Historical Periods
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Ancient Sage Kings (Yao/Shun/Yu)—
Abdication based on virtue and merit; rule by
virtue;
Xia to Qing Dynasty (2070 BCE to 1911
AD)—Dynastic system, hereditary
succession;
Xia/Shang/Zhou—Political structure is loose;
Qin to Qing—Chinese empire: Tighter
political structure, strong sense of unification;
Modern China
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1911 to 1949—National Party in the mainland;
1949 to the present—Communist Party rule in the
mainland after the National Party lost the Civil War
(1945-1949);
1949 to the present—Taiwan’s shift from one party
system to the two-party system (National Party and
Progressive Party);
Status of Hong Kong—China lost Hong Kong to the
British as a result of the First Opium War (18391842); Hong Kong was returned to China in 1997.
Zhou Dynasty
about 800 years
The Zhou dynasty
1046 BC–256 BC
Western Zhou
1046-770 B.C.
Eastern Zhou
Spring & Autumn
771-403 B.C
Eastern Zhou
403-256 B.C.
Warring States
403-221 B.C.
武王伐纣
King Wu of Zhou Attacked/Punished
King Zhou of Shang
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King Wǔ of Zhōu (Chinese: 周武王; pinyin:
zhōu wǔ wáng) or King Wu of Chou was the
first sovereign, or ruler of the Chinese Zhōu
Dynasty. The dates of his reign are 10461043 BCE or 1049/45-1043 (Cambridge
History of Ancient China).
讨伐【tǎofá】 send a punitive expedition
against (associated with justice,口诛笔伐
【kǒuzhūbǐfá】 condemn both in speech and
in writing.)
Battle of Muye
Victor Huang Wei-de as King Wu
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The Battle of Muye
(or Mu) (牧野之戰)
was fought in China
perhaps 1046 BC.
The battle led to the
end of the Shang
dynasty, and the
beginning of the
Zhou dynasty.
Mandate of Heaven
天命【tiānmìng】 God's will; the
mandate of heaven; destiny; fate.
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In order to counter the Shang's claims to divine right
of rule due to their descent from the god Ti, the Duke
of Zhou formulated the doctrine of the Mandate of
Heaven. According to this doctrine, the Shang had
grossly offended Heaven: thus Heaven had
commanded the reluctant Zhou to replace them and
restore order.
Consult Ebrey’s East Asia 16-17;
The Announcement of Shao—read in class
http://ctext.org/shang-shu/zhou-shu
Divine right of kings
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君权神授【jūnquánshénshòu】 moꞌnarchical power
granted by heaven; divine power
The divine right of kings, or divine-right theory of
kingship, is a political and religious doctrine of royal
and political legitimacy. It asserts that a monarch is
subject to no earthly authority, deriving his right to
rule directly from the will of God.
Sir Robert Filmer (1588 – 26 May 1653) vs.
John Locke: "all men are created equal", in the
Declaration of Independence, was borrowed from
Locke.
the system of enfeoffment
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分封制【fēnfēngzhì】 the system of
enfeoffment (of the Western Zhou
Dynasty, c.11th. century-771 B.C.,
investing the nobility with hereditary
titles, territories and slaves).
Enfeoffment
in the Zhou Dynasty
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井田制【jǐngtiánzhì】
the 'nine squares'
system with one large
square divided into 9
small ones (like the
Chinese character 井
jǐng), the 8 outer ones
being allocated to serfs
who had to cultivate the
central one for the serf
owner.
Principles on Enfeoffment
House of Zhou and its vassals 诸侯
King vs. Duke (page 16)
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1. who shared the same family name
(嫡系【díxì】 direct line of descent; one's own
clique;
庶出【shùchū】 <old> of or by the concubine (as
distinguished from the legal wife);
2. founding generals;
3. descendants of the ancient kings
The system of enfeoffment was one of the major
measures adopted by the Western Zhou dynasty to
consolidate its power.
The Book of Songs or Shijing
Classic of Poetry 诗经
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305 poems in the final version;
Collected from different states in the North
Content:
Airs/Feng 風, Odes/Ya 雅, Hymns/Song 頌
Style:
Fu 赋 Expositio Exposition; to lay something bare
and plain by description.
Comparatio/Comparison (比 bi)/analogy
Xing 兴 is called Exhor’tatio, Latin, a‘ffective 抒发感
情的 images to express emotions or feelings
King You of Zhou
周幽王 r. 781 to 771 BCE.
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烽火台【fēnghuǒ】
beacon tower on the
Great Wall for the
military purpose;
The Wolf is
coming…
褒姒 baosi, his
concubine