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THE 3 ETHICAL SYSTEMS
• The Zhou Dynasty had lasted
for 800 years, 1027 BCE to
256 BCE.
• For the first 300 years, the
Zhou kings controlled a large
empire.
• Local rulers represented the
king, but the king had ultimate
power.
• By the end of the Zhou
Dynasty, the lords of
dependent territories began to
think of themselves as
independent kings.
• Their bloody, internal
fighting led to the decline of
the Zhou and to the Warring
States Period.
• China’s ancient values of
social order, harmony, and
respect for authority, were
forgotten during the Warring
States Period.
• To restore these values,
Chinese scholars and
philosophers developed
different solutions.
CONFUCIUS
• Confucius believed that
social order, harmony, and
good government could be
restored in China if
Chinese society was
organized around five basic
relationships.
1. Ruler and Subject
2. Father and Son
3. Husband and Wife
4. Older brother and younger
brother
5. Friend and friend
• Confucius stressed that
children should practice filial
piety, or respect for their
parents and elders.
• Confucius spent most of his
life teaching.
• The only record of his ideas
were the writings of his
students collected in a work
called The Analects
• A disciple called Mencius
spread Confucian ideas.
• Both Confucius and Mencius
thought that leaders should
be virtuous.
Taoism
• For Confucius, the social
order of family and
government was most
important.
• Laozi, who like Confucius,
lived in the sixth century
BCE, believed that only the
natural order was important.
• Laozi’s book, Dao De
Ching, (The Way of Virtue)
expressed his belief in the
natural order.
• A universal force, that
Laozi called “The Way,”
guides all things.
Laozi
• The philosophy of Laozi
came to be known as
Taoism.
• Its search for knowledge
and understanding of
nature led Taoism’s
followers to pursue
scientific studies.
• Taoists made contributions
to the sciences of metallurgy,
astronomy, and medicine.
LEGALISM
• In contrast to Confucianism
and Taoism, was a group of
practical, political thinkers
called the Legalists.
• They believed that a highly
efficient and powerful
government was the key to
restoring order.
• They got their name from
their belief that government
should use the law to end
civil disorder and restore
harmony.
• In practice, the Legalists
stressed punishments
more than rewards.
• They also believed in
controlling ideas as well as
actions.
• They suggested burning
books that might encourage
people to think critically
about government.
• The ideas of the Legalists
would find favor with the
dynasty that would replace
the Zhou, the Qin.
• But how were the peasant or
small tradesman impacted by
the Ethical Systems of China?
• They weren’t
The Simple Folk
• Everyday people were not
concerned with the debates of
the three ethical systems.
• They put their faith in the I
Ching, a book of oracles that
helped people lead a happy
life by dispensing good
advice and simple common
sense.
• Ancient thinkers developed
the concept of Yin and Yang,
two powers that together
represented the material
rhythms of life.
Yin and Yang
• Yang represents the masculine
qualities in the universe and
Yin the feminine.
• Both forces represent the
rhythm of the universe and
compliment each other.
• Both the I Ching and the Yin
and Yang helped Chinese
people understand how they
fit into the world.
The Qin
• The Qin emerged as the ruling
dynasty at the end of the
Warring States Period.
• A 13 year old prince was
convinced by his advisors to
move against rival states.
• When he came to the throne,
he used the ideas of the
Legalists to subdue the
various warring states and
unify his country.
• After 20 years, the young
ruler took the name Shi
Huangdi. (First Emperor)
• His victories doubled
China’s size.
“Strengthening the
Trunk…”
• Shi Huangdi instituted a policy
called “Strengthening the trunk,
weakening the branches.”
• He commanded all noble
families to live in the capitol
city, under his suspicious gaze.
• This edict uprooted 120,000
noble families.
• Seizing their land, Shi
Huangdi carved China into 36
administrative districts.
• Qin officials were sent to
control the districts.
• To silence criticism, the
emperor murdered hundreds
of Confucian scholars.
• He ordered books on
Confucian thought and
poetry burned as
“useless.”
• Practical books on farming
and medicine were spared.
• Shi Huangdi made sweeping
changes to standardize his
empire.
Uniform standards were set
for…
•
•
•
•
•
Writing
Law
Currency
Weights and Measures
Length of cart axles
• Irrigation projects were
increased
• As a result, farm production
increased
• Trade grew
• But…
• …scholars hated Shi
Huangdi for his book
burning.
• Poor people hated him for
his policy of forced labor to
build a unified wall to repel
invaders.
• Zhou rulers had earlier built
smaller walls to keep
invaders out.
• Shi Huangdi was determined
to close the gaps and unify
the wall.
• When
completed, the
Great Wall
would stretch
1400 miles to
the west.
• After the death of Shi
Huangdi, his son takes over
as emperor.
• He was ineffective.
• Peasants rebel
• The Mandate of Heaven was
about to be passed to a new
dynasty.
• One peasant leader from the
province of Han, marched his
army into the capitol in 202
BCE.
• The Han Dynasty was born.
• END OF UNIT ONE