Chapter 15 Section 3: China: Patterns of Life

1. Who did peasants rely on? Self-sufficient & self-reliant Relied on family Headman Had little contact with distant rulers

2. Social Classes All people were not equal Age, gender, education, and occupation determined a persons place in society

3. Organization of Social Classes Gentry Peasants Artisans Merchants

4. Gentry Wealthy landowners, educated by Confucian classics They looked down on those who did physical labor To show they didn’t have to work with their hands they let their fingernails grow very long Government officials & scholars, collected taxes and advised the emperor

5. Majority of the People The vast majority were peasants Owned land or tenant farmers Paid taxes but avoided imperial government Feared the government’s harsh system of justice and punishment Enjoyed limited leisure time Celebrated festivals & enjoyed tales told by storytellers

6. Describe differences between Gentry & Peasants no physical labor government officials time and wealth to support the arts Peasants physical labor little to do with how nation was ruled poor and most of their day working

7. Village Headman Kept order Resolved disputes Did not want to involve Imperial government – possible punishment

8. Social Mobility Education Families would use their wealth to educate their sons Young men would then have to pass civil service exams ensured that officials shared Confucian values and traditions. Women “marry up”

Artisans & Merchants Produced the goods the Gentry and peasants did not Achieved social mobility through educating their children At times an entire village supported the education of only one student

9. Joint Families Ideal in China Farming societies By working together families could produce what it needed to survive Patrilineal and Patrilocal

10. Values of traditional family Family first Respect for elders Filial piety Duty Harmony

11. Reverence for Ancestors or Veneration Filial Piety Family’s interests before their own Believed that the extended family included the living, the dead, & all future generations Ancestors lived in another world and depended on descendants to provide them with necessities Impact on earth Without them the ancestors would become ghosts & their descendants would suffer

12. Marriages Arranged Marriages Gentry strengthened their position in society Families consulted their ancestors for approval Go-Between (Matchmaker) worked out the details of the marriage ex. the dowry Priests studies birth dates to determine wedding day that would bring good fortune

13. Woman’s role Inferior to men---Patriarchal Girls were valued for their work and motherhood Daughters births were not celebrated, sons births revered When she married she left the family & became part of her husband’s family Under guidance of mother-in-law

14. Practice in 950AD Foot Binding – Painful Memories for China's Footbinding Survivors – NPR Hyperlink ---- Transcript link Kept the feet small Began at imperial court but spread to many parts of China Women with bound feet were thought to be beautiful to turn them into the prized "three-inch golden lotuses." Feared that they would not be able to find a husband for a daughter who had large feet Banned in 1912

Legend has it that the origins of footbinding go back as far as the Shang dynasty (1700-1027 B.C.). The Shang Empress had a clubfoot, so she demanded that footbinding be made compulsory in the court. But historical records from the Song dynasty (960-1279 A.D.) date footbinding as beginning during the reign of Li Yu, who ruled over one region of China between 961-975. It is said his heart was captured by a concubine, Yao Niang, a talented dancer who bound her feet to suggest the shape of a new moon and performed a "lotus dance."

Shoe For a Bounded Foot -The shoe is slightly larger than a pack of cigarettes

Body Modification is common in many Cultures

How did tradition benefit Chinese society? Creates order