Foundations to 600 C.E. (Classical Era)

1.What are people doing in this painting? 2.Why did the artist choose this subject to paint? Irrigating and cultivating rice Rice is/was Asia’s most important food—the scene was familiar to the artist

Planted in flooded fields called “paddies” Need heavy rainfall Rice is a primary food crop in East/South Asia Asia produces 90%

XIA DYNASTY c – 1700 B.C.E. Supposedly founded by Yu the Great Based on legend – may not have existed

Bronze Age 1 st recorded Chinese dynasty Founded on the bend of the Huang He 1 st Chinese cities Already using the wheel for chariots Consulted oracle bones ( B.C.E.)

Founded by Wu Located near Wei He Leaders ruled through the Mandate of Heaven Feudal States ( B.C.E.) Written language develops Porcelain, Silk Industry

Time passes, the New Dynasty becomes… Government infrastructure becomes corrupt & inefficient Old Dynasty Overtaxes populace Stops providing defense Farming declines Government mistreats people Problems Natural disaster occurs (drought, earthquake… etc.) War, foreign invasions weaken the military Government incapable of handling emergencies Crime/bandits roam freely Peasants revolt Establish new dynasty New Dynasty Creates peace Reforms/enhances government efficiency Improves peoples’ lives; gives land to peasants; reduces taxes Defends people Encourages farming Heaven granted the emperor the right to rule Emperor holds supreme power Power is unlimited and not restricted to one generation or dynasty Emperors retain right to rule by being virtuous rulers Mandate of Heaven

( B.C.E.) Family was poor nobility Exceptional student Teacher Government civil servant Confucius

Confucian ideas involved social order, harmony and a good government. Five relationships: Ruler and subject Father and son Husband and wife Older and younger brothers Friends Confucianism also includes filial piety = children respect their elders, parents, and ancestors. A bureaucracy, a trained civil service, was his idea of a government = scholar-gentry To be in the government, you had to have a good education.

 Never kiss a fool, or be fooled by a kiss.  The gentleman agrees with others without being an echo. The small man echoes without being in agreement. Analects  If one is guided by profits in one’s actions, one will incur much ill will. Analects  Do not worry because you have no position. Worry about your qualifications. Do not worry because no one appreciates your abilities. Seek to be worthy of appreciation. Analects 4.14 Continued  What the gentleman demands is something of himself. What the petty man demands is something of others.  Anyone learning without thought is lost, anyone thinking but not learning is in peril.

Great Wall Terra Cotta Army United China 1 st emperor Brutal leader = Legalist Centralized Government Writing (Mandarin) Weights and Measures standardized Iron Age Ch’in = country’s name Emperor Qin Shi Huangdi ( B.C.E.)

Liu Bang started the Han dynasty Han = main ethnic group today Wudi enlarged empire; centralized government; created Civil Service Confucianism = State philosophy Civil Service examination & school required 206 B.C.E. – 220 C.E.

continued  Controlled the eastern end of the Silk Road Population tripled Mandarin = common written language Buddhism brought by missionaries Economy flourished Linked cities with inland canals & roads Built roads and defensive walls Repelled Xiongnu (Mongolian nomads from the North)

Earthquake detector Rudder Paper continued Collar harness Watermill Compass

The Han Empire crumbled due to: economic downfall too much territorial expansion nomadic invasions conflict over dynastic succession ** Next 300 years, China was racked by Civil Wars continued Wang Zhaojun