3. Geographic Features of China
๏ Civilization centered around two rivers which brought
water and silt
๏ Made farming possible
๏ Isolated by Barriers
๏ Water barriers: Yellow Sea, East China Sea, & Pacific
Ocean
๏ Desert barriers: Gobi Desert & Taklimakan Desert
๏ Mts.: Pamir, Tian Shan, & Himalaya mts.
๏ Geographically isolated
๏ Made spread of ideas & goods difficult
๏ Few outside influences
4. Two River Systems
๏ Chang Jiang a.k.a. Yangtze Rivers
๏ Central China
๏ Huang He (or Yellow River)
๏ North China
๏ Ancient farming
๏ Done between Chang Jiang & Huang He
๏ Silt made fertile soil
๏ Center of Chinese civilization
5. A Varied Climate
๏ Had varied climate
๏ Western China: dry, mostly deserts & mts.; sparsely
populated & usable farmland
๏ Northeast China: cold winters & warm summers
๏ Southeast China: mild winters & hot, rainy summers
๏ Climate variety lead to variety of crops produced
๏ Rice, wheat, soybeans, & millet
6. The Shang Dynasty
๏ Shang Kings
๏ 1766 B.C. Shang family began to control some cities
๏ Set-up dynasty (a family or group that rules for several
generations)
๏ Kings: responsible for religious activities
๏ Ruled w/ godโs permission
๏ Ruled central North China Plain
๏ Used chariots to defend themselves against nomads
7. Shang Families
๏ Respect for parents & ancestors was important
๏ Close tie to religion
๏ Spirits of ancestors could bring good fortune
๏ Animals were sacrificed
๏ Men ruled within the family
8. Developing Language
๏ Kings claimed to be able to influence gods
๏ Received messages through oracle bones
๏ Animal bones that were scratched to question the gods
(became early form of writing)
๏ Developed pictographs
๏ Used huge # of symbols
๏ Could read Chinese w/o being able to speak it
๏ Helped to unify a large varied land
9. The Zhou Dynasty
๏ Zhou moved down from the northwest
๏ Clashed w/ Shang
๏ 1027 B.C.
๏ Wu Wang led forces & defeated Shang
๏ Adopted many Shang ways
๏ New ideas also introduced
10. The Zhou & the Dynastic Cycle
๏ New dynasty est.
๏ Dynasties rose & fell in a pattern
๏ Dynastic Cycle
๏ Trouble resulted from rulers losing heavenโs favor
๏ Claimed last Shang ruler was bad & god took away Shang right
to rule & gave it to Zhou
๏ Mandate of Heaven
๏ Bad or foolish ruler = approval of the gods would be
taken away
๏ Examples: uprisings, invasions, floods, or earthquakes
11. Zhou Government
๏ Central govโt was weak
๏ People w/ family ties or other trusted people were in charge
๏ Local rulers (lords) owed loyalty & military service to king
๏ King promised in return to protect their lands
๏ Lords became more powerful as cities grew
๏ More group under their power
๏ Less dependent on king
๏ Lords began to fight with each other & other peoples
๏ Added lands expanded Chinese territory
12. The Time of the Warring States
๏ Invasion was a constant theme
๏ 800 B.C.
๏ Nomads from the north & west invaded
๏ 771 B.C.
๏ Invaders destroyed capital city of Hao & king was killed
๏ Kings were weak
๏ Lords fought constantly
๏ As their power grew they claimed to be kings of their own
territories (Time of the Warring States)
14. Intro
๏ During Time of Warring States Chinese society
experienced much disorder
๏ Kings & Warlords fought over land, while scholars
wondered what it would take to bring peace
๏ 3 ways of thinking developed
๏ Legalism
๏ Confucianism
๏ Daoism
15. Legalism
๏ Belief that a powerful, efficient govโt and a strict legal
system are the keys to social order
๏ Feared disorder
๏ Strong govโt & strict laws would restore order
16. Strict Laws & Harsh Punishments
๏ Legalists believed human nature was wicked
๏ People do good only when forced to
๏ Govโt should pass strict laws to control behavior in
people
๏ Needed to make people afraid to do wrong
17. An Increase in Government Control
๏ Legalists believed rulers should reward those who
carried out their duties well
๏ Punishment was, however, stressed more than rewards
๏ Shang Yang (Legalist)
๏ Wanted people to report lawbreakers
๏ Those who didnโt should be executed
๏ Legalists
๏ Did not want people ? or complain about the govโt
๏ Arrested those that did
๏ Burned books that contained different philosophies or
ideas
18. Confucianism
๏ Confucius
๏ Lived from 551-479 B.C. during time of unrest in China
๏ Wanted to restore order
๏ Believed more in peace to end conflict
๏ Respect for others was absolutely necessary for peace
and order
๏ Govโt leaders should set good example for people to
see
๏ Ideas were collected in a book called the Analects
๏ Became belief system of Confucianism
19. The Five Relationships
๏ Code of proper conduct/behavior for people
๏ 5 basic relationships in Confucianism each with its
own duties and its own code
๏ Father and son
๏ Elder brother and younger brother
๏ Husband and wife
๏ Friend and friend
๏ Ruler and subject
*Two basic categories: proper conduct in the family &
proper conduct in society
20. Proper Conduct
๏ Confucius
๏ Good conduct & respect began at home
๏ Husband good to wives, wives obeyed husbands, brothers
kind to brothers, younger had to follow wishes of older
๏ Most important teaching
๏ Filial piety: treating parents w/ respect
๏ Behavior in society
๏ Authority should be respected
๏ Ruler was to live correctly & respect subjects
๏ Subjects should obey if they did
๏ Peace in society would come if followed
21. The Impact of Confucianism
๏ Chinese found ways to avoid conflict and live
peacefully
๏ Many rulers tried to live up to Confuciusโs model for a
good ruler
๏ Groundwork was laid for fair and skilled govโt officials
22. Daoism
๏ Laozi
๏ 500s B.C.
๏ Book of his teachings was Daodejing
๏ The Way
๏ Believed a universal force called the Dao (or Way) guides things
๏ All creatures, except humans, live in harmony w/ this force
๏ Humans argue about right and wrong (arguments are pointless)
๏ To relate to nature humans had to find individual was to follow
๏ Each should learn to live in harmony w/ nature & their inner feelings
๏ Natural order was more important than social order
๏ Social order would follow if everyone learned to live in their own
individual harmony
23. Following the Way
๏ Daoists
๏ Didnโt not argue about good and bad & didnโt try to change things
๏ Accepted things as they were
๏ Didnโt want to be involved with govโt
๏ Thought govโt should leave people alone
๏ Yin and Yang
๏ Two things that interact w/ each other and represent the natural
rhythms of life
๏ Yin (black): all that is cold, dark, & mysterious
๏ Yang (white): all that is warm, bright, and light
๏ Forces complement each other; forces always change and evolve
๏ Helps people understand how they fit into the world
๏ Daoists pursued scientific studies
๏ Astronomy & medicine
25. The Qin Unified China
๏ New rulers of China
๏ New Emperor: Shi Huangdi
๏ Unified & expanded China
26. A Legalistic Ruler
๏ 221 B.C.
๏ Shi Huangdi began to end internal battles between
warring states
๏ Believed in legalism (killed 460 critics & Confucianists)
๏ Also burned books w/ ideas he disliked
27. Uniting China
๏ Huangdi wanted strong central govโt
๏ To gain control
๏ Tried to weaken Chinaโs noble families
๏ Took their land & forced them to live at the capital
๏ This strengthened emperorโs power
๏ Linked lands together
๏ Built highways & irrigation projects
๏ Forced peasants to work & set taxes high to pay for projects
๏ Set govโt standards for weights, measures, coins, &
writing
๏ Made business easier everywhere in China
28. The Great Wall
๏ Wall along northern boarder to keep out nomadic
invaders
๏ Great Wall linked together other walls built during
Warring States period
๏ Peasants & criminals were forced to build the wall
๏ Many died from hard labor
๏ Great resentment among people
29. The Qin Dynasty Ends
๏ 210 B.C.
๏ Shi Huangdi died
๏ Buried in an elaborate tomb guarded by army of clay soldiers
30. The Han Dynasty
๏ Shi Huangiโs son was not an effective ruler
๏ Rebellion & civil war broke out
๏ Military leader Liu Bang ended civil war & reunited
China (started Han Dynasty)
31. Han Government
๏ Liu Bang kept Qin policies of strong central govโt, but
lowered taxes
๏ Made punishments less harsh
๏ Peasants owed 1 month labor on emperorโs public projects
๏ Built roads, canals, & irrigation projects
๏ Bureaucracy was set up
๏ System of departments to carry out the work of the govโt
๏ Officials chosen by ruler ran offices
๏ Helped enforce emperorโs rule
๏ Han put family members & trusted people in local govโt
๏ Later skills of people determined appointment
๏ Set up system to find most educated & ethical people
๏ Tested people on their knowledge of Confucianism
32. Empress Rules
๏ 195 B.C. Liu Bang died
๏ Wife Empress Lu ruled for their young son
๏ Actually outlived her son & continued to place infants
on the throne (allowed her to retain power because
infants were too young to rule)
๏ When she died those loyal to Liu Bang executed every
member of Empress Luโs family
33. Expanding & Unifying the Empire
๏ 141 โ 87 B.C.
๏ Wudi ruled China (descendant of Liu Bang)
๏ Called Martial Emperor because he used war to expand China
๏ Brought southern Chinese provinces, northern Vietnam, & northern
Korea under his control
๏ Chased nomadic invaders out of northern China
๏ To unify:
๏ Encouraged conquered people to assimilated (adopt Chinaโs
culture)
๏ Chinese farmers sent out to settle newly colonized areas
๏ Encouraged to marry conquered people to spread Chinese culture
๏ Schools were set up to teach about Confucianism
๏ Appointed local scholars to govโt offices
๏ Han faced rebellions, peasant revolts, floods, famine, &
economic disasters but strong govโt & unified population helped
them stay in power
34. Life in Han China
๏ Han were industrious people whose civilization prospered
for many decades
๏ Daily Life in Han China
๏ Most worked on farms
๏ Farmers lived in villages near the land they worked
๏ Lived in 1-2 story houses
๏ Rich farmers had ox to pull plow, but poor had to pull plow
themselves
๏ Farmers had a few simple tools to make farming easier
๏ They wore simple clothing & sandals
๏ Grew wheat & millet in the north & rice in the south
๏ Vegetable gardens were kept for additional food
๏ Fish and meat were available, but expensive
35. City living
๏ Cities were centers of trade, education, and govโt
๏ Merchants, craftspeople, & govโt officials lived here
๏ Cities were crowded & had many kinds of
entertainment
๏ Musicians, jugglers, & acrobats
๏ Also had street gangs
37. The Silk Road
๏ Han Dynasty
๏ Only Chinese knew how to make silk
๏ it was important in opening trading routes to the west
38. A Trans-Eurasian Link
๏ Silk Road: overland trade route
๏ Traders carried silk & other goods on caravan trails
๏ From China-Asia-Mesopotamia-Europe
๏ Called trans-Eurasian because they stretched across two
continents
๏ 100 B.C
๏ Silk Roads were well est.
๏ Traders made fortunes carrying goods
๏ Trips could take several years
๏ Cities along the road provided food, water, shelter & goods for
trade
๏ Goods traded: silk, paper, jade, pottery, sesame seeds, oil,
metals, precious stones, & horses
39. Cultural Diffusion
๏ Ideas & cultural customs also moved on the Silk Roads
๏ Known as cultural diffusion
๏ Can occur whenever one group of people comes in contact w/
another group of people
๏ New goods, ideas, & customs began to enter China
๏ i.e. military techniques, Buddhist teachings, western
cultural style
๏ Chinese art, silks, & pottery influenced the west
40. The Spread of Buddhism
๏ Buddhist missionaries entered China during Han
Dynasty
๏ Few followers at first
๏ After fall of Han Dynasty China suffered
๏ The Buddhist promise of escape from suffering attracted
many Chinese
๏ Buddhism was modified by Chinese to better fit w/ their own
traditions
41. Influential Ideas & Beliefs
๏ Philosophies continued to influence China & the
world
๏ Standards of Confucianism remained significant in
Chinese govโt & education
๏ Spread to Japan, Korea, & Vietnam
๏ Daoism had lasting influence in China
๏ Became religion w/ priests, rituals, & volumes of
writings
๏ Remained primarily a Chinese belief system
42. Chinese Inventions & Discoveries
๏ Population of China was growing
๏ Farming was the most important & honored profession
๏ Agricultural Improvements
๏ Perfected a two blade plow
๏ Better iron farm tools
๏ Both helped increase crop production
๏ Collar harness for horses
๏ Horses could pull heavier loads
๏ Wheelbarrow
๏ Water mills
43. Paper
๏ A.D. 105
๏ Paper was invented
๏ Made from mixture of old rags, mulberry tree bark, & fibers
from the hemp plant
๏ Inexpensive paper made book more available
๏ Paper also affected the govโt
๏ Now govโt documents were not recorded on wood, but paper;
more convenient
44. Silk
๏ Allowed Chinese to get silver and gold from lands to
the west
๏ Was important because China did not have rich deposits
of either mineral