chinesehistory-littandem

7/25/2019 chinesehistory-littandem

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ChinaA Journey To Its

History And Literature


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Formal name: Peoples Republic ofChina (PRC)Capital: ei!in"Government type:Co##unist stateLegal System: ased on a ci$il la%syste#& %hich %as deri$ed fro#

the 'o$iet le"al 'yste#Po ulation *+illion

ChinaQuick Facts


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The red color symbolizes communistrevolution !ed is also the traditionalcolor in Chinese culture

Golden yello" is the o#cial color o$the %anchu dynasty and also impliesthat China belongs to the Chinesepeople& a 'yello" race(

The large star represents theCommunist Party

The $our smaller stars represent the$our social classes o$ the traditionalChinese society ) the "orking class&the peasantry& the urban pettybourgeoisie& and the national

bourgeoisie *capitalists+ ) unitedunder the Communist Party o$ China

Five ,)pointed stars re-ects theimportance o$ the number .ve inChinese philosophy *The number , isassociated "ith the .ve elements )

/ater& Fire& 0arth& /ood& and %etal )and hence& it "as historically

The Chinese,la"


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Chinese

Literar


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2t has been

said thatShang

3ynasty-ourished in45667C&during the7ronze age


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LiteratureThe Chinese -racle

ones

.ade around */00C& durin" the ti#e of

'han" 1ynasty

2sed by priests to tellthe future

The %ritin" on theseoracle bones is the

sa#e %ritin" thatpeople use in #odern

China& !ust in anearlier $ersion


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y analy3in" oracle

bone inscriptions& other

artifacts& andarchaeolo"ical sitessuch as to#bs andancient cities& scholarsha$e been able to pieceto"ether #any details of'han" ci$ili3ation

They ha$e con4r#edthe na#es of its 5in"s&

its style of "o$ern#ent&its #ilitary history& itsreli"ious beliefs andrituals& and its society


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The 6in 1ynasty (77*8

709 C),ro# this dynasty ca#et%o Chinese herita"esites The TerracottaAr#y and the :reat ;all

of China


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1urin" this dynasty&the e#peror Qin Shih1uang 3i uni4ed the

currency& syste# of%ritin"& and e$en thephilosophical thou"ht

throu"h boo5 burnin"


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Confucianis#beca#e the state

philosophy


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Bun" ,u T3e or Confucius %as born around //* C inLu pro$ince in hou His parents %ere nobility& but hadbeco#e poor ;hen Confucius %as about */ years old& he

beca#e Duite interested in learnin" In those days& onlythe nobility and royals %ere allo%ed education All theteachers %ere "o$ern#ent o?cialsIt %as hard for Confucius to 4nd a %ay to learn because he%as poor

To sol$e this& he %ent to %or5 for a noble#an This

"a$e hi# the opportunity to learn and to tra$el to thei#perial capitalConfucius studied and learned until he probably %as the#ost learned #an of his day People heard of his5no%led"e and sent their sons to study %ith hi# He %as

the 4rst pri$ate teacher in China

8ung Fu Tze


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Confucianis#

Confucius tau"ht anyone %ho %as ea"erto learn His ideas& called Confucianis#&

stress the need to de$elop responsibilityand #oral character throu"h ri"id rules ofbeha$ior

Con$ucianism is not& properlyspeaking& a religionE itFs a %ay ofbeha$in"& so youFll do the ri"ht thin"s


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It is a collection of #oral andethical principles enunciated by

the Chinese thin5er Confucius(Bun" ,u8t3u) around /00 C incon$ersations %ith his disciplesThese principles set standardsfor indi$idual conduct and the

ad#inistration of "o$ern#entand co##unity

The Confucian Analects


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Ts3e85un" as5ed %hat constituted the

superior #an The .aster said& GHe acts

before he spea5s& and after%ardsspea5s accordin" to his actionsperiences Li Po&

a friend of Tu ,u& %rotelyrical poetry about lo$eLi Nian& a %o#an poet

also beca#e fa#ous

Tan" 1ynasty 8Literature


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Li Po @K098K9* A1

Also called Li o or Li

ai

He %rote about the"ood thin"s in life&e#phasi3in" lo$e&friendship& %ine&nature and si#ple$illa"e li$in"


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;hile #y hair %as still cut strai"ht across #y forehead I playedabout the front "ate& pullin" o%ers Nou ca#e by on ba#boo stilts&

playin" horse& Nou %al5ed about #y seat& playin" %ith blue plu#sAnd %e %ent on li$in" in the $illa"e of Cho5an T%o s#all people&%ithout disli5e or suspicion At fourteen I #arried .y Lord you Ine$er lau"hed& bein" bashful Lo%erin" #y head& I loo5ed at the %allCalled to& a thousand ti#es& I ne$er loo5ed bac5

At 4fteen I stopped sco%lin"& I desired #y dust to be #in"led

%ith yours ,ore$er and fore$er and fore$er ;hy should I cli#b theloo5 outO At si>teen you departed& Nou %ent into far Bu8to8yen& by theri$er of s%irlin" eddies& And you ha$e been "one 4$e #onths The#on5eys #a5e sorro%ful noise o$erhead Nou dra""ed your feet%hen you %ent out y the "ate no%& the #oss is "ro%n& the dierent#osses& Too deep to clear the# a%ayQ The lea$es fall early this

autu#n& in %ind The paired butteries are already yello% %ithAu"ust -$er the "rass in the ;est "ardenE They hurt #e I "ro%older If you are co#in" do%n throu"h the narro%s of the ri$er Bian"&Please let #e 5no% beforehand& And I %ill co#e out to #eet you Asfar as Cho8fu8'a

The Ri$er .erchants %ife


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Tu ,u

Also 5no%n as1u ,u

poet friend ofLi bai

beca#e 5no%nfor his poe#about %ar andbitter hu#an

e>periences


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The 'olitary :oose

The solitary "oose does not drin5 or eat&It ies about and calls& #issin" the oc5

o8one no% re#e#bers this one shado%&TheyF$e lost each other in the #yriad layers of cloudIt loo5s into the distance see#s to see&

ItFs so distressed& it thin5s that it can hear2nconsciously& the %ild duc5s start to call&

Cries of birds are e$ery%here confused


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The %orlds oldest boo5 The "orld9s oldestsurviving book is ChineseS uddhist te>t calledthe 1ia#ond 'utra& %hich bears the date 9 A1Alon" %ith other printed #anuscripts& the boo5%as disco$ered in *0K in a %alled8up ca$e in1unhan" (north8%est China) and is on display at

the ritish Library


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Lu 1sun %as the pen na#e

of hou Shuren (**8*+9) He introduced#odern Chinese literatureAside fro# bein" a critic &he beca#e the leader ofthe .odern CulturalRe$olution -ne of hisfa#ous %or5s is


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The (3iary o$ ; %adman="ritten by Lu 1sun *4>4?+

The story presents itself as diary entries of a #ad#an has no% beencured of his paranoia The diary describes a "ro%in" fear& then& aftere>tensi$ely studyin" the ,our boo5s and 4$e classics of old Confucianculture& the diary %riter& the supposed G#ad#anG& be"an to see the

%ords Gat PeopleQG < (chiren) %ritten bet%een the lines of thete>ts (in classical Chinese te>ts& co##entary %as placed bet%een thelines of the te>t& rather than in notes at the botto# of a pa"e) 'eein"the people in his $illa"e as potential #an8eaters& he is "ripped by thefear that e$eryone& includin" his brother& his $enerable doctor and hisnei"hbors& %ho are cro%din" about to %atch hi#& are harborin"cannibalistic thou"hts on hi# 1espite the brotherFs apparent "enuineconcern& the narrator still re"ards hi# as bi" a threat as any stran"erTo%ards the end the narrator turns his concern to the youn"er"eneration& especially his late sister (%ho died %hen she %as 4$e) ashe is afraid they %ill be cannibali3ed y then he is con$inced that hislate sister had been eaten up by his brother& and that he hi#self #ayha$e un%ittin"ly tasted her esh

G G


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Chinese Literary History

'u##in" 2p


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Thin"s to re#e#ber fro# this presentation

;hy is the Shang dynastysi"ni4cant to Chinese LiteratureOecause it %as the ti#e %hen the archaeolo"ists found%ritten e$idences about the e>istence of an ancient dynastythrou"h the disco$ery of the oracle bones The oraclesbones #ade fro# tortoise shells and ani#al bones pro$ided

details about the 'han" ci$ili3ation

The Chinese A>ial A"e and the preoccupations of thephilosophers durin" this ti#e & and the reason for that @ecause %ar is ra#pant durin" the A>ial A"e& thepHilosophers %anted to restore social order and har#ony so

they ca#e up %ith philosophies that #i"ht be helpful toachie$e peace

Bun" ,u T3e& Confucianis# and his teachin"s (The ConfucianAnalects)'su .a Chien @ The ,ather of Chinese History

The allad of Hua .ulan and its era

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