EQ 4: How did ancient
Chinese society develop?
Key Terms: Patriarchal, Mandate of
Heaven, Dynastic Cycle, Confucius,
Lao-tzu, Taoism, Chin Shih Huangdi,
civil service exam
What are some things you
know about China?
A Patriarchal Society
• Since ancient times, great emphasis
placed on the family
• Elderly held power, were revered
• Controlled family possessions
• Arranged marriages
• Respect for parents was the most
important virtue in society
• Family ancestors were worshipped
Women
• Considered inferior
• 1. obey fathers, then husbands, then
sons
• 2. Usually married age 13-16, then had
to answer to mother-in-law
• 3. Footbinding practiced by wealthy
families, considered beautiful
Writing
• Complex writing system, calligraphy
• Original system had thousands of
symbols
• Barely literate=1,000 characters
• Scholar=5,000-10,000 characters
China’s First Emperor
• Chin Shi Huang-ti formed Qin, or
Chin, dynasty (where China gets its
name)
• Used harsh tactics against both
foreign invaders and internal
opposition
• Formed an autocracy, where the
ruler had unlimited power and used
it however he wanted
• Had Great Wall of China built, 1400
miles long **only man-made
structure visible from space
• Had 7,500 terra cotta soldiers
built for tomb to protect in
afterlife
Dynasties Emerge
• The descendants of Chin Shih
were eventually overthrown
• Other dynasties came to power
and ruled China
• Dynasty—a family of rulers
• In 1027 BC, the Zhou dynasty
came to power and developed
the Mandate of Heaven
• The Zhou rulers said that the
previous rulers had been so
incompetent that the gods had
taken away their power and
given it to the Zhou, who were
more capable
• Mandate of Heaven—approval
from the gods to rule
The Dynastic Cycle
• Refers to the cycle of different
families coming to power in China
• A ruling dynasty claimed to have
the Mandate of Heaven
• The dynasty’s power declines,
problems develop
• People believe ruler has lost
mandate of heaven
• Someone overthrows govt, claims to
have mandate of heaven
Philosophy—Confucianism
• After the Zhou dynasty declined,
China was full of violence and
turmoil
• Confucius, born 551 B.C. during the
decline of the Zhou rulers, started
a new philosophy
• Basic belief—Emphasized fulfilling
obligations in the Five
Relationships to restore social
harmony, order, & respect for
authority.
• Confucius was known for making wise
statements, called analects
Analects—A gentleman
• “A gentleman points out the admirable
qualities of men and does not point out
their bad qualities. A petty man does
just the opposite."
• "What the gentleman demands is something
of himself. What the petty man demands
is something of others."
Analects—Education
• "Anyone learning without thought is
lost; anyone thinking but not
learning is in peril."
Analects—Government
• "To rule a country of a thousand
chariots requires reverent
attention to business, sincerity,
economy in expenditures, and love
for men, as well as the employment
of the people only in the right
seasons."
Civil Service Exam
• Long difficult tests, those who
passed would become government
officials
• Had to rewrite long passages from
the Five Classics, books thought to
be written by Confucius
• Mandarins—class of well-educated
civil servants
Cultural Diffusion
• Han dynasty brought a golden age to
China
• Created Silk Roads—trade routes
that linked East Asia to as far as
Mesopotamia, causing cultural
diffusion
• Buddhism spread to China
• Built pagodas, (temples) and
statues of Buddha; worshipped him
as a god
Questions for Review
• In what ways could China be
considered a patriarchal society?
• What is the dynastic cycle? The
mandate of heaven?
• Who was the first emperor of China
and what are his contributions?
• How did Buddhism come to China?