Chapters 12,
13, 14
Cultural
Tang Foot Binding
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As a sign of wealth, during the Tang dynasty some noble Chinese
families started binding their daughter’s feet.
When they were young the wife would squish their daughter’s feet
into a ball and wrap it as tight as they could with linen or cloth.
Since there is only mostly cartilage in the foot in this age the foot
began to form in this smaller shape.
When the daughter starts to age her feet grow into a little ball
because of how their foot is wrapped.
This put the rich females out of work putting even more of a burden
onto the slaves and peasants.
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Only the rich could afford to be out of work, so only the rich people
practiced foot binding.
The foot bindings led to an even bigger gap between men and
women in the Confucian social hierarchy.
The men were always on top of this hierarchy, but since many
women had club feet they were unable to work, thus making this
gap bigger.
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The woman couldn’t provide for herself so the male would have to do
that job making the woman useless and defenseless.
Foot Binding
during the Tang
 Broken
toes
by 3 years
of age.
 Size 5 ½
shoe on the
right
Buddhism and Confucianism in the
Tang
 Confucianism
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Buddhism had been central
Mahayana Buddhism popular in era of
turmoil
Chan (Zen) Buddhism common among elite
 Early
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and Buddhism potential rivals
Tang support Buddhism
Empress Wu (690-705)
Endows monasteries
Tried to make Buddhism the state religion
50,000 monasteries by c. 850
Conflict between
Confucianism and Buddhism
 Reversal
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of state sponsorship
Confucianism regains favor for educational
purposes
 Confucianism
has difficulty competing against
the multiple strains of Buddhism
 Ultimately Government sponsorship of
Buddhism declines because of financial
problems
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Buddhism is permanently weakened, but never
dies out completely
Neo-Confucianism
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Emphasized tradition and the pursuit of
virtuous morality through ancient texts and
the teachings of wise men
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Stressed Confucian social stratification!
The past is man’s best example for future
Impact of Neo-Confucianism
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gender: men revered as household equivalent
to emperor
society: encouraged to “stay in your place”
government: less receptive to other “foreign”
ideas
Art of the Song
 monumental
landscape painting
 often done in a watercolor/ink wash style
 Great poetry continues
Japan
Japan’s Contact with China
 Early
contact tempered by faithfulness to
traditional values
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Shinto views on supernatural/natural world
 Success
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of Chinese Cultural Adoption
Elites create a world based on reputation and
social status
 Emphasis
on physical appearance, material
wealth – shallow & fake
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Achievements in poetic and literary works –
focus on sentimentality
The Tale of Genji
 Written
by Lady Murasaki
 first novel in any language
 relates life history of prominent and
amorous son of the Japanese emperor's
son
 evidence for mannered style of the
Japanese society.
Korea
Overview of Korea
 Korea
has the longest “cultural
exchange” relationship with China
 Most
content with relationship
 Question:
Is it possible for Korea to
develop a unique culture, given its
proximity to China?”
Development of Korea
Much
cultural borrowing from
China (Sinification)
 Buddhism,
art, architecture
(temples), Confucian learning
 Attempted bureaucracy  fails
without support from Korean
nobles
Vietnam
Origins of Vietnam
 In
possession of a sophisticated culture
prior to Chinese contact
 Conflicted between benefits of Chinese
culture & loss of national identity
 Early military conflicts resulted in cultural
exchange, but no political control
 Have a closer connection to SE Asian
groups (Cambodians, Khmers & Tais)
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Language bore no resemblance to Chinese
Preference for nuclear family vs. Chinese
extended family
Greater freedom held by Viet women
Distinct art & literature
Development of Vietnamese
Dynasties
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Despite political independence, cultural
adoption continues
 Finally establish small-scale bureaucracy
 Less
powerful than China’s
 Relate with peasants more than elites 
interests and revolts
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Creation of civil-service exam (Confucian
base)
Construction of Chinese-style capital cities
 Successful
conquest of neighbors  result
of learned Chinese techniques
 Fragmentation  development of cultural
conflict between North and South (US?)
Vietnamese culture separate
from Chinese
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Spoken language not related to Chinese,
strong tradition of village autonomy
favored nuclear family to extended
household, never developed the clan
networks
Vietnamese women had more freedom and
influence both within the family and in society
different style of clothing, cockfight, chewed
betel nut, and blackened their teeth
developed art and literature (poetry)
different from Chinese.
Culture after Chinese Conquests
 Chinese
cropping techniques and
irrigation technology
 political and military organization gave
them decisive edge over Indianized
peoples to the west and south
 adopted extended family model,
ancestor veneration
Mongols
Review of Pastoralists
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Pastoralists =
nomadic
Traveled in
systematic patterns
based on seasonal
changes and
environmental
conditions
Not homeless 
took their homes
and belongings
with them
FYI
 Mongols
did NOT become Chinese and
they did not accommodate EVERY
aspect of Chinese culture
The Mongol Empire
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Mongol rule was generally tolerant
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Religious toleration
Administrators drawn from Islamic and
Chinese worlds
Intellectuals taken from conquered kingdoms
Trade and cultural exchange flourished
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Pax Mongolica
Protect merchants
Mongols Being Mongols
 Many
still lived, ate, slept, and gave birth
in yurts they put up everywhere
 Planted steppe grass within the capital
and let animals roam freely
 Didn’t use civil service exams
 Didn’t learn Chinese
Reaction by Confucianists
 Thought
of the Mongols as “uncouth
barbarians”
 Refusal to reinstate the exam system was
resented
 The bolstering of artisans and merchants
bothered them
 Mongols liked popular entertainment
raising the status of actors and actresses
which went against the earlier hierarchy
Persia and the Mongols
 Many
Mongols in Persia were heavily
influenced by the Persians there:
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Adopted Islam
Left government operation in Persian hands
Learned Persian
Some turned to farming and abandoned
nomadic ways
Some married local people
Influence on the Russians
 Although
the Mongols weren’t influenced
much by the Russians, the Russians were
influenced by the Mongols:
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Adopted Mongols
 weapons
 court
practices
 diplomatic rituals
 taxation system
 military draft
Marco Polo
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In the late 13th century, Marco Polo left his home
in Venice, and eventually traveled for many years
in China.
He was accompanied by his father and uncle,
who were merchants anxious to stimulate trade
between Venice along the trade routes east.
Polo met the Chinese ruler Kublai Khan (Genghis
Khan's grandson), who was interested in his travel
stories and convinced him to stay as an envoy to
represent him in different parts of China.
He served the khan for 17 years before returning
home, where he was captured by Genoans at
war with Venice.
What evidence shows that the
Mongols and the Chinese did not
intermix cultures?
 Chinese
scholars forbidden to learn
Mongol script
 Mongols forbidden to marry ethnic
Chinese
 only women from nomadic families
selected for imperial harem
 no friendships; Mongol religion, traditions,
and style retained
 Mongol military forces remain separate
from Chinese military
Explain how Kubilai Khan’s
toleration of other religions and
travelers affected later history.
 Enhanced
European interest in Asia and
helped inspire efforts by navigator like
Columbus to find a water route to China