Chapter 22 Reading Guide: Asian Transitions in
an Age of Global Change
CHAPTER SUMMARY
East and Southeast Asian early modern trends were highly diverse. Most Asian peoples,
except in the islands of Southeast Asia, were only marginally affected by the European
arrival. India, China, and Japan were not fundamentally reshaped by the West. The
peoples of East Asia developed new political and social strengths while following a policy
of isolation in response to global trends. Vasco da Gama’s voyage to India had opened
the way to the East for Europeans, but it soon became clear that Europeans had little
to offer Asians in exchange for their desired products. Asians were not interested in
converting to Christianity. Asian states were too strong to be conquered by Europeans,
but the latter’s sea power allowed control of spice exports and regulation of some parts
of the Asian trading network. The Europeans participated in the existing economic and
political system, rather than attempting to capture it.
1. Use the map below and your textbook or online resource to identify the following
places:
A. Portugal
H. Calicut
B. India
I. East Indies (known today
C. Japan
as “Indonesia”)
D. Africa
J. Pacific Ocean
E. Cape of Good Hope
K. China
F. Indian Ocean
L. South China Sea
G. Arabian Sea
M. Draw the Equator
2. Why were East Africans hostile to da Gama when he first encountered them?
3. What did da Gama have that Indian merchants were happy to take?
4. Why did the Portuguese resort to a military solution to break into the Indian Ocean trading
system?
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Chapter 22 Reading Guide: Asian Transitions in an Age
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5. Why did European countries, especially the Netherlands, have a great deal of influence on the
East Indies but less on mainland India and China?
THE ASIAN TRADING WORLD AND THE COMING OF THE EUROPEANS..
6. Use the map in the chapter to answer the following questions:
A. What two products do Africa and Southeastern Europe/Southwestern Asia have in
common?
B. Why does it make sense that China’s main exports were paper, porcelain, and silk?
C. What export of Japan is shared by the Latin America?
D. Other than forest products, what is the primary export of the East Indies region,
including Ceylon?
E. Look at the maroon arrows pointing at each other on the key. If a country were to
control some or all of those areas on the map, what could it do?
7. Why did a light bulb go off in the head of the Portuguese when they realized there was no
central control or military force regulating/safeguarding trade in the Indian Ocean?
TRADING EMPIRE: THE PORTUGUESE RESPONSE TO THE ENCOUNTER AT CALICUT.
8. Describe the theory of mercantilism.
9. How did mercantilism lead the Portuguese to use military force in the Indian Ocean region?
10. Europe was technologically backwards compared to most of the Asian powers. However, in
two key areas it had surpassed most Asians except the Chinese. Identify those two areas.
11. Why did the Portuguese take Ormuz and Malacca? (see the map on p. 485 and look back at
question 6. E. above.)
PORTUGUESE VULNERABILITY AND THE RISE OF THE DUTCH AND ENGLISH TRADING
EMPIRES.
12. Who replaced the Portuguese in the East Indies?
13. Describe the tactics the Dutch used to control the spice trade?
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Chapter 22 Reading Guide: Asian Transitions in an Age
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14. Eventually the Dutch and English began to trade peacefully in Asia. Describe how the Dutch
made money without using brute force.
15. The English were not as involved in the spice trade as the Dutch. What did the English focus
on?
VISUALIZING THE PAST: INTRUDERS: THE PATTERN OF EARLY EUROPEAN EXPANSION INTO
ASIA
16. Examine the location of the imperial capitals (i.e., European) on the map. Where do you see
most of them?
17. Why are there none in China?
GOING ASHORE: EUROPEAN TRIBUTE SYSTEMS IN ASIA.
18. Why could the Europeans not conquer the inland areas of China, India, or Perisa?
19. Japan is an island roughly the same size as some of the islands in the East Indies yet it was
not dominated by European powers. Why? Keep in mind that Java, one of the East Indies
islands, is the most populous island in the world, ahead of Japan, so numbers do NOT
explain this. (hint: look up the word “martial”, therein lies a clue)
20. What crop became very important to the island of Java?
21. What part of Southeast Asia did Spain focus its attention on?
22. Describe the tribute system:
SPREADING THE FAITH: THE MISSIONARY ENTERPRISE IN SOUTH AND SOUTHEAST ASIA.
23. How did the Dutch and English differ from the Portuguese and Spanish in their relations with
the peoples of Southeast Asia? What might explain this?
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Chapter 22 Reading Guide: Asian Transitions in an Age
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24. How did the Hindu caste system run counter to basic fundamentals of Christianity and block
efforts by Europeans to convert high-caste Indians?
25. What part of Asia was considered the greatest success for Christian missionaries and why
was it easier to convert?
MING CHINA: A GLOBAL MISSION REFUSED.
26. Who overthrew the Mongols and established the Ming dynasty? What was unusual about his
background?
27. What was his first priority as emperor?
ANOTHER SCHOLAR-GENTRY REVIVAL.
28. Why would the new emperor, who was poorly educated, give the power back to the scholargentry that they had lost under Mongol domination?
29. Why would young Chinese men put themselves through the ordeal of taking the civil service
exams given the slim chance of passing?
REFORM: HONGWU’S EFFORTS TO ROOT OUT ABUSES IN COURT POLITICS.
30. What did Hongwu do to promote scrupulous behavior among the scholar-gentry?
A RETURN TO SCHOLAR-GENTRY SOCIAL DOMINANCE.
31. What reform by Hongwu to improve the lives of the peasantry was the most effective?
32. In this section we learn another reason why young Chinese men would compete for the few
positions available in the bureaucracy. What is it and who do you think pressured these
young men to study for the exam?
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Chapter 22 Reading Guide: Asian Transitions in an Age
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33. Identify the bias/point of view in Chinese stories and illustrations during this period. Who do
you think was producing these stories and paintings?
34. We already know that China was losing technological ground to the European powers during
the Early Modern period. What do you see in this section that indicates neo-Confucianism
was a factor in this failure to stay ahead intellectually?
35. This is a depressing section regarding women. Other than entertainers, women played mainly
two roles in Chinese society. What were they and who did they serve?
DOCUMENT: EXAM QUESTIONS AS A MIRROR OF CHINESE VALUES
36. Examine questions 1-3. What do they all have in common OTHER than focusing on men?
37. What does question 1 tell us about Chinese society and family relationships?
AN AGE OF GROWTH: AGRICULTURE, POPULATION, COMMERCE, AND THE ARTS.
38. How did the Columbian Exchange affect the southern China region?
39. Identify the only two places in China where foreign merchants were allowed to trade.
40. Why do you think China restricted foreigners to only those two ports?
41. In what artistic area did China make the greatest innovations during this time?
42. What invention served as a catalyst for the development of the art form noted above?
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Chapter 22 Reading Guide: Asian Transitions in an Age
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AN AGE OF EXPANSION: THE ZHENGHE EXPEDITIONS.
43. Identify the Chinese admiral who led 7 expeditions to lands beyond China.
44. Given the comparison of Chinese naval power to European naval power, why is it surprising
that the Americas were left for European nations to discover and exploit?
IN DEPTH: MEANS AND MOTIVE IN OVERSEAS EXPANSION: EUROPE AND CHINA COMPARED.
45. Use the following symbols to compare China and Europe during the Early Modern period on
the factors below:
A. > greater than
B. < less than
C. ≈ roughly equal
China
Symbol
Europe
population
population
competitive environment
competitive environment
size of armies
size of armies
quality of soldiers
quality of soldiers
agricultural productivity
agricultural productivity
technological innovations
technological innovations
ability to explore overseas
ability to explore overseas
motivation to explore overseas
motivation to explore overseas
46. Why did Chinese merchants see long distance trade as a waste of time for themselves?
47. What did the scholar-gentry want to focus on rather than overseas exploration and trade?
CHINESE RETREAT AND THE ARRIVAL OF THE EUROPEANS.
48. What was the strategy of the Jesuits to convert Asians in India, China, & Japan?
49. How did the Franciscans and Dominicans differ in their conversion strategies from the
Jesuits?
50. Identify two Jesuit scholars who spent time in China.
51. What did they spend their time doing and why does this seem strange?
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Chapter 22 Reading Guide: Asian Transitions in an Age
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52. How did their focus backfire?
MING DECLINE AND THE CHINESE PREDICAMENT.
53. Identify the group in China you feel suffered the most as the Ming dynasty began to lose
control and support your opinion with evidence.
FENDING OFF THE WEST: JAPAN’S REUNIFICATION AND THE FIRST CHALLENGE.
54. How did Europeans play a role in Japan’s early reunification?
55. List the three military leaders, in order, who restored Japanese unity.
56. What did Hideyoshi try to do regarding Korea (and that Japan will try again during WWII)?
DEALING WITH THE EUROPEAN CHALLENGE.
57. Why did the Tokugawa shogunate, following Nobunaga, turn against Christianity?
JAPAN’S SELF-IMPOSED ISOLATION.
58. What happened to Christians, European or Japanese, after Tokugawa Ieyasu came to power?
59. Why did Ieyasu isolate Japan?
60. What Chinese philosophy played a role in Japan’s isolation?
61. Despite its isolation, how did Japan use the one port foreigners could trade in, Deshima, that
contrasted with China?
GLOBAL CONNECTIONS: AN AGE OF EURASIAN CLOSURE.
62. Identify 5 changes that resulted from European activity in Asia during the Early Modern
period.
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Chapter 22 Reading Guide: Asian Transitions in an Age
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