Download Sec. 2

Ch. ,
7 Section 2 - The Zhou Dynasty and New Ideas,
p. 188
Main Ideas
1. The Zhou dynasty expanded China but then declined.
2. Confucius offered ideas to bring order to Chinese society.
3. Daoism and Legalism also gained followers.
Key Terms
lords, p. 189 - people of high rank
peasants, p.189 - farmers with small farms
Confucius, p. 191 - a master thinker and philosopher, whose teachings would transform
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Chinese life and thought.
ethics, p. 191 - moral values and rules.
Confucianism, p. 191 - the teachings of Confucius - emphasizing love for humanity,
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devotion to learning, and devotion to family.
Daoism, p. 192 - living in harmony with the Dao (the way), the guiding force of all reality.
Laozi, p. 192 - A famous Daoist teacher, whose life is mostly legend. Wrote the basic
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text of Daoism, “The Way and Its Power”.
Legalism, p.192 - The belief that people were bad by nature and needed to be
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controlled.
The Zhou Dynasty p. 188
When did the Zhou dynasty exist?
- longest lasting Chinese dynasty, beginning in
the 1100s BC and lasting till 400 BC.
- included much of the northeastern plains, and
land between the Huang He and Chang Jiang
rivers.
How was the Zhou system different
from the Shang system?
- Zhou kings rule by a mandate from heaven,
meaning heaven gave them the power to rule.
- Zhou rulers had rebelled against the Shang
and then expanded the kingdom.
- Zhou kings gave land to lords who supported
them.
- the kings were at the highest level of society
- lords and nobles were the in the next level of
society, paying taxes and providing soldiers to
the king.
- peasants were the last level in society, each
family having their own small farm.
What caused the Zhou dynasty to
decline?
- each generation of lords became less loyal to
the kings
- eventually the kingdom fell to invaders and civil
war
- by 481 BC China entered the Warring States
period, which lasted more than 200 years.
- the large family structure of Chinese society
dissolved into small families fighting each other
for inheritances, land, and power.
- No strong government during the Warring
States period.
Confucius and Society p. 191
Who was Confucius and why was he - Confucius was a scholar and thinker who came
important?
up with ideas about how to restore China to
order.
- He said that China needed to return to ethics
or moral values.
- His teachings came to be known as
Confucianism.
What were the basic guidelines of
Confucianism?
- Fathers should show high moral value to
inspire their families
- Children should show respect and obedience to
their families
- family members should be loyal to each other.
- Learning is a process that never ends.
How did Confucianism affect
governments?
- the king should lead by example, to inspire his
subjects.
- the lower classes should follow the example set
by their leaders.
What affect did Confucianism have
on Chinese society?
- Confucianism became a guiding force in human
behavior and religious understanding in China.
- Confucius’s teachings became some of the
dominant beliefs in China.
- Confucius’s teachings and sayings were written
in a book called The Analects (which means
“writings that have been collected”).
Daoism and Legalism p. 192
What is the Dao, and what is
Daoism?
- the Dao is “the way”.
- Daoism is living in harmony with the Dao, the
guiding force of all reality.
- Daoism was a movement that was a reaction to
Confucianism.
- Daoists didn’t think government should lead by
example. They wanted the government to stay
out of people’s lives.
- Daoists believed people should be like water,
and let things flow the natural way.
- they taught that the universe is made of
opposites:
- male and female,
- light and dark
- low and high
- the opposites would be in harmony with each
other - yin and yang
What is the main difference between
Confucianism and Daoism?
- Confucianism focuses on the human world, and
Daoism focuses on the natural world, believing
that humans were simply another part of the
natural world.
Who was Laozi?
- Laozi was a legendary figure, who is credited
with writing the basic text of Daoism, The Way
and Its Power.
What is Legalism?
- Legalism is the belief that all people are
basically bad, and need to be controlled.
- was a political philosophy instead of a religious
philosophy like Confucianism and Daoism.
- Legalists felt that society must be controlled by
strict laws.
- punishments were to fit the crimes, and a
person’s family should be punished for that
person’s crime too, so all would learn.
- Legalists wanted the kingdom to be efficient
- They wanted appointed officials to run the
kingdom, not lords and nobles
- wanted the kingdom to always be ready for war,
so that the kingdom could expand.
- Legalism was the most successful way of
thinking, and became the first to be put into
practice throughout China.