and the Four Early Dynasties

Objectives:

To enumerate the different contributions and signifcant features of the four early dynasties of China;

To compare and contrast the civilization and culture of China to India

To emulate Chinese values like fairness, piety and discipline

To express verbally their appreciation on the role of the family in the formaton of Chinese Civilization

Enduring Understanding

“One’s reflection or failure in life were as much reflection upon the family as they were upon the

individual.”

Review Indus Valley Civilization

Review

Indus Valley Civilization

Aryan conquest

India

China

One of the oldest civilization

Chinese civilization and culture

What chinese culture and contributions portrayed in the opening ceremony in beijing olympics 2008?

Chinese River valley civilization

What sustained the civilization?

A piece of thread in the mother’s hand Up and down the son’s clothes it ran

One stitch follows another By a mother concerned;

Waiting for her son’s early return. How can his heart feeble as a straw,

Return the sunny warmth of his mother at all

Family-Centered society

Ancestor Worship

Filial Piety

Chinese family

Each person was, first of all, a member of a family. One’s successes or failures in life were as much reflection upon

the family as they were upon the individual.

CONCEPT OF “FACE”

Traditional Roles in the family

Age brought prestige and wisdom

The oldest male ruled with unquestioned authority

Famiy Government

Father

Son

Leader

Constituents

Where did the power come from?

Mandate of Heaven

Mandate of Heaven Is a contract

The descendants of the ruler would inherit the authority

The mandate ended when emperor no longer

discharged his duties

Mandate of Heaven

Is a contract

The descendants of the ruler would inherit the authority

The mandate ended when emperor no longer

discharged his duties

Mandate of Heaven Is a contract

The descendants of the ruler would inherit the authority

The mandate ended when emperor no longer

discharged his duties

Dynasty

Mandate of Heaven Is a contract

The descendants of the ruler would inherit the authority

The mandate ended when emperor no longer

discharged his duties

Xia Dynasty Mythical Dynasty

(“Sha”)

The Xia Dynasty was in oral histories, but no archaeological evidence was found of it

until 1959.

1959

Mythical Dynasty No More...

Xia Dynasty

Xia Dynasty The Xia were agrarian (farming)

people, with bronze weapons and pottery.

The ruling families used elaborate and dramatic rituals to confirm their

power to govern.

Xia Dynasty

shamans (spiritual leaders and communicators with deities)

Shang Dynasty Considered by many historians as the first dynasty of

China

They are the first group of people from China of which written records are found.

Oracle Bones

Shang Dynasty

The Shang worshipped the "Shang Ti."

Sacrifice to the gods and the ancestors was also a major part of the Shang religion.

When a king died, hundreds of slaves and prisoners were often sacrificed and buried with him.

People were also sacrificed in lower numbers when important events, such as the founding of a palace or temple

Chou (“Joe”) Dynasty

The Chou began as a semi-nomadic tribe that lived to the west of the Shang kingdom.

Due to their nomadic ways, they learned how to work with people of different cultures.

After a time, they settled in the Wei River valley, where they became vassals (servants who owe and pay tributes) of the Shang.

The Chou (Zhou) eventually became stronger than the Shang,

and in about 1040 B.C.E. they defeated the Shang in warfare.

1. The Chou began a different form of governing, which was basically feudal

( meaning few people owned lots of land and controlled the vast majority of people living and working on it. )

2. The landowners were under control of the king. Descent became patriarchal (the father as the authority),

3. The Chou also brought their religion with them. They banned human sacrifice.

4. They practiced the cult of Heaven.

5. The worship of sun and stars was the most important thing.

Cult ���of���

heaven

change in governing style the Chou Dynasty ruled vast lands in China and they need to delegate authority to friends and relatives.

Provide army to the leader

threat to central rule Local lords could withhold tax money and build strong

military forces, weakening the power of the ruler

Solution Ruler demanded that the local lords pay tribute gifts to

show their loyalty.

Lords should stay in the capital for certain period of time

Threat from the nomadic tribes from the north

Always on the lookout for better grassland for their herds, they periodically tried to invade China.

1 advantage Northern Invaders

Great wall of china

scholars rise to power Chou moved east and the lost most of their power

New group called SCHOLARS arose to fill the void

power : capacity to read and write

k’ung fu-tzu Latinized name: CONFUCIUS

CONFUCIUS Was not a religious leader

Because his writings do not try to answer questions about god or life after death

his basic tenet

Individual had an obligations to family and society

Enduring Understanding

“One’s reflection or failure in life were as much reflection upon the family as they were upon the

individual.”

social and political conditions during confucius’ time

Lawlessness and political uncertainty were contributing to the breakdown of the family and society.

People no longer follow their fixed role in society or in their family

answer

!   According to Confucius- to return to an earlier time, when society rested with males and elders and proper rules of conduct governed the relationships between people.

The need to bring back Law and Order

5 primary social relationships

!   Ruler and Subject

!   Father and Son

!   Husband and Wife

!   Elder and Younger Brothers

!   Friend and Friend

The need to bring back Law and Order Objective:

5 primary social relationships

!   Ruler and Subject

!   Father and Son

!   Husband and Wife

!   Elder and Younger Brothers

!   Friend and Friend

The need to bring back Law and Order

Superior Subordinate

Superior’s Obligation: is to set a good moral example for the subordinate

to follow so that someday, he will be able to lead well too.

For Confucius:

morality in the government

!   Leaders should set a good example for the subjects;

!   “If a ruler is upright, all will go well without disorder.”

!   Introducing moral merit as a quality for leadership’

Moral merit is LEARNED and not

INHERITED

It made ability rather than wealth or birth the quality that could move people up or down the social

ladder.

Who is Lao-Tzu ?

Lao-Tzu Opposite to Confucius

Confucius Lao-Tzu

Credit society for shaping

the individuals

Blamed society for restricting the individual freedom

tao te ching Way of Life

Lao-Tzu wrote that individual originally lived in harmony in nature, free of rules and regulations and untroubled

knowledge. The purpose of life was to regain that natural

harmony by discovering the Tao (Dow) or “the Way” of the universe.

Tao Is a natural force that is sensed or felt rather than

learned from the words of a teacher

Many Taoist became hermits and lived i the mountain and forests, seeking harmony with nature.

But confucius disagreed with taoism

“It is man that can make the way great, not the way that can make the man great.”

legalism

Han Fei-Tzu

3rd school of thought

Principal thinker

Philosophy: 1. Strengthen the Government

2. Less importance-welfare of the people. 3. Those who are helpful to the state will be

rewarded; 4. Those who opposed should be punished

or eliminated