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2. Varieties of Civilizations

China and its neighbors

China: Song dynasty

before Mongol takeover
China relatively stably ruled since late 7th century
1200: Song dynasty (960–1279) ruled large parts of an ancient Chinese civilization
afterwards, dynasties drew on older political/cultural traditions that outlasted even Song dynasty, remaining into 20th century
Song dynasty was golden age of arts, literature
excellent poetry, landscape painting, ceramics
scholars debated new forms of Confucian philosophy

Bureaucratic state structure

built on earlier precedents
Censorate oversees rest of the government
check on character and competence of public officials
staff took examinations (first established in Han dynasty)
more elaborate than before
aided by printing press
schools/colleges to prepare for exams
central feature for upper-class men
privileged: better able to access education
village/landowner sometimes sponsored man from commoner background
enter officialdom
bring prestige, possible concrete benefits to those who sponsored him
social mobility in otherwise hierarchical society
despite this, official positions often went to sons of privileged, even if they did not pass the exams
many who passed lower-level exams could not be accommodated
education/exam system grew more rapidly than number of official positions
could still maintain prestige and prominence locally with landowning and success in exams
6 major ministries overseen by Censorate

Economic revolution

rapid growth in population (50-60 million in 9th century to 120 million by 1200)
“by far the richest, most skilled, and most populous country on earth”
achievements in agricultural production
Champa rice
fast-ripening
drought-resistant
adopted from Vietnam
most urbanized city in world
capital Hangzhou “beyond dispute the finest and noblest [city] in the world” (Marco Polo)

Industrial production soared

metallurgy (large-scale enterprises and smaller backyard furnaces)
provided government with:
suits of armor
iron arrowheads
coins
tools
construction
bells in Buddhist monasteries
fueled by coal
metallurgy, heating homes, cooking
generated air pollution
printing inventions
woodblock
movable type
first printed books
by 1000 relatively cheap books widespread
navigational techniques
shipbuilding techniques
gunpowder
producing for market instead of local consumption
internal waterways (canals, rivers, lakes) stretched about 30,000 miles
cheap movement of goods
allow peasants to grow specialized crops
taxes paid in cash, not in kind
peasants have to sell something (products or labor)
paper money (invented by China), letters of credit, promissory notes led to commercialization of society
“Output increased, population grew, skills multiplied, and a burst of inventiveness made Song China far wealthier than ever before—or than any of its contemporaries” (scholars)

Life of women

tightening restrictions and new opportunities for women
Confucian emphasized women being subordinates to men, keep men and women separate in every part of life
“The boy leads the girl, the girl follows the boy; the duty of husbands to be resolute and wives to be docile begins with this” (Sima Guang (1019-1086), historian/scholar)
elite men: masculinity = refined pursuits
calligraphy
scholarship
painting
poetry
feminine qualities emphasize weakness, reticence, delicacy
women’s textile jobs slowly replaced
urban workshops, state factories (run by men) take over skills like weaving textiles (especially silk) that were done by rural women in homes
women continued to tend silkworms and spin silk thread but income-generating work of making fabrics now lost
foot binding
began from dancers/courtesans in 10th/11th century
tight wrapping of young girls’ feet
break bones
intense pain
general acceptance among elite both during and after Song Dynasty
“rite of passage”
source of pride
topic of poetry
new images of female beauty and eroticism
small size
frailty
deference
keep women restricted to “inner quarters” where Confucian traditions said they belonged
property rights expanded
control own dowries, inherit property from families
“neither in earlier nor in later periods did as much property pass through women’s hands” as during Song dynasty (scholar)
education of women
encouraged by lower-ranking but ambitious officials
could more effectively raise sons and increase family’s fortune

Korea

resisted Chinese political domination but adopted elements of Chinese culture and sought source of China’s wealth and power
generally maintained political independence
succession of dynasties
Unified Silla (688-900)
Koryo (918-1392)
Joseon (1392-1910)
retained distinctive culture and separate political existence
still part of Chinese world order

Relationship with/impact of China

tributary relationship with China
Korea:
regular missions to Chinese imperial court
acknowledge China’s preeminent position in East Asia
present tribute (products of value from Korea)
perform rituals of submission
China:
give visitors gifts/bestowals
reaffirm peaceful relations
allow official and personal trade
Confucianism was tried but not strongly supported in Korea
free choice marriages, women singing, dancing strongly disapproved of by Chinese

Chinese models of family life, female behavior replace Korean

especially among elite
based on Confucian concept of filial piety (respect for parents, elders, ancestors)
restrictions on elite women, especially widows, came to exceed those in China
customs that disappeared included:
women giving birth and raising children in parents’ home
funeral rites where husband was buried in sacred plot of wife’s family
remarriage of widows or divorced women
female inheritance of property

Being unique

after 688 (Unified Silla dynasty), political independence largely intact
Chinese cultural influence had little impact
exception: Buddhism
most effect on aristocracy
did not affect serf-like peasants
did not affect slaves (1/3 of population by 1100)
exam system to recruit government officials was tried but did not gain traction
aristocratic class maintained stronger monopoly on bureaucratic office than China did
mid-1400s: developing hangul (phonetic alphabet) for writing Korean
greater cultural independence
resisted by conservative male elites (used to using Chinese characters for Korean)
gradually took hold, especially in:
private correspondence
popular fiction
among women

Vietnam

resisted Chinese political domination but adopted elements of Chinese culture and sought source of China’s wealth and power
elite borrowed heavily from China
Confucianism, Daoism, Buddhism
administrative techniques
China: Song dynasty
Bureaucratic state structure
Economic revolution
Industrial production soared
Life of women
Korea
Relationship with/impact of China
Chinese models of family life, female behavior replace Korean
Being unique
Vietnam
Relationship with/impact of China
Being unique
Japan
Borrowing from China
Politics
Religion
Literary/artistic culture
Life of women
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