Download Chinese Civilization

Ancient Chinese Civilization
Even
though
much of
China is
covered
with
mountains
much of
the land is
inhabited.
China’s
dense
population
is a large
problem
for their
government
today.
These 2
maps
show the
relative
size of
China &
the
USA.
Ancient China
The Chinese called their land
Zhongguo, or the ‘Middle Kingdom’.
• They felt they were the center
of the universe ~ understandable
as they had no contact with any
other large civilization for a long
time.
• Oldest Continuous Civilization ~
China’s ancient civilization was
centered around the
Huang He River (Yellow River)
&
Chang Jiang River (Yangtze River)
•Loess ( fine yellow silt,
very fertile ) was deposited
along the shores of these
rivers.
•The Huang He was
unpredictable & experienced
destructive floods which
earned it the nickname
‘River of Sorrows’
The rivers in
China flooded
unpredictably &
disastrously.
Lives & crops
were lost in
great
numbers.
All the loess ends up being deposited
along and in the lower reaches of the
rivers.
Levees line
both shores
of the river
along its lower
reaches.
Thousands of
people are
mobilized to
combat floods
each year
between July
and August.
In 1994, the Chinese government
began building the world’s largest
dam to control these problems.
The Three Gorges Dam is complete
now..
One of the Three Gorges on the
Chang Jiang River (Yangtze).
China’s ancient
civilization began record
keeping early & this has
given us a large amount
of information about
their history.
The beginning of
writing in China
was on
Oracle
Bones
(turtle
shells)
Pictographs
eventually
developed
into…
Sun
Moon
Water
•Ideographs,
which, in turn,
developed into
modern Chinese characters, seen here
in the form of Calligraphy (artistic
writing)
China’s history is usually
divided into time periods based on
the rule of different dynasties.
A ‘dynasty’ is a ruling family that
passes the power to rule down
through the generations. These
rulers were thought to be ‘divine’,
or actual gods, and thus were
obeyed without question.
Shang Dynasty 1500 – 1100 BCE
Shang Dynasty
1500 – 1100 BCE
•Used irrigation
•Spoke many variations of language,
or dialects
•Developed writing w/ Chinese
characters
•Conquered by Zhou
• respect, or
veneration for
ancestors
•Horse-drawn chariots
• Leather & bronze
armor
• Lacked strong
leaders
• The Shang were polytheistic,
believing that there were many
spirits in nature.
• They built the first cities of
China.
• They had a deep respect for
their elders and their dead
ancestors.
• They made Silk.
Silk is made from the
cocoons of silk worms.
Silk worms live solely
on the leaves of the
mulberry bush. The
cocoons are boiled
and the silk strands
are separated by
hand (ow!) into the
threads.
Silk Worms
• Pottery
• Jade & Ivory
statues & jewelry
•(this brooch is
colored blue with
tiny bits of
kingfisher
feathers!)
Zhou Dynasty 1100 – 256 BCE
Zhou (Chou) Dynasty
1100 – 256 BCE
•Longest-lasting dynasty
•Strong conquerors, but weak
rulers
•Feudal system
Local Lords / Princes have most
of the authority, but owe loyalty
to the emperor.
•2 teacher-philosophers
influenced people: Laozi,
Confucius
• Mandate of Heaven
(Dynastic Cycle)
Mandate of Heaven
The Zhou invented a new
system of authority which
they called t'ien ming, or
the "Mandate of Heaven."
The Zhou defined the
kingship as an intermediary
position between heaven and
earth.
The Chinese
character for
emperor or lord,
"ti," demonstrates
this eloquently.
The ideograph
consists of three
horizontal lines
joined by a
vertical line.
See the connection
between heaven
(at the top) and
the earth
(at the bottom).
This relationship is
mediated by the
lord or emperor
(the center
horizontal line).
If the emperor rules in a selfish or
corrupt way, heaven withdraws its
mandate and gives it to another.
The only way to know that the
mandate has passed is if the emperor
is successfully overthrown.
Indications that a king had lost the
Mandate of Heaven included:
-Crop failures
-Catastrophic floods
-Losses in battle
-Corrupt government
Qin Dynasty
221 – 202 BCE
Qin (Ch’in) Dynasty 221 – 202 BCE
•Only one ruler – Qin Shi Huangdi
•United China by force
•Ended feudal system, built roads
& canals, & connected defensive
walls to create the Great Wall
•Standardized weights & measures,
& simplified writing system
The Chinese people have
constructed walls to keep their
culture, cities & towns, &
homes safe from outside
threats.
The Great Wall is an
example, built to stop the
migratory invaders from the
North.
Ancient Chinese cities also have
massive walls surrounding them
for protection.
Xi’an,
China
Chinese neighborhoods, or
‘hutongs’, are enclosed within
walls also.
Traditional
Chinese homes
are also designed
to face inward
onto courtyards,
with solid walls
facing out
towards the rest
of the world.
Emperor Qin
Shi Huangdi
Qin Dynasty 221 to 210 BCE
Ruled by the Emperor
Qin Shi Huangdi
Short-lived, but with
long-lasting changes and
influence.
Emperor Qin Shi
Huangdi
He was responsible
for the building of
the Great Wall,
and the
construction of
the Terra Cotta
Army.
A view of the
Great Wall from
space
(and no, you
cannot see it
from the
Moon…)
The Great Wall
Built upon unbelievable terrain!
Emperor Qin
Shihuangdi’s
Terra Cotta
Army – from
the Qin
Dynasty.
Horses of the Terra Cotta Army
Over 6,000 statues uncovered
so far.
Amazing
detail!
Han Dynasty 202 – 500 CE
Han Dynasty
202 - 500
•Civil service exams based on
Confucius’ ideas
•Silk trade w/ Europe
•Unified writing & legal system
•Built more roads & canals
•Buddhism introduced
The ‘Silk Road’ facilitated trade
between China and the Middle
East, and even parts of Europe.
Confucius introduced the idea of
government officials coming from
an educated group of men who
took an examination to work for
the government. This became
known as the ‘civil service’ and
the system was in place for a
very long time in China.
Han Dynasty 202 BCE – 500 CE
Begun by the Emperor Liu
Bang who overthrew the
Qin government after Qin
Shi Huangdi’s death.
Considered China’s golden
age
Emperor
Gao Zu
(Liu Bang)
Chinese Philosophies
Three Schools of Thought
Confucianism
Confucius
born during decline of Zhou
dynasty
 believed order would return to
China if people lived ethically
 wrote Analects

Confucius
Confucianism
formal social order
filial piety = respect for elders
 code of politeness according
to your relationship with
others

Confucianism
formal social order

5 relationships
ruler / subject
 parent / child
 husband / wife
 old / young
 friend / friend

Legalism
Practiced during Qin Dynasty
people are naturally evil and
greedy
order comes through strict laws,
enforcement
rulers should be strong
Daoism
taught by Laozi
about 50 years
older than
Confucius
 wrote Tao Te Ching:
“the way and its
power”

Laozi
Daoism
the way
Basic unity behind the universe
is the Tao
 Life is the greatest of all
possessions
 Life should be lived simply
 practice humility
 seek harmony with nature

Personal Philosophy
Think about…
 What is your moral philosophy?
 Would it be useful for governing a nation?
 What or who has influenced your belief?
Ponder one of the following and decide if any closely
resembles your philosophy or belief:
 “What I do not wish others to do to me, that also I
wish not to do to them”
 “The man of noble mind seeks to achieve the
good in others and not their evil”
 “The higher type of man is modest in what he
says, but surpasses in what he does”