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Life in Ancient China
Chapter 5
Section 2
Did You Know?
• Daoists believe the only acceptable time to
inflict harm on another living creature is in
self-defense.
Life in Ancient China
• A social class includes individuals who share a similar position
in society.
• Chinese society had three main social classes:
• Aristocrats, farmer, and merchants.
 Aristocrats: grew rich from farmers who grew crops on the land the aristocrats
owned.
 Most Chinese people were farmers. Farmers paid aristocrats with part of their
crops.
 Merchants were the lowest class.
 Although they grew rich, they were still looked down on by aristocrats and
farmers.
• Chinese families were large, and children were expected to work on
farms.
• Filial piety: Children had to respect parents and elders.
• Men’s jobs were considered more important than women’s jobs in wars.
• Men went to school, ran the government, and fought wars.
• Women could not hold government offices but could influences decisions of
their husbands.
Discussion Question
• How did aristocrats use farmers to grow
rich?
• Aristocrats allowed farmers to use their land. In
exchange, farmers gave part of their crop to the
landowners.
Chinese Thinkers
• Three major theories: Confucianism, Daoism, and Legalism;
were developed to reinstate peace after the Period of the
Warring States.
• Confucius: was a great thinker and teacher who believed that
people needed a sense of duty to be good.
• Duty meant that a person must put the needs of family and
community before his or her own needs.
• Confucianism taught that all men with a talent for government
should take part in government.
• Daoism: teaches that people should give up worldly desires
and encourages the importance of nature. Daoism was
created by the scholar and teacher Laozi.
• Legalism: is the belief that society needs a system of harsh
laws and punishments.
• The scholar Hanfeizi developed Legalism.
Discussion Question
• Why did the aristocrats dislike
Confucianism?
• According to Confucianism, any man with a
talent for government should take part in
government. This idea opened government
up to the lower classes.