China Flashcards
Geography completely shapes the development of China
- mountains (Tian shan and Himalaya)
- Gobi desert
- thick jungles ( south east)
- pacific ocean
-Yangtex river vally - Huang he river valley ( yellow)
Loses
yellow/ brown silt
- river of sorrows - loess caused rivers to flood-> destroyed crops -> starvation (laborers worked to prevent)
- deepened on rivers for transportation/ irrigation-> irrigation -> bureaucracy
- long distances and physical barriers isolated china -> beloved center of earth and soul source of civilization = MIDDLE KINGDOM land of zhoagguo
Ethnocentrism
attitude that your cultural ethnicity is superior to all others
shang dynasty
1) first of a long line of dynasties (hereditary)
- united more than 1000 city- states
- captured territory and spread Chinese civilazation
Anyang
walled captial city
Huang he river valley
farming society
- animal herders
- peasents live outsdie city
social classes
noble rulers (communicated with gods)
- warriors
- artisans and merchants- made gods for nobles
- peasents
- repaired irrigation system when not farming
family was central
- chief loyalty throughout life
- men controlled property/ made decsionions
- women = inferior
-ancestors brought good fortune
religion
shang tomb-> belifes in afterlife
- ritualized human sacrifice
contributions
-crafts
- casted bronze weapons and statues
silkworms- most vauluable export kept a secret
wove -> silk
- calander, jewlwerly, pottery
first dynasty with written records
very difficult to learn to read/ write
- more than 10000 characters
*writing unified china
different parts of China spoke different languages, but all used same writing
first books
a) strips of wood/bamboo bound-> brush/ink
book of songs
poems of everyday life
(planting/harvesting)
- kings and their court
- love songs
oracle bones
animal bones, turtle shells
- priest wrote questions to god/ ancestoral spirtie
- heated bones
- interpreted cracks= answers/advice
zhou dynasty
overthrew the shang
- longest ruling synasty
2) promoted the idea of the MANDATE OF HEAVEN to justify their rule
divine (god given) right to rule
“ sons of heaven”
- emperor must serve the peoples needs-> good govt = remained in power (represtatives of gods)
- corrupt/ weak govt = loss of the MANDATE ( castashophes- floods/ famine/ earthquake)
- rise and fall of dynasties = dynastic cycle
largest ruling dynasty
too big to control -> established a fed state
- local nobles, lords/ family, given pieces of land by the emperor-> controlled local govt -> in exchange provided army to emperor for protection and tribute
- land for loyalty
contributations
a) classical age
- zhou dynasty was wealthy and large (size and pop)
- highly developed civilization
b) writing
1st books
“book of songs”
c) iron weapons and army on horseback
Sunzi “ art of war”
Iron plow irrigation projects -> more food
- copper coins and roads-> benefited trade
- collapsed bv too weak to control
- fed lords who battled and competed
philopshpy
system of ideas, study of knowledge : how we think what we value: questions about the world ourselves and relationships with others
warring state period
- problems arose in the zhou dynasty
-lords began acting like kings -> warfare and decline of values - rulers wanted fresh ideas on how to restore: social order
- harmony
- respect for authority
-> scholars became popular
women
no property
- work in house
- wife and mother
ban zhou
was considered young advisor to women women should obey there husband/ in laws
Qin dynasty
1) shi hugandi” first emperor”
- united city- states abloshied feudalism
- united china for first time in history
- strong central govt provinincial governs ( 36 military districts)
- captured new terrioties -> expanded China
