Ancient Chinese Civilization and the First Three Dynasties

1. Traditional China
Family-Centered and the Four Early Dynasties

2. Objectives:
To enumerate the different contributions and signifcant
features of the four early dynasties of China;
To compare and contrast the civilization and culture of
China to India
To emulate Chinese values like fairness, piety and
discipline
To express verbally their appreciation on the role of
the family in the formaton of Chinese Civilization

3. Enduring Understanding
One s reflection or failure in life were as much
reflection upon the family as they were upon the
individual.

5. Review
Indus Valley Civilization

6. Review
Indus Valley Civilization

7. Aryan conquest

8. India

9. China

10. One of the oldest civilization

11. Chinese civilization and culture

12. What chinese culture and contributions portrayed in the
opening ceremony in beijing olympics 2008?

13. Chinese River valley civilization

14. What sustained the civilization?

15. A piece of thread in the mother s hand
Up and down the son s clothes it ran
One stitch follows another
By a mother concerned;
Waiting for her son s early return.
How can his heart feeble as a straw,
Return the sunny warmth of his mother
at all

16. Family-Centered society
Ancestor Worship
Filial Piety

17. Chinese family
Each person was, first of all, a member of a family. One s
successes or failures in life were as much reflection upon
the family as they were upon the individual.
CONCEPT OF FACE

18. Traditional Roles in the family
Age brought prestige and wisdom
The oldest male ruled with unquestioned authority

19. Famiy
Government
Father
Leader
Son
Constituents
Where did the power come from?

20. Mandate of Heaven

21. Mandate of Heaven
Is a contract
The descendants of the
ruler would inherit the authority
The mandate ended when
emperor no longer
discharged his duties

22. Mandate of Heaven
The descendants of the
ruler would inherit the authority
Is a contract
The mandate ended when
emperor no longer
discharged his duties

23. Mandate of Heaven
Is a contract
The descendants of the
ruler would inherit the authority
Dynasty
The mandate ended when
emperor no longer
discharged his duties

24. Mandate of Heaven
Is a contract
The mandate ended when
emperor no longer
discharged his duties
The descendants of the
ruler would inherit the authority

27. ( Sha )
Xia Dynasty
Mythical Dynasty
The Xia Dynasty was in oral histories,
but no archaeological evidence was found of it
until 1959.

28. Mythical Dynasty No More...
1959

29. Xia Dynasty

30. Xia Dynasty
The Xia were agrarian (farming)
people, with bronze
weapons and pottery.
The ruling families used elaborate
and dramatic rituals to confirm their
power to govern.

31. Xia Dynasty
shamans
(spiritual leaders and communicators with deities)

32. Shang Dynasty
Considered by many historians as the first dynasty of
China

33. Oracle Bones
They are the first group of
people from China of which
written records are found.

34. Shang Dynasty
The Shang worshipped the "Shang Ti."
Sacrifice to the gods and the ancestors was
also a major part of the Shang religion.
When a king died, hundreds of slaves and
prisoners were often sacrificed and buried with
him.
People were also sacrificed in lower numbers when
important events, such as the founding of a palace or
temple

35. Chou ( Joe ) Dynasty
The Chou began as a semi-nomadic tribe that
lived to the west of the Shang kingdom.
Due to their nomadic ways, they learned how to
work with people of different cultures.
After a time, they settled in the Wei River valley, where
they became vassals (servants who owe and pay
tributes) of the Shang.

36. The Chou (Zhou) eventually
became stronger than the Shang,
and in about 1040 B.C.E. they
defeated the Shang in warfare.

38. 1. The Chou began a different form of governing, which
was basically feudal
( meaning few people owned lots of land and controlled
the vast majority of people living and working on it. )
2. The landowners were under control of the king.
Descent became patriarchal (the father as the authority),
3. The Chou also brought their religion with them. They
banned human sacrifice.
4. They practiced the cult of Heaven.
5. The worship of sun and stars was the most important
thing.

39. Cult
of
heaven

40. change in governing style
the Chou Dynasty ruled vast lands in China and they
need to delegate authority to friends and relatives.
Provide army to the leader

41. threat to central rule
Local lords could withhold tax money and build strong
military forces, weakening the power of the ruler

42. Solution
Ruler demanded that the local lords pay tribute gifts to
show their loyalty.
Lords should stay in the capital for certain period of
time

43. Threat from the nomadic tribes
from the north
Always on the lookout for better grassland for their
herds, they periodically tried to invade China.

44. Northern Invaders
1 advantage

46. Great wall of china

47. scholars rise to power
Chou moved east and the lost most of their power
New group called SCHOLARS arose to fill the void
power : capacity to read and write

48. k ung fu-tzu
Latinized name: CONFUCIUS

49. CONFUCIUS
Was not a religious leader
Because his writings do not try to answer
questions about god or life after death

50. his basic tenet
Individual had an obligations to family and
society

51. Enduring Understanding
One s reflection or failure in life were as much
reflection upon the family as they were upon the
individual.

54. social and political conditions
during confucius time
Lawlessness and political uncertainty were contributing
to the breakdown of the family and society.
People no longer follow their fixed role in
society or in their family

55. answer
! According to Confucius- to return to an
earlier time, when society rested with
males and elders and proper rules of
conduct governed the relationships
between people.
The need to bring back Law and Order

56. 5 primary social relationships
! Ruler and Subject
! Father and Son
! Husband and Wife
! Elder and Younger Brothers
! Friend and Friend
Objective:
The need to bring back Law and Order

57. 5 primary social relationships
Superior
Subordinate
Ruler and Subject
!
For Confucius:
Father and Son
Superior s Obligation: is to set a
!
! Husband and Wife
good moral example for the subordinate
! Elder and Younger Brothers
to follow so that someday, he
! Friend and Friend
will be able to lead well too.
The need to bring back Law and Order

58. morality in the government
! Leaders should set a good example for the subjects;
! If a ruler is upright, all will go well without disorder.
! Introducing moral merit as a quality for leadership

59. Moral merit
is LEARNED and not
INHERITED
It made ability rather than wealth or birth the
quality that could move people up or down the social
ladder.

60. Who is Lao-Tzu ?

61. Lao-Tzu
Opposite to Confucius
Confucius
Lao-Tzu
Credit society for
Blamed society
shaping
for restricting the
the individuals
individual freedom

62. tao te ching
Way of Life
Lao-Tzu wrote that individual originally lived in harmony
in nature, free of rules and regulations and untroubled
knowledge.
The purpose of life was to regain that natural
harmony by discovering the Tao (Dow) or the
Way of the universe.

63. Tao
Is a natural force that is sensed or felt rather than
learned from the words of a teacher
Many Taoist became hermits and lived i the mountain
and forests, seeking harmony with nature.

64. But confucius disagreed with
taoism
It is man that can make the way great, not the way
that can make the man great.

65. legalism
3rd school of thought
Han Fei-Tzu
Principal thinker

66. Philosophy:
1. Strengthen the Government
2. Less importance-welfare of the people.
3. Those who are helpful to the state will be
rewarded;
4. Those who opposed should be punished
or eliminated