Download China`s Ancient Philosophies

China’s Ancient Philosophies
LEGALISM
CONFUCIANISM
DAOISM
PHILOSOPHY-an investigation of
basic truths about the universe,
based on logical reasoning
CONFUCIANISM
A PHILOSOPHY TAUGHT BY
CONFUCIUS THAT STRESSES
PROPER RELATIONSHIPS
A PHILOSOPHY BASED ON THE
TEACHINGS OF CONFUCIUS, AS
RECORDED IN THE COLLECTION
CALLED THE ANALECTS
DAOISM
AN ANCIENT CHINESE PHILOSOPHY
BASED ON THE TEACHINGS OF LAOZI
DAOISM IS A BELIEF SYSTEM
SAID TO HAVE BEGUN WITH THE
SIXTH-CENTURY~B.C. PHILOSOPHER
LAOZI.
DAOISM EMPHASIZES LIVING IN HARMONY
WITH NATURE.
LEGALISM
A PHILOSOPHY STRESSING THE
STRICT USE OF LAWS TO CONTROL
BEHAVIOR
LEGALISM IS THE BELIEF THAT A
RULER SHOULD USE THE LEGAL
SYSTEM TO FORCE PEOPLE TO OBEY
LAWS
FILIAL PIETY- respect for one’s parents
and ancestors---an important teaching of
Confucianism
CONDUCT – the way someone acts;
behavior
FLAG OF CHINA
Let’s Read
about Confucius
Turn to page 250
Three ways of thinking were
developed by scholars to try and
bring peace to the land after
many years of turmoil and
disorder.
The three ways of thinking
included Legalism, Confucianism,
and Daoism.
Each was it’s own philosophy, or study of
basic truths and ideas about the universe
LEGALISM
Those who saw disorder in China thought…
Rulers should force the people to obey the
laws.
A strong government would answer China’s
problems
Master Han Fei wrote some of the most
well thought out writings about
Legalism.
Han Fei’s ideas were greatly different than
that of Confucius’ ideas.
He did not believe that a government
based of virtues and respect would work
Strict Laws – Harsh Punishments
 People were forced to do good as a result of harsh
punishments being put into place instead of doing good
out of respect
 Legalists felt that by making harsh punishments
people would be afraid to do wrong
 it was illegal to teach ideas different from that of the
government
 books that included ideas unlike the governments
were burned
SOME PUNISHMENTS INCLUDED
BEING CUT IN TWO
ARRESTED
JAILED
TORTURED
WHY DID THEY DO THIS?
THE LEGALISTS DIDN’T WANT PEOPLE
TO COMPLAIN ABOUT OR QUESTION
THE GOVERNMENT.
CONFUCIANISM
Confucianism was the first and the most
prominent of philosophies
Confucius lived during the time of the
warring states
Confucius believed that respect for
others was necessary for peace and
harmony
Five Relationships
1-Confucius taught a code of proper conduct
for the people
2-their were five basic relationships that were
placed into Confucianism
3-each of the five relationships had its own code
of proper conduct
Proper Conduct
1-Good conduct and respect begins at home
NOTE: Confucius thought that this idea of respect
began at home
2-filial piety society… treating parents with respect
3-authorities should be respected and set a good
example and respect his subjects
Relationships were separated into two categories
They included:
a-proper conduct in the family
*father and son- treating parents with
respect
*elder brother and junior brother-had to
be kind to each other, but the younger
brother had to follow the wishes of his older
brother
*husband and wife-husbands had to be
good to their wives and, and wives had to
obey their husbands
b-proper conduct in society
*friend and friend*ruler and subject- ruler’s
responsibility in society was to live correctly, i.e.
treating people with respect --obeying the laws
just as anyone else would-fulfilling their duties
as a ruler, and to treat his subjects with respect.
If he did these things and led in a right and moral
way, than there would be peace in the society
Impact of Confucianism
Through Confucianism people were able
to avoid conflict and promote a peaceful
environment
Confucius helped to guide many rulers to
encourage education, and run a fair and
skilled gov’t
DAOISM
THE WAY
DAOISTS BELIEVED IN A UNIVERSAL
FORCE CALLED THE DAO, THE WAY THAT
GUIDES ALL THINGS
BELIEVE ALL CREATURES, EXCEPT
HUMANS LIVE IN HARMONY WITH THE DAO
BELIEVED THAT HUMANS HAD TO LEARN
TO LIVE IN HARMONY WITH NATURE AND
WITH INNER FEELINGS.
FOLLOWING THE WAY
DAOISTS DO NOT ARGUE ABOUT GOOD
AND BAD AND THEY DID NOT TRY TO
CHANGE THINGS
• THEY DID NOT WANT TO BE INVOLVED WITH GOV’T
• TRIED TO UNDERSTAND NATURE AND LIVE IN
HARMONY W/ITS RYTHMS INCLUDING THE IDEA OF
YIN AND YANG
QIN
SHEE HWANHNG DEE (spelled
phonetically) would unify and expand
China
King of Qin at age 13
WAS A VERY LEGALISTIC RULER
460 CRITICS AND CONFUCIANISTS KILLED
CON’T WITH BURNING OF BOOKS
 SET HIGH TAXES TO PAY FOR PROJECTS AND FORCED THE
PEASANTS TO WORK ON THEM
 THE GREAT WALL
 BUILT KEEP INVADERS OUT
 FORCED HUNDREDS OF THOUSANDS OF PEASANTS AND
CRIMINALS TO BUILT THE WALL
 CREATED LOTS OF RESENTMENT B/C MANY OF THE
WORKERS DIED FROM HARD LABOR
 EARLIEST WALLS BUILT OF EARTH AND LATER STONE AND
BRICK
 EXTENDED AND REBUILT MANY TIMES
 Original dimensions-Built in just seven years, it stood 30 ft.
tall with 40 ft. towers, over 1,500 miles long
QIN wanted standardization to make
things simple and equal
 Standardization means making things alike
 Meant to help unify China and make it easier for
trade and communication
 Shi Haungdi did away with fiefs—small fiefs
became counties and larger fiefs became
provinces run by government officials
 Provinces are small political regions of a
country
END OF QIN
 Many did not like the way Shi Haungdi ruled, but were
too afraid to rebel
 After his death his second and favorite son became
ruler, but a very weak one and soon a civil war broke out
 Shi Haungdi’s son less effective ruler
 People rebelled
 Civil war breaks out
HAN
 Born a peasant
 Military general Liu Bang defeated Qin forces
and reunified China in 202 B.C.
 Liu developed the Han dynasty which lasted a
little more than 400 years
 After claiming control Liu changed his name to
Han Gaozu which means high ancestor
 It was during the same time period as the
Roman Empire
The Han kept some of the basic policies
of the Qin, but used a more
Confucianism approach
 The Han used bureaucracy to rule China
 Bureaucracy is the network of officials that
assist in providing government
 They tested people on their knowledge of
Confucianism to find the most skilled and
qualified to build the most effective
bureaucracy
 Han did away with the provinces and restored
the kingdoms of the Zhou dynasty
 Used bureaucracy to rule and used both
Legalistic and Confucian ideas
 After Liu Bang’s death in 195 B.C. his wife took
rule for their infant son and con’t to place infants
on the throne so that she would retain power
 When she died in 180 B.C. they executed all of
her relatives so that none of them would take
over the throne
A descendant of Liu Bang named Wudi
ruled the empire from 141 to 87 B.C.
Called the Martial Emporer because he
used war to expand China
Many military conquests
Through his conquests, Wudi was able to
bring multiple southern Chinese provinces
under his control as well as northern
Korea and northern Vietnam
By the end of Wudi’s rule, China had greatly
expanded
In fact it was almost as big as we know
China to be today
The Han faced many obstacles, but con’t to
rule until 220 A.D.
 Many of the Han lived in rural villages and
worked as farmers
 Some lived in cities and worked in business and
government
 Today in China many people associate
themselves with the Han people because the
ancient Chinese were industrious people who
civilization did very well
 In many ways the Han way of life is reflected in
Chinese life today
Legacy of China
Silk- it was a discovery of China
At the time of the Han dynasty, only the
Chinese knew how to make it.
It was a much desired product by the people
of China as well as those outside of China.
You might ask: How did others know about
the silk?…….well……
Silk was important in opening the trading
routes to the west.
We had talked about silk roads when we
first began this chapter and this is where
the name developed
Silk roads were the overland trade routes
to the west. Traders carried silk and other
goods on caravan trails.
The trails crossed over two continents and
therefore were called the trans-Eurasian
China had become a part of a wide spread
trading network
By 100 B.C. the silk roads were well
established ( This was during which
dynasty?).
Goods that the Chinese produced and
traded included: pottery, paper, and silk.
They received goods from the west such
as: seeds and oils, metal, and precious
stones.
One specific item that was of value and
very special were Central Asian horses.
Cultural Diffusion
With the new trade routes in place many
customs were spread as well as religion,
military techniques, and art.
Turn
to page
278
Inventions and Discoveries
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With such a large and growing population, the
Chinese were developing products pertaining to
agriculture.
The new items helped ease the work of farmers
Collar Harness-allowed horses to pull heavy
loads
Wheelbarrow-made it easier to move large
loads by hand
Watermills-used river power to grind grain
PAPER
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Paper was originally made of expensive silk
Inexpensive paper was made of old rags, tree
bark, and fibers from the hemp plant
Inexpensive books were made widely available
to those who valued education
Paper was important for the gov’t to keep
records.
SILK
 Very
rare and could be changed into
a variety of colors
 Allowed the Chinese to obtain silver
and gold
 This was important to China since
there are no rich deposits of either
mineral.