CHINA
BELL RINGER #37
Take out your homework (Cornell Notes on
“River Dynasties in China”) and respond to the
following questions:
1. Where is China? What are some of its
geographical features? Where do most people
in China live?
2. What are the benefits and drawbacks of the
belief that the group was more important than
the individual in Chinese society?
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VOCABULARY LIST SIX
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
Mandate of Heaven- The belief
that rulers are divinely
selected
Dynasty- A succession of rulers
from the same family or line
Feudalism- A social system in
which the ruler gives lands to
nobles in exchange for loyalty
and military service
Bureaucrat- Government
official that is concerned
primarily with following rules
Philosophy-The study of the
fundamental nature of
knowledge, reality, and
existence
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
Confucianism-An ethical and
moral code rather than a religion,
focused on perfecting society
Filial Piety-Fulfilling one’s
responsibility to their parents or
ancestors; an idea central to
Confucianism
Daoism (Taoism)-A religion that
stresses effortless action, nonviolence, and acting within one’s
nature
Silk Road-An ancient trade route
between China and the
Mediterranean Sea extending
some 4,000 mi, linking China
with the Roman Empire
Tribute-A gift payment to a ruler
as a sign of respect
POP QUIZ: RIVER DYNASTIES IN CHINA (V.1)
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5.
True or False, the Pacific Ocean is a natural boundary of China?
Early Chinese settlements started along the Chang Jiang
(Yangtze) River and the ____ River.
True or False, Ancient China was matriarchal?
What is a “Mandate of Heaven”?
a.
The belief that everyone must go to heaven
b.
When two or more men enjoy a day of beer and sports without
their wives
c.
The belief that rulers are divinely selected
d.
The set of Chinese rules that determine whether or not one can
enter heaven
Name one innovation or invention of the Zhou Dynasty
*BONUS* How many Chinese characters does one need to
memorize in order to be considered literate?
POP QUIZ: RIVER DYNASTIES IN CHINA (V.2)
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
True or False, the flood cycles of the Yellow River were predictable?
The ______ Cycle is a pattern where ruling families rise, fall and are
replaced which was repeated throughout Chinese history.
True or False, Ancient China was patriarchal?
What is a “Mandate of Heaven”?
a.
The belief that everyone must go to heaven
b.
When two or more men enjoy a day of beer and sports without their
wives
c.
The belief that rulers are divinely selected
d.
The set of Chinese rules that determine whether or not one can
enter heaven
Name one innovation or invention of the Zhou Dynasty
*BONUS* About what percentage of China’s land is suitable for
agriculture?
POP QUIZ: RIVER DYNASTIES IN CHINA (V.3)
True or False, the Mandate of Heaven was a set of Chinese
rules that determined whether or not one could enter Heaven?
2. The ______ Cycle is a pattern where ruling families rise, fall
and are replaced which was repeated throughout Chinese
history.
3. True or False, Ancient China was patriarchal?
4 What was the principle river of the civilization of ancient
China?
a. Huang He River
b. Xi Jiang River
c. Tsingtao River
d. Monongahela River
5. Name one innovation or invention of the Zhou Dynasty
*BONUS* How many Chinese characters would one need to know
in order to be considered a scholar?
1.
MR LIP GROUP ACTIVITY
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I’ll place you in groups and assign one of the themes of
geography to your group
Write it on the top of your chart paper, then define it
Then write as much information as you can about your
theme as it pertains to China (ex: silk road, canals,
printing, standardized Chinese are all examples of
Movement)
Illustrate it and make it look good!
When you are finished go to
http://www.ancientchina.co.uk/menu.html and play
through each section
BELL RINGER #38
Take out your Dynastic Cycle Comics and your
homework
 Describe the steps or stages of the Dynastic
Cycle of China
 What role did the Mandate of Heaven play into
the dynastic cycle?
 What are the three philosophies that were the
focus of last night’s reading? Briefly describe
each one.
POP QUIZ!!!!
Blank sheet of paper
 Something to write with
 Open note (homework)
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POP QUIZ: UNIFICATION ON CHINA (V.3)
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1.
Which man is credited with founding Daoism?
A. Confucius
B. Laozi
C. Shi Huangdi
D. Kublai Kahn
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2.
Which ruler favored Legalism during his rule as “First Emperor?”
A. Confucius
B. Laozi
C. Shi Huangdi
D. Kublai Kahn
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3.
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4.
Why was Confucianism appealing to the people of China?
A. His ideas stressed social order, harmony, and family values in a time of chaos
B. He was a strong warrior and forced people to follow him
C. His ideas stressed putting oneself above all others and gaining power
D. None of the above
Name one good thing AND one bad thing that happened to China during the Qin Dynasty.
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5. True or False, Legalism encouraged people to speak their minds freely and gave common
people new rights?
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*BONUS* Define autocracy
BELL RINGER # 39
Take out your List Six flashcards for me to check
Who was Confucius? What dynasty was in
power when he was born?
 What was his ethical/moral code called?
 What do Li, Ren, and Junzi mean?
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BELL RINGER (NOT NUMBERED)
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Take out your list six flashcards and study for
your quiz (3-5 minutes)
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Access Code in SchoolNet:
GEOGRAPHY
Located in Asia
 Mountains and deserts
cover about 2/3 of
China’s landmass
 10% of land is suitable for farming
 Natural boundaries: Pacific Ocean, Yellow Sea,
East China Sea, South China Sea, Himalayan
Mountains, Taklimakan Desert and Gobi Desert
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WESTERN VS. EASTERN CHINA
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Mostly desert
Arid climate
Thinly populated
Rich in petroleum and
natural gas
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The land between the
Chang Jiang or Yangtze
River and Huang He or
Yellow River is called
the North China Plain
AKA “China’s
Heartland”
Densely populated
YELLOW RIVER VALLEY
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The Huang He River (Yellow River)
 “Cradle
of Chinese Civilization”
 “China’s Sorrow”
 Unpredictable
flooding
Loess (a windblown sediment) is deposited into
the river, causing the yellow color and high silt
content
 6th (or 7th, depending on how you measure)
longest river in the world
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COLORING OF THE YELLOW RIVER
XIAOLANGDI DAM
DYNASTIC CYCLE
China has been historically led by dynasties, or
a succession of rulers from the same family
 Cycle (see graphic)
 Power is claimed to come from a divine source:
Mandate of Heaven
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CHINESE DYNASTY SONG
TUNE ---- FRÈRE JACQUES / ARE YOU SLEEPING )
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Shang
Zhou (“Joe”)
Qin (“chin”)
Han
(Repeat)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xJis9TSw1rE
Harvard Professors teach us a nursery rhyme
Sui (“sway” without “w”)
Tang
Song
(Repeat)
Yuan
Ming
Qing (“ching”)
Republic
(Repeat)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NIC4zom3w0g
Vogue-History Teachers
Mao Zedong ---------People’s Republic of China / Communist China
(Repeat)
DYNASTIC CYCLE COMIC STRIP
Create a comic strip that is at least six panels
that accurately shows the steps of the Chinese
Dynastic Cycle.
 (Setting, First, Next, Then, Climax, Last)
 Words AND Pictures in each panel
 Use a your notes, ruler, colored pencils or
markers to complete your comic
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XIA DYNASTY
“First” Dynasty of China
 c. 3000 BCE - c. 2000s BCE
 The Xia dynasty was the first to irrigate, produce
cast bronze and a strong army.
 King Yu was selected as leader because of his
brilliant engineering & mathematics skills, first to
tame Huang He
 King Yu was the first king to have his son follow
him instead of a man chosen by his virtue. This
made the Xia the first Chinese dynasty.
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SHANG DYNASTY
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c.1600 BCE - 1027 BCE
First written record of dynasty
Earliest glazed pottery, advanced bronze work and jade
carving
365 1/4 days calendar year
First appearance of Chinese script
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Oracle bones
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Difficult to learn, but could communicate better than spoken word
questions etched on bone, then stabbed with a hot poker
Archaeologist have found palace foundations, burials, and
rammed earth fortifications.
Capital city at Anyang- Wooden framed, clay walls, earthen
walls
Patriarchal, polytheistic (Shang Di), nobles vs. peasants,
family relationships key
ZHOU DYNASTY
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1027 BCE – 256 BCE
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Overthrows Shang in 1027 BCE claiming last Shang
ruler lost the Mandate of Heaven
Kept many Shang cultural practices
Establish feudalism
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Period of Warring States 476 BCE – (221 BCE when Qin
Dynasty emerges)
Moved capital to Luoyang
King/Emperor owns land>Grants nobles use of land>nobles
owe loyalty and military service>peasants on land serve
nobles
Over time as villages>towns>cities, land holding nobles
grow stronger
Zhou introduce coin money, blast furnace iron, and build
roads and canals= +trade
QIN DYNASTY
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221 BCE to 207 BCE
Qin Shi Huang declares himself “First Sovereign Emperor”
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Military conquest and unification of warring states
Took land from nobles, assigned jobs, burned books
Legalism
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People are bad, law is necessary
Rule of Law
Spy networks
Public works
Bureaucracy
Standardized weights, measures, money, writing
Great Wall of China
Terracotta army
He dies, son murdered, incompetent ruler, peasant revolt
HAN DYNASTY
206 BCE – 220 CE
 Liu Bang
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Peasant birth, led rebellion
Merit system promotion
 Confucianism
 Silk Road
 “Han” becomes a name for someone who is
Chinese
 Replace what was destroyed under Qin
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Arts flourish
“PERIOD OF DISUNITY”
220 CE – 589 CE
 After Han, warfare and instability rule China
 China breaks up into smaller kingdoms
 AKA the “Six Dynasties”
 Despite political troubles, arts again flourish in
China
 Poetry
 Buddhism
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SUI DYNASTY
581 CE – 618 CE
 Grand Canal
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 Over
1100 miles long
Military campaigns
 605 CE first gov’t exams
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TANG DYNASTY
618 CE – 907 CE
 Empress Wu Zetian (r. 690-705 CE)
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 Concubine
of Tang Emperor, marries his son after
his death
 Only empress of China to rule in her own right
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“Golden Age”
 Poetry,
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painting, music, dancing
Capital Chang'an, est. pop. 1,000,000
SONG DYNASTY
960 CE – 1279 CE
 Technological highlights
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 Gunpowder
 Compass
 Paper
money
Government exams for bureaucrats
 Population growth
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YUAN DYNASTY
1271-1368 C.E.
 Kublai Khan (grandson of Genghis Kahn) conquers
to Song Dynasty, becomes 1st non-Chinese
emperor of China
 Refused to adopt Chinese customs, barred
Chinese from higher offices= resentment
 Repairs Grand Canal, postal service, standard
paper currency, allows foreign visitors= cultural
diffusion (Buddhism, Islam, Christianity, new trade
goods)
 Power declines (Not Mongol enough, not Chinese
enough, natural disasters, rebellion)
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MING DYNASTY
1368-1644 C.E.
 Strict yet stable government
 Arts and cultural revival (many famous Chinese
artworks come from this dynasty)
 Economy tanks, earthquakes, famine, foreign
invasion
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SILK ROAD
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Ancient trade route linking China to the Mediterranean
Evidence of Chinese silk in Egypt c. 1070 BCE
Han Dynasty, Persians, Greeks, Romans, and Mongols
aid development
Transport silk, trade goods, ideas, and disease
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Crash course in
World History:
 http://www.youtu
be.com/watch?v
=vfe-eNqQyg&safe=active
DEVELOPMENT OF CHINESE WRITING
Chinese writing, much like other forms of writing
has changed over time
 Earliest forms of writing were pictographs or
ideograms (pictures or symbols to represent
words/ideas)
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What are the drawbacks of this?
Writing develops in China during Shang Dynasty
(Oracle bones)
 Modern Chinese characters are written vertically,
left to right
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One must know 3-4 thousand characters to be literate
 Over 100,000 characters exist
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CHINESE PAINTING
Paintings:
 On silk originally, then later on paper or scrolls
 Two main painting techniques:
 Gong-bi “meticulous” and uses highly detailed
brushstrokes (similar to calligraphy)
 Ink and Wash Paintings- loose watercolor-type
paintings
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http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chinese_art#mediaviewer/File:Ни_Цзань.Дерево,_
бамбук_и_изящный_камень._Гугун,_Пекин..jpg
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chinese_art#mediaviewer/File:Chinese,_‘Pink_and
_White_Lotus’,_14th_century_China,_Yuan_dynasty_(1279–
1368),_Hanging_scroll;_mineral_pigments_on_silk,_Kimbell_Art_Museum.jpg
From the Five Dynasties period to the Northern Song period (907-1127) is
known as the “Great age of Chinese landscape”
Chinese painting involves essentially the same techniques as Chinese
calligraphy does
GEOGRAPHIC INFLUENCES
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North
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South
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Towering mountains, strong black lines, ink wash, sharp
dotted brushstrokes to show rough rocks
Rolling hills, rivers, peaceful countryside, softer
brushstrokes
The Four Gentlemen
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Four Gentlemen, also called the Four Noble Ones, in
Chinese art refers to four plants: the orchid, the bamboo, the
chrysanthemum, and the plum blossom. The term compares
the four plants to Confucianist junzi, or "gentlemen".
FIVE PRINCIPLES OF CHINESE CALLIGRAPHY
Posture: It is important to sit up straight.
 Knowledge of the tools: You must understand how
the materials used to create your brush affects the
outcomes, which brushes are best for the job, etc.
 Control: You must know how to control the brush.
 Rhythm: The characters should flow smoothly
down the page.
 Balance: Make sure all the lines are the right
thickness and length.
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EXAMPLES AND INTRODUCTION
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See video:
http://player.discoveryeducation.com/views/hhView.cfm?guidAssetId=ce8e44e330b2-42b2-98ef-6728a95861cb&play=true&preview=true&skin=&small=true
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Background music:
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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7apji-hg5j4
TODAY’S EXERCISE
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Using the paint brush provided, Google Translate, and
brainyquote.com, create a school appropriate document
in Chinese
You should exemplify all five principles of Chinese
Calligraphy as you work
Remember: Chinese characters are written vertically,
left to right
Your product must be at least two columns an include
an English translation
Remember: some proper nouns may not exist (i.e. first
names, last names, brand names, place names)
When you are finished, read Chinese Cinderella
CONFUCIANISM
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K’ung-fu-tzu or Confucius (551 BCE – 479 BCE)
Born into a poor family of higher class
 Well educated, becomes teacher and bureaucrat
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Stresses family relationships, ancestor worship,
harmony & balance, respect for others, avoiding
extremes and perfecting society
 5 relationships: ruler/subject, father/son,
husband/wife, brother/brother, friend/friend
 Ethics/Morals rather than religion
 Reinforces individual roles in society; everyone had
their place (positive and negative)
 The Analects are a collection of his teachings
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PRIMARY SOURCE: THE ANALECTS
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Find a partner that will help you be successful (this is a long and difficult
passage, you will need to stay on task)
Read through The Analects and define these words by
using context clues and inferences
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Li
Ren
Junzi
Answer these questions after reading the passage:
1)
2)
3)
Which does Confucius consider to be most important?
Weapons, food, or faith in the ruler? Why?
What is the main idea of the passages 12.11-12.16? What
evidence or examples back up your answer?
Based on the excerpt you have just read, what are the
things that people who practice Confucianism belief in or
value?
DAOISM (TAOISM)
Laozi (Lao Tzu) circa 500 BCE (sometime during
the Zhou Dynasty)
 Tao Te Ching principle text
 “The Way” or “The Path”
 Wu wei or non-action/non-doing without effort
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Emptiness
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Think of a container!
Desires are bad
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Think water!
Good vs. bad, ugly vs. beautiful; distinctions lead to
desires
Using force disrupts harmony
PRIMARY SOURCE: THE TAO TE CHING
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Find a partner that will help you be successful (this is a long and difficult
passage, you will need to stay on task)
Read through The Tao Te Ching and define these words by
using context clues and inferences
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“The Saint”
“Tao” or “The Way”
Answer these questions after reading the passage:
1)
2)
3)
What do you think the last two sentences of Chapter Two
mean?
What is the main idea of Chapter Eleven? Come up with
another example with your partner.
What is the “Oneness” described in Chapter Fourteen?
Con. (2)
1
1
Bud.
(2)
2
Dao.
(2)
1
Discovery Education- China: From Past to Present: Geography, Traditional Religions, and Beliefs (Film Resource)
CURRENT EVENTS: YELLOW RIVER
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http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/2008/05/
china/yellow-river/larmer-text/1#\
CURRENT EVENTS: DISCUSSION QUESTIONS
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Please answer the following questions based of the
information from Brook Lamar’s article “Bitter Water:
Can China the Yellow-China’s Mother River?”
Five “W”’s & 1 “H”: Who, What, Where, When, Why,
How?
What did you find to be the most interesting facts or
events in this article? What, if anything, surprised you?
What is the significance? Why should we care? How
can this affect the future?
How does this relate to your life?
CHINESE CALLIGRAPHY
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Chinese characters, like all other languages
changed over time
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Five Principles of calligraphy
 Balance,
Control
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Posture, Knowledge of Tools, Rhythm, and
http://file.tumbnart.com/wpcontent/uploads/2012/11/chinese%20symbol
%20tattoos%20art.jpg
BELL RINGER
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Please evaluate the following primary source document:
“Words of truth are not pleasing.
Pleasing words are not truthful.
The wise one does not argue.
He who argues is not wise.
A wise man of Tao knows the subtle truth,
And may not be learned.
A learned person is knowledgeable but may not know the subtle truth of Tao
A saint does not possess and accumulate surplus for personal desire.
The more he helps others, the richer his life becomes.
The more he gives to others, the more he gets in return.
The Tao of Nature benefits and does not harm.
The Way of a saint is to act naturally without contention.”
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Who is the probable author of this text?
What philosophy does this best fit with, Buddhism, Confucianism, or Daoism?
Why?
What does this mean to you?
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BELL RINGER
Please evaluate the following primary source document:
"The superior man in everything considers righteousness to be essential. He performs it
according to the rules of propriety. He brings it forth in humility. He completes it with
sincerity. This is indeed a superior man.
The superior man is distressed by his want of ability. He is not distressed by men's not
knowing him.
The superior man dislikes the thought of his name not being mentioned after his death.
What the superior man seeks, is in himself. What the mean man seeks, is in others.
The superior man is dignified, but does not wrangle. He is sociable, but not a partisan.
The superior man does not promote a man simply on account of his words, nor does he
put aside good words because of the man.“
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Who is the probable author of this text?
What philosophy does this best fit with, Buddhism, Confucianism, or Daoism? Why?
What does this mean to you?
PDF RESOURCES
Analects full text:
http://www.indiana.edu/~p374/Analects_of_Con
fucius_(Eno-2012).pdf
 Tao Te Ching full text:
http://www.with.org/tao_te_ching_en.pdf
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ENGINEERING AN EMPIRE: CHINA

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I9evCYVir5k
&safe=active
STUDY GUIDE
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Dynasty
Mandate of Heaven
Feudalism
Bureaucrat
Philosophy
Confucianism
Filial (or Filial Piety)
Taoism (Daoism)
Silk Road
Tribute
Xia Dynasty
Shang Dynasty
Zhou Dynasty
Qin Dynasty
Han Dynasty
Sui Dynasty
Tang Dynasty
Song Dynasty
China Geography
Where does the majority of the
population of China live? Why?
Percentage of land in China suitable for
farming
Great Wall of China
Ancient Chinese inventions
Dynastic Cycle
Huang He River (Yellow River) and its
nicknames