H 566: Chinese Civilization
Office: Arts & Letters 538
Spring 2014 T/Th. 9:30-10:45am
Room: Student Services West 3620
Professor: Kate Edgerton-Tarpley
OH: Mon. 2:30-3:30; Thurs. 2:15-4:15pm
E-mail: edgerton@mail.sdsu.edu
Office Phone: (619) 594-6985
Chinese Civilization: The Great Traditions
Course Description: China has become increasingly influential in the twenty-first
century world, but many people know relatively little about its long, rich, complex
history. This course invites students to analyze key social, political, cultural,
philosophical, religious, economic, and foreign policy developments in China from the
earliest times until the seventeenth century. We will also examine China’s role in premodern World History. Thoughtful analysis of Chinese primary sources in translation and
biographies of important political and cultural figures is crucial throughout the course.
Student Learning Outcomes: Both individually and as a class, students will:
1. Familiarize themselves with Chinese geography and pronunciation.
2. Identify key dynasties and political and cultural figures in pre-modern Chinese history.
3. Compare and contrast Confucian, Daoist, and Legalist philosophies and their impact
on politics, gender roles, and daily life in pre-modern China.
4. Explore the origins of China’s imperial tradition and evaluate scholarly perspectives on
why that tradition proved to be so durable.
5. Trace change over time in terms of gender constructs, religious beliefs, technological
innovation, economic growth, and demography.
6. Compare and contrast how different dynasties interacted with foreign powers.
7. Examine the domestic and global impact of important Chinese inventions.
8. Analyze different types of primary sources, ranging from oracle-bone inscriptions,
paintings, and poems to novels and political treatises, to gain a fuller understanding of
pre-modern Chinese society and culture.
Skill Objectives:
This course also seeks to sharpen your skills in critical thinking, analytical writing,
historical research, and historiographical debate by asking you to engage during class
discussions, deliver an oral presentation, and research and write analytical papers. Your
active participation in class discussions and your writing style and organization are
important factors in determining your success in this course. Moreover, the ability to
organize your thoughts and your writing in order to make thoughtful and convincing
arguments about new information will serve you well for the rest of your life – both in
college and in whatever career you choose to pursue.
Course Requirements (For Undergraduates – Graduate students see supplement):
- Attendance and Participation 10%
-Quizzes
15%
- Take-Home Paper I
20%
- Daily Life Presentation & Analysis 15%
- Take-Home Paper II
20%
- Final Exam
20%
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Requirements:
1. Class Participation - 10% of total grade
a. Regular attendance: Your active participation is welcomed in this class, but you
cannot participate if you are not present. I will pass around a written register of
attendance at the beginning of class each day. Your class participation grade will
drop by one full grade for every class that you miss after your third unexcused
absence. This means that 4 unexcused absences will lower your class participation
grade to an 80%, 5 to a 70%, and so on.
b. Regular and informed participation in weekly discussions and debates: Discussion
of primary sources and biographies is a crucial part of this course. To receive full
credit for participation, you need to bring the assigned reading to class for each
discussion and contribute regularly. You will also receive class participation points
for your contributions to the “Hundred Schools of Thought” debate on February 27th.
- Active participation in class means more than simply showing up; it means coming
on time, taking notes during lectures, videos, and student presentations, completing
the assigned readings for each class, and contributing constructively to our
discussions and debates on a regular basis. Be sure to turn off your cell phone as
soon as class begins!
2. Quizzes (Map, Hot Dates, & Reading) - 15%
a. Map Quiz: In order to study the history of China effectively, you need to
know where China’s provinces, key cities, and natural features are in relation to each
other. The map quiz will be given at the beginning of class on Thursday, February 6th
A study guide will be given out one week in advance. There will be no make-up for the
Map or Hot Dates quizzes unless you contact me before the quiz with a documented
reason (illness or emergency) why you cannot be present to take it as scheduled.
b. Hot Dates and Dynasties Quiz: Gaining a basic sense of the chronology of
China’s major dynasties is also important when studying Chinese history, because it will
enable you to trace change over time more effectively. This quiz will be given on
Tuesday, March 11th. It will ask you to put dynasties in chronological order and list when
each dynasty began and ended.
c. Reading Quizzes: To encourage lively class discussions and help everyone
keep up with the assigned readings, I will sometimes give short reading quizzes at the
beginning of class on discussion days. No make-ups will be given for missed quizzes.
Make-up Activities: You may make-up for one unexcused absence and one missed or
failed reading quiz by attending a total of two out-of-class activities concerning China
and writing a short (1-2 typed page) analysis of each activity. Activities include going to
showings of Chinese films or China-related lectures, taking a trip to the Asian art exhibit
in Balboa Park, or attending other China-related cultural activities. I will announce
relevant activities in class as I learn of them. To receive make-up credit, your write-ups
must be typed, must specifically relate each activity you attended to one or more of
the themes introduced in History 566, and must be submitted on or before Tuesday,
May 6th.
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3. Take-Home Paper I (7-8 pages) - 20%:
Your first take-home paper is due at the beginning of class on Tuesday, March 4th. In it
you will compare and contrast Confucian, Mohist, Daoist, and Legalist ideas. The
specific topic and more detailed guidelines will be handed out one week in advance.
- Late papers will not be accepted without written documentation of a genuine
emergency.
- Your paper should be no less than 7 full pages and no more than 8 full pages in length,
double-spaced and typed in 11 or 12 point font with 1 inch to 1 and ½ inch margins.
- This paper must be based entirely on in-class sources (Ebrey and blackboard primary
sources, Wills’ biography of Confucius, Hansen textbook, and lectures). No credit will be
given for papers drawn from outside or internet sources.
- Papers will be graded down for poor grammar and spelling.
- You are required to cite your sources after every direct quote AND after every
paragraph of information. Use full Chicago-style footnotes for all citations.
- **For detailed guidance on how to write a history paper and for specific examples
of the proper use of Chicago style footnotes, please see the Writing Guides listed on
the SDSU History Department’s website, found at: http://wwwrohan.sdsu.edu/dept/histweb/index.htm (Click on “Writing Guides” and then “Chicago
Format for Citations”)
- For additional examples of Chicago Style, consult the SDSU Library’s guidelines on
Chicago style. http://infodome.sdsu.edu/research/guides/styles/chicago_style.shtml
4. Daily Life in Tang China Presentation and Analysis Paper (6-7 pages): 15%
Early in the semester each of you will select one of the chapters in Charles Benn’s
China’s Golden Age: Everyday Life in the Tang Dynasty to analyze.
Presentation (5%): On April 10th or April 15th, you and classmates who analyzed
the same chapter will deliver a 15 minute group presentation on the aspect of Tang daily
life you read about. You must meet beforehand to plan your presentation. Each
presentation must include visual or audio aids. It is fine to use internet sites to
supplement Benn’s chapter, as long as you cite your sources.
Daily-Life Analysis Paper (10%): Your 6-7 page Daily Life Analysis paper
(written individually) is due on Thursday, April 17th. In it you will draw on Benn,
Hansen, and other relevant in-class sources in order to analyze to what extent, and in
what particular ways the aspect of Tang daily life you presented on changed between the
Tang period and an earlier period in Chinese history. It is up to you to choose which
earlier period works best in terms of tracing changes and continuities related to your
topic. Use Chicago-style footnotes to cite your sources.
5. Take-Home Paper II: China in World History (7-8 pages) – 20%
Your second take-home paper is due at the beginning of class on Thursday, May 8th.
In it you will examine key ways that Late Imperial China impacted, and was in turn
impacted by, important trends in World History. Late papers will not be accepted
without written documentation of a genuine emergency.
- Your paper should be 7-8 pages in length, must be based entirely on in-class sources,
and must use Chicago-style footnotes for all citations.
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6. Final Exam - 20%: The final exam will be held in our classroom from 8:00am to
10:00am on Thursday, May 15th. A study guide will be posted one week in advance.
The final will be part short identification and part essay in format.
PLAGIARISM POLICY: Students who cheat or plagiarize on any exam or paper will
receive a zero on that assignment, and I will formally document the incident in an
Academic Dishonesty Incident Report. Academic integrity is expected of every student.
Students must not plagiarize the work of others. This means that if you quote from any
work (including internet sites), you must put quotation marks around that material, and
you must cite it in a footnote or endnote. Plagiarism also includes using someone else’s
phrases, strings of words, special terms, or ideas and interpretations without citing your
source, even if you have not quoted directly from that source. In short, you must give
credit where it is due. If you have doubts, feel free to come and ask me, or check the
SDSU General Catalogue for more information.
Course Readings:
Books to Purchase: The following books have been ordered from KB Books and Aztec.
I urge you to purchase all of these books because they are crucial for class discussions
and assignments. If you are unable to purchase them, you will find one copy of each
book on reserve at the library. The Wills and Benn books are also available as E-Books
via the SDSU library. Additional required readings will be posted on blackboard on a
regular basis.
1. Valerie Hansen. (H) The Open Empire: A History of China to 1600. New York: W.W.
Norton & Company, 2000.
2. Patricia Ebrey, editor. (E) Chinese Civilization: A Sourcebook. Second Edition. New
York: The Free Press, 1993.
3. John E. Wills, Jr. (W) Mountain of Fame: Portraits in Chinese History. Princeton:
Princeton University Press, 1994.
4. Charles Benn. (B). China’s Golden Age: Everyday Life in the Tang Dynasty. Oxford
University Press, 2004.
Course Outline
Date:
Topic:
Reading Assignment:
INTRODUCTIONS & INVENTING CHINA
Week 1:
Jan. 23
Course introduction
Images of the Chinese Past
Week 2:
Jan. 28
Geography and Language;
Discussion: How to approach Chinese
History? Hanson, Wills, Ebrey
on sources and approaches
Hanson (H), Introduction, 3-14
Wills, Preface pp. xi-xiv;
Ebrey, first paragraph of
Preface to First Edition, p. xiii
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Jan. 30
Week 3:
Feb. 4
*Feb. 6
Pre-history and Origin Myths
Shang China and Chinese Writing
Oracle Bone Activity
Wills, “Yu,” p. 3-10; H pp. 17-35;
Ebrey document 1, “Late
Shang Divination Records”
From Shang to Western Zhou;
Western Zhou Classics
H 35-53; Ebrey documents 2, 3, & 4
(Metal Bound Box; Hexagrams in
Book of Changes; Songs and Poems)
Map Quiz at beginning of class
H pp. 55-67; Ch. 1-3 of Sunzi’s The
The Zhou and its Decline
Art of War – Online at:
Discussion: The Art of War
http://www.chinapage.com/sunzi-e.html
THE HUNDRED SCHOOLS OF THOUGHT: PHILOSOPHICAL FOUNDATIONS
Week 4:
Feb. 11
Kongzi (Confucius) and Confucianism
H 55-79; 89-95;
The Origins of Confucianism:
Wills ch. 2 (Confucius)
Confucius (Kongzi), Mencius, & Xunzi
 Film clip – Confucius (2010)
Feb. 13
Kongzi’s influence on state and society
Discussion: Confucius, Mencius, and
Xunzi on family values, good
Governance, and human nature.
Week 5:
Feb. 18
Alternative paths: Daoists and Mozi
Mozi and Laozi vs. the Confucians
Feb. 20
Zhuangzi’s “free and easy wandering”
Discussion: Seeking the Way
Ebrey docs. 7 & 18, (Daoist
Teachings; Yin and Yang in
Medical Theory)
Legalism
H 97-103; Ebrey doc. 8,
Legalist Teachings.
Week 6:
Feb. 25
Feb. 27
*FULL-CLASS DEBATE:
“A Hundred Schools of Thought”
Ebrey docs. 6, 10, and 15
(Confucian Teachings; Social
Rituals; Classic of Filial Piety)
H 79-95; Blackboard (BB):
De Bary and Bloom, eds.
“Selections from the Mozi,” pp. 66-76
Review primary sources
by Confucius, Mencius, Xunzi,
Mozi, Laozi, Zhuangzi, Lord Shang,
and Han Feizi.
BUILDING A BUREAUCRATIC EMPIRE: QIN AND HAN
Week 7:
*March 4
Take-Home Paper due
H 103-112; Wills ch. 3,
Qin Shihuang and the Qin Dynasty “The First Emperor of Qin,”
Film clip: Emperor and Assassin
pp. 33-50.
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March 6
Week 8:
*March 11
March 13
Week 9:
March 18
March 20
From Qin to Han – Imperial Ideology H 112-117; Ebrey docs. 11 & 13
Discussion: The Qin Legacy
(Qin law; Heaven, Earth, and Man)
Hot Dates and Dynasties Quiz at beginning of class
Han policies: domestic and external
H 117-143; Ebrey doc. 12 & 14
(World Beyond China; Debate on
Salt and Iron; Women’s Virtues)
Han gender relations and historians
Discussion: Great Han Historians &
Lessons for Women.
Han Disintegration; Political disunity
The Three Kingdoms
April 10
Week 12:
April 15
Skim H Chapter 5;
Wills ch. 9, (Empress Wu);
Ebrey docs. 25, 26, 30 (Emp. Taizong,
(Tang Legal Code, Exam System)
CLASS & OFFICE HOURS CANCELLED (Prof. at AAS conference)
SPRING BREAK (March 31st-April 4th)
Week 11:
April 8
H 144-149;
Wills ch. 7, Zhuge Liang
Religious Transformation & Alien rule
H chapter 4 (all);
Discussion: Arrival & impact of Buddhism Wills ch. 8 (Hui Neng);
Buddhism in China: The Disposition
of Error, pp. 221-225, on Blackboard.
CHINA’S GOLDEN AGE: SUI AND TANG
Week 10:
March 25
Tang Politics and Economics
March 27
Ebrey doc. 17 (Women’s Virtues
and Vices); Wills chs. 4, 5, & 6
(Sima Qian, Wang Mang,
and Ban Zhao – pp. 51-99)
*Start Benn over the break
*Graduate student paper proposals due
Tang Cosmopolitanism;
Skim H ch. 6; Benn;
Art, Poetry, and the Silk Route
Ebrey docs. 28 & 31
(Dancing Horses, Pilgrim’s visit)
Everyday Life in Tang China I
Presentations 1-4
Benn; reading for analysis paper
Everyday Life in Tang China II
Presentations 5-8
Benn; reading for analysis paper
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*April 17
Daily Life Analysis papers due
The Tang-Song Transformation:
H ch. 7; Wills ch. 10 (Su Dongpo);
From Medieval to Late Imperial China
Ebrey docs. 35, 40
 Neo Confucianism
(Wang Anshi & Sima Guang; Zhu Xi)
LATE IMPERIAL CHINA IN WORLD HISTORY
Week 13:
April 22
The Song Revolution in
Shaffer, “China, Technology, and
World History
Change,” pp. 179-183; Hobson,
“Chinese Pioneers,” pp. 50-61
(On Blackboard)
April 24
Week 14:
April 29
May 1
Week 15:
May 6
*May 8
Loss of the North;
the Northern Dynasties
Discussion: Evaluating the
Song Revolution
H ch. 8; Ebrey doc. 32 (Tanguts);
Wills ch. 11 (Yue Fei)
(Discuss Shaffer & Hobson readings)
China under Mongol Rule:
The Yuan Dynasty and its Legacy
Ming founders and Early-Modern
World History: Zheng He, the
Ming voyages & their aftermath
Ming China in World History:
Discussion: How did Ming China
impact World History, and how was
Ming China in turn influenced by key
trends in early-modern World History?
*Last day to submit make-up write-ups
Second Take-Home Paper due in class
Ming popular culture & gender norms
Film clip: Raise the Red Lantern
H ch. 9; Ebrey doc. 44
(Mongol Governor)
H 369-387; 393-402; Cook,
“Zheng He and Chinese
Expansion” & Zheng He’s
Inscription to the Goddess” (BB)
H 403-414; BB:
Hobson, “The Myth of
Chinese isolationism,” pp.
61-73; Pomeranz & Topik,
“The World That Trade
Created,” xiii-xv, 3-18; 51-53
H 387-393; Ebrey docs. 53,
55, 56 (Shi Jin, Concubines,
Widows)
FINAL EXAM: The final exam will be held in our classroom from 8:00am-10:00am
on Thursday, May 15th. (Both undergraduates and graduates).
*GRADUATE STUDENTS: See additional requirements on the graduate student
supplement.
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H566 SUPPLEMENTARY ASSIGNMENTS FOR
GRADUATE STUDENTS:
All graduate students are required to complete the following additional work:
1. Play leading roles in the “Hundred Schools of Thought” debate on 2/27.
2. Complete additional graduate-level readings and discuss them during two out-ofclass meetings. The extra readings assigned are all seminal works in Chinese History,
and becoming familiar with them will help you should you decide to take your M.A.
exams in Asian History, apply to a Ph.D. program, or teach Asian or World History at the
community college level. The graduate-level readings will all be posted on Blackboard.
3. Draw on the first set of supplementary readings in addition to the readings
assigned on the regular syllabus in order to get credit for your “Hundred Schools” takehome paper. In order to ensure that you have space to bring the supplementary readings
into your paper, your “Hundred Schools” paper should be 9-10 pages in length rather
than the 7-8 pages required of undergraduates.
4. Write a graduate-level Term Paper (15 pages in length) in place of Take Home
Paper II.
- You are required to come and talk to me about your paper before submitting your
term paper proposal on Tuesday, April 8th (right after spring break). Please come see
me during office hours during Week 9 or the first half of Week 10.
- You will deliver a 10-minute oral presentation of your research findings to me and
your fellow graduate students during our 3rd out-of-class graduate student meeting in
Week 15. Your term paper is due in my office by 3:00pm on Monday, May 12th.
Course Requirements for Graduate Students:
- Attendance and Participation 15%
- Daily Life Presentation & Analysis 15%
(Includes 3 outside meetings)
- Final Exam
15%
- Map, Hot Dates, & Reading Quizzes: 10% - Term Paper and Proposal
25%
- Take-Home Paper 1
20%
*See Undergraduate syllabus for due dates and specific instructions for assignments.
SCHEDULE FOR GRADUATE-STUDENT MEETINGS:
I. Supplementary Reading for the First Take-Home Paper: Early Ideologies and
Philosophies
1. Karen Turner, “Sage Kings and Laws in the Chinese and Greek Traditions,” in Ropp,
86-111. (Blackboard)
2. Tu Wei-Ming, “The Confucian Tradition in Chinese History,” in Ropp, 112-137. (BB)
- Plan to meet during week 6 to discuss these readings.
II. REQUIRED individual meeting to discuss topic, sources, and direction for your Term
Paper: (Week 9 or first half of Week 10). Schedule a 15-minute meeting with me either
during my office hours or at another prearranged time. Come prepared with a particular
topic you hope to research, 2 questions about that topic, and at least 3 graduate-level
sources you plan to use.
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III. Supplementary Reading for Term Paper: Tang-Song Transition and China in World
History
1.Robert Hartwell, “Demographic, Political, and Social Transformations of China, 7501550,” pp. 365-442. (On Blackboard).
2. Robert Marks, The Origins of the Modern World: A Global and Ecological Narrative
(2002), chapter 2, “Starting with China,” pp. 43-66. (BB).
- Plan to meet during week 13 to discuss these readings.
IV. Oral presentation of research findings. During Week 15 we will meet in my office
and each of you will give a 10-minute oral presentation of the research you have
conducted for your term paper.
Graduate Student Term Paper Guidelines:
Topic:
Your 12-15 page term paper gives you the opportunity to select a topic related to premodern Chinese history and engage it on a graduate level. You may choose one of the
two options below for this assignment.
-Option a. Research and write a 15 page paper that analyzes what one important primary
source teaches us about a particular aspect of pre-modern Chinese society. There are
many different kinds of primary sources, such as maps, novels, poems, plays, letters,
bronzes, oracle bones, diaries, official records, religious codes, folk stories, and paintings.
You will select one primary source (or a set of short related texts – such as a set of poems
by the same person) in consultation with me, and to examine what that source tells us
about a specific facet of pre-modern Chinese history. For example, you might look at
what the famous novel Dream of the Red Chamber tells us about family life in late
imperial China, or what Marco Polo’s account tells us about trade in Yuan China, etc.
Examining how Hansen makes use of primary sources in her textbook and looking
through the wide array of primary source readings in the Ebrey sourcebook is a good way
to get started on this assignment.
-
In addition to the “text” itself, you must contextualize your primary source by
drawing on in-class lectures and readings, AND finding and drawing on a
minimum of at least 3 book-length scholarly discussions of the topic addressed in
your primary source OR 5-7 scholarly journal articles on that topic (or a
combination of books and articles).
- Option b: Alternatively, if you are interested in teaching World History on the
community college or high school level in the future, you may instead choose to write a
term paper that wrestles with cutting-edge scholarship on pre-modern China in World
History. You may analyze a particular aspect of pre-modern Chinese history from a
World History perspective, or you may examine a particular way in which pre-modern
China impacted World History (for example, how a specific Chinese invention impacted
World History during a particular era, or how China’s thirst for silver impacted earlymodern trade patterns, etc.). The Marks reading listed below (also the Hobson and
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Shaffer readings on the regular syllabus) will provide you with ideas for such a paper.
If you choose this option, you do not need to use a primary source, but you must find and
analyze a broader array of secondary sources (both scholarly books and journal articles)
on your topic than is required for option one. Perusing the Journal of World History for
China-related articles is a great place to start.
*You are required to meet with me to discuss your topic and sources BEFORE
submitting your paper proposal on April 11th. Please come by during my office hours
by or before 3/24, or make an appointment to meet at another time.
Paper proposal (5%): Your typed term paper proposal is due at the beginning of class
on Tuesday, April 8th. (You are required to meet with me to discuss your topic and
sources before submitting your proposal).
Your proposal must include the following information:
-
-
-
1. An introductory paragraph in which you identify your topic and introduce the primary
source (option a) or the key question (option b) that you will focus on.
2. Three analytical questions about your topic and source that will guide your research.
3. A list of at least 2 in-class sources (primary or secondary) that you will draw on.
4. A list (in alphabetical order according to the author’s last name) of the out-of-class
primary and secondary sources you plan to use. Give full citation information for all
sources. Look for up-to-date scholarly books and journal articles that are specific to your
topic and will help you analyze and contextualize it.
** Staple your approved proposal to the back of your term paper when you
hand in your paper. I will not read your paper unless I have accepted your
proposal on it beforehand.
Paper (20%): The completed paper is due in my office by 3:00pm on Mon., May 12th.
-
-
-
Guidelines: Your paper should be 15 pages long, double-spaced, and typed in 11 or 12
point font with with 1-inch to 1½-inch margins. It must include a formal introduction and
conclusion and a formal bibliography listing all the sources you used in your paper.
Citations: Use Chicago-style footnotes to document your sources in the paper itself. Be
sure to cite after every paragraph AND every direct quotation. Plagiarism will result in a
zero on this assignment.
Late papers will not be accepted without written documentation of a genuine emergency.
Please proofread carefully, as careless errors and errors of grammar and syntax
will adversely affect your grade.
SCHOLARLY JOURNAL ARTICLES (for options a and b):
- To find good scholarly journal articles on your topic, click on “Article Databases” on
the SDSU library website. Browse through issues of a particular journal, or search the
BAS Online (Bibliography of Asian Studies Online) and JSTOR, among other sites, for
articles on your topic.
- Good journals to consider include: Journal of World History, Journal of Asian Studies,
Harvard Journal of Asiatic Studies, Journal of East Asian Archaeology, Journal of
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Chinese Studies, Journal of the Economic and Social History of the Orient, Early China,
Early Medieval China, Journal of T’ang Studies, Journal of Song-Yuan Studies, Ming
Studies, East Asian History, T’oung Pao, European Journal of East Asian Studies,
Nan Nu: Men, Women, and Gender in Early and Imperial China, Journal of Asian Art
and Archaeology, Asian Medicine: Tradition and Modernity.
POSSIBLE PRIMARY SOURCES AND TOPICS FOR OPTION A:
Sun Tzu (Sunzi) “The Art of War” (500-400 B.C.)
-
Warfare in 500-400 B.C.
-
Military tactics
Sima Qian: “Records of the Grand Historian” (145-86 B.C.)
-
The rule of Qin Shihuang di
-
Women in the Han Dynasty
“Popular Songs and Ballads of the Han” (Anne Birrell)
-
Popular culture and common life in the Han
“Ennin’s Travels in T’ang China” or “Ennin, 794-864 – Diary”
-
Church/State relations in the late Tang
-
The persecution of Buddhism in the Tang
-
The spread of Buddhism in Tang China
Du Fu (712-770), “Du Fu : a life in poetry” – life in Tang China
Li Po (Li Bai) “The Works of Li Po, the Chinese Poet.” (701-62)
“Lu Yu: The old man who does as he pleases” (1125-1210)
-
Poetry and daily life in Song dynasty China
“All Men are Brothers” (Shui hu zhuan) Popular Ming dynasty novel
-
Outlaw society as viewed by others
Peasant rebels in Ming China
“The Secret History of the Mongols: the Life and Times of Chinggis Khan”
-
The extent of Mongol Brutality?
-
Mongol Leadership
“Chinese Art under the Mongols: the Yuan Dynasty, 1279-1368” – Sherman Lee
-
Life under the Mongols
-
Ideas of beauty in Mongol China
Marco Polo – “The Travels of Marco Polo” (1254-1323)
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-
Chinese society under Mongol rule
-
Analysis of Mongol governance
-
The economy of Yuan China
-
Trade in Yuan China
“Monkey” (Journey to the West/Xi you ji)
-
Monkey in Ming folk culture/popular culture
-
Monkey and folk religion
“Kangxi, Emperor of China” (1654-1722 – Qing)
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A model emperor?
-
Kangxi: Manchu or Han?
P’u Sung-ling (Pu Songling) – 17th cent. “Strange Stories from a Chinese Studio”
- Ghosts and Chinese folk life
- Sexuality in late imperial China
- Ghost stories and Confucian values
- Chinese romantic love
“The Story of the Stone” (Cao Xueqin – 1717-1763) (5-vol. Qing novel)
-
Family life in the Qing
-
The Matriarch in late imperial China
-
Class relations in the Qing
-
The role of women in “Dream of the Red Chamber”
-
Sexuality in Qing China
Shen Fu – “Floating Life” (1763-1808)
-
Love & Marriage in Qing China - The scholarly class in Qing China
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