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tomfu*tar*ilsmamd
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ffYOU werethere...
underwent
1. Confucianism
c h a n g easn di n f l u e n c e d
government.
Chinese
ranChina's
2. Scholar-officials
government
theSong
during
dynasty.
butyoucannot
Nighthasfallen,
in1184.
in China
Youarea student
youhavea test.lt willbe,youknowthemost
Tomorrow
sleep.
for it,notfor
testof yourentirelife.Youhavestudied
important
daysor weeksor evenmonths-butforyears.Asyoutossand
by
turn,youthinkabouthowyourentirelifewillbedetermined
howwellyoudoonthisonetest.
Howeoulda singletest be so important?
KeyTerm$
p. 178
bureaucracy,
p.
civilservice, lz8
al,p. | 78
scholar-offici
the influences
IIEE f.g.g Analyze
o f C o n f u c i a n iasnmdc h a n g ei sn
C o n f u c i tahno u g hdtu r i n tgh eS o n g
a n dM o n g opl e r i o d s .
of
thedevelopment
7.3.6Describe
stateandthescholartheimperial
officialclass.
176
K+*+#34
CHAPTERT
ilGt il5--r
ruledchinafrom
TheSongdynasty
Bull,onrc BACKGROUilD
growing
inagriculture,
Thiswasa timeof improvements
960to 1279.
lt
of artandinventions.
trade,andthedevelopment
extensive
cities,
government.
inChinese
wasalsoa timeof maiorchanges
Confucianism
'The
dominant philosophy in China,
Confucianism is basedon the teachings of
Confucius. He lived more than 1,500 years
before the Songdynasty. His ideas,though,
had a dramatic effect on the Song system
of govemment.
Confucianldeas
Confucius's teachings focused on ethics,
or proper behavior, for individuals and
govemments. He said that people should
conduct their lives according to two basic
principles. These principles were ren, ot
concem for others, and li, or appropriate
behavior. Confucius argued that society
would function best if everyone followed
ren and Ii.
Confucius thought that everyone had
a proper role to play in society. Order was
maintained when people knew their place
and behaved appropriately. For example,
Confucius said that young people should
obey their elders and that subjects should
obey their rulers.
TheInfluenceof Confucianism
After his death, Confucius's ideas were
spread by his followers, but they were not
widely accepted. In fact, the Qin dynasty
officially suppressedConfucian ideas and
teachings.By the time of the Han dynasty,
Confucianism had again come into favor,
and Confucianism became the offrcial state
philosophy.
During the Period of Disunion, which
followed the Han dynasty, Confucianism
was overshadowed by Buddhism as the
major tradition in China. As you recall,
many Chinese people turned to Buddhism
for comfort during thesetroubled times. In
doing so, they largely tumed away from
Confucian ideas and outlooks.
Later, during the Sui and early Thng
dynasties, Buddhism was very influential.
Unlike Confucianism, which stressedethical behavior, Buddhism stressed a more
spiritual outlook that promised escape
from suffering. As Buddhism becamemore
popular in China, Confucianism lost some
of its influence.
AcADEMiC
VocRaur.Rnv
functionworkor
perform
\RTS,BOSTON
In additionto ethics,
Confucianism
stressed
the importanceof
education.Thispainting createdduringthe
Songperiod,shows
earlierConfucianscholarsduringthe Periodof
Disunionsortingscrolls
containingclassic
Confuciantexts.
177
This painting fiom the l6o0s shows
civil seruantswriting essaysfor
China'semperor.
Difficultexamswere
designedto make
surethat government
officialswere chosen
by ability-not by
wealthor family
connections.
r Students
hadto memorize
entireConfucian
texts.
r Topassthe mostdifficulttests,studentsmight
studyfor morethan20 yearsl
r Someexamslastedup to 72 hours,andstudents
werelockedin private
roomswhiletakingthem.
r Somedishonest
students
cheated
bycopying
Confucius's
workson the insideof theirclothes,
payingbribesto thetestgraders,
or paying
someoneelseto takethe testfor them.
r Topreventcheating,
examhallswereoften
lockedandguarded.
Neo-Confucianism
Latein the Thngdpasty, many Chinesehistorians and scholarsagainbecameinterested
in the teachingsof Confucius.Their interest
was sparkedby their desireto improve Chi
nesegovernment and society.
During and after the Song dgrasty, a
new philosophy called Neo-Confucianism
developed. Based on Confucianism, NeoConfucianism was similar to the older philosophy in that it taught proper behavior.For
example,Neo-Confucian scholarsdiscussed
such issuesaswhat made human beings do
bad things even if their basic nature was
good. In addition, it also emphasizedspiritual mattersthat incorporatedBuddhist and
Daoist conceptsabout the meaning of life.
Neo-Confucianismbecamemuch more
appealing and influential under the Song.
Later its influence grew even more. In fact,
the ideasof Neo-ConfucianismbecameoffiAcRormlc
VocleuLnny cial govemment teachings after the Song
incentive
dynasty.
something
that
l e a d sp e o p lteo
followa ceftain
courseof action
178
Gontrasting
HowdidNeoConfucianism
differfromConfucianism?
cHAPTER
7
rc--:#9#5143&
Scholar-Officials
The Song dynasty took another major step
that affected China for centuries. They
improved the system by which people
went to work for the government. These
workers formed a large bureaucracy,or a
body of unelected government officials.
They joined the bureaucracy by passing
civil service examinations. Civil service
means serviceas a government offlcial.
To become a civil servant, a person had
to pass a seriesof written examinations.
The examinationstestedstudents'graspof
Confucianism and related ideas.
Because the tests were so difficult,
students spent years preparing for them.
Only a very small fraction of the people
who took the tests would reach the top
level and be appointed to a position in
the govemment. However, candidates for
the civil serviceexaminations had a strong
incentive for studying hard. Passingthe
tests meant life as a scholar-official-an
educatedmember of the govemment.
,i.
$
Scholar-Officials
Firstrisingto prominence
underthe Song scholarofficialsremainedimportant
in Chinafor centuries.
icial+for
Thesescholar-off
example,Iivedduringthe
Qingdynasty,vvhichruled
fromthe mid-l5oosto the
early1900s.Theirtypical
mightinclude
responsibilities
runninggovernmentoffices;
maintainingroads,irrigation
systems,and otherpublic
works;updatingand maintainingofficial records;or
collectingtaxes.
Scholar-officialswere elite members of
society. They performed many important
jobs in the government and were widely
admired for their knowledge and ethics.
Their benefits included considerable
respectand reduced penalties for breaking
the law. Many also became wealthy from
gifts given by people seekingtheir aid.
The civil service examination system
helped ensure that talented, intelligent
people, including commoners, could hope
to become scholar-officials. The civil service system was a major factor in the stability of the Song government.
AnalyzingHowdidthe
China
s government?
change
Songdynasty
SQ7HP7
KEYW0RD:
Reviewing ldeas, Terms, and People IIEH l.e.g,l.g.0
believe
did Confucius
l. a. ldentify Whattwo principles
peopleshouldfollow?
b. ExplainWhatwasNeo-Confucianism?
c. ElaborateWhydo youthinkNeo-Confucianism
to manypeople?
appealed
2. a. Define Whatwas a scholar-official?
b. ExplainWhywouldpeoplewantto becomescholarofficials?
werea
c, EvaluateDo youthinkcivil serviceexaminations
Whyor why not?
officials?
goodwayto choosegovernment
CriticalThinking
likethe one
5. SequencingDrawa graphicorganizer
on
shown.Useit to describethe effectsof Confucianism
it wentthrough.
government
andthe changes
t@
$ Sunnmv mo Pnrvrw Duringthe
period, Confucian ideas helped
f Song
shape China's government. In the next
section, you will read about the two
d;znastiesthat followed the Song-the
Yuan and the Ming.
and Government
4. GatheringldeasaboutConfucianism
andnew
In thissectionyou readaboutConfucianism
you
thatyou
government.
learn
Whatdid
ideasabout
couldaddto yourlistof achievements?
cHrNA 179