Chapter 5 Early Society in Mainland East Asia pages 90-108
What is a civilization and what are defining characteristics of a civilization? How did the civilization of your chapter develop and grow more complex before 600 BCE? What were the effects of this increasing complexity? Civilization means a human society with a high-level of cultural and technological development. Characteristics of civilizations consist of large populations, art and architecture, written languages, territories, labor, and social classes. The effects of the increasing complexity are bronze metallurgy, development of specialized labor, merchants and trade, and Chinese writing. This allowed for better tools and weapons, diverse jobs, Chinese literature, government, social hierarchy, and trade with different civilizations.
Where did the early civilizations of your chapter develop and why did they develop in those locations? Civilizations in China were developed throughout the yellow river. The people made it possible to cultivate rice, and millet.
What is a state? Who ruled the early states of your assigned chapter? Which segments of society usually supported the ruler? A state is a territory as a political community under the same government. Xia and Shang dynasties ruled the yellow river valley. Zhou dynasty dwelled in the Wei River valley then moved east Luoyang in the yellow river valley. They tried to establish themselves as leaders of a new political order. Zhou dynasty wasn't supported because their last century was know as the period of warring states.
Was your state able to expand and conquer neighboring states? Why or why not? China did not conquer neighboring states. They expanded because of Chinese influence to the north south and the west.
What role did pastoral civilizations play in regards to building empires in your assigned People began to ride on chapter? domesticated horses. This allowed horseback riding and the domestication of other animals. By learning the techniques of bronze metallurgy they introduced heavy wagons.
How did culture play a role in unifying populations in your chapter? The Zhou theory of politics rested on the assumption that earthly events were closely related to heavenly affairs. More specifically, heavenly powers granted the right to govern-the Mandate of Heaven -to an especially deserving individual known as The Son of Heaven. The ruler then served as a link between heaven and earth. He had the duty to govern concienciously, observe high standards of honor and justice, and maintain order and harmony within his realm. A long as he did so, the heavenly powers would approve of his work, the cosmos would enjoy a harmonious and well balanced stability, and the ruling dynasty would retain to mandate its govern. If a ruler failed however, chaos and suffering would afflict his realm. Basically, if people saw any triggering signs of a failing ruler, they rebelled and the government would fail.
What architectural forms did your early civilization produce? Terrace Farming was a Chinese technique used by cultivators to farm on side of a hill which allowed water to flow down the hill and nourish crops and rice paddies instead of flooding in a plain and destroying everything.
Which social class encouraged the development of art in your ancient civilization? Excavations near the neolithic village Banpo unearthed a large quantity of fine painted pottery and tools made of bone. as shown in the Banpo Neolithic Village Museum
What form of writing developed in your ancient civilization? -Oracle bones offered the earliest glimpse into Chinese tradition. The earliest form of Chinese writing, like the Sumerian and Egyptian writing, was the pictograph a conventional or stylized representation of an object to represent abstract or complex notions. The written language often combined various pictograph into ideograph.
What was the relationship between literature and culture in your ancient civilization? 10. They believed in the concept of karma, their writing was based on a combination of small pictures, called "pictographs," learned written lessons from "oracle bones" which were animal bones with scripture on them, wrote Book of changes, a manual instructing diviners in the art of foretelling the future, and the Book of songs, which is the most notable of the classic works. It s a collection of verses on both light and serious themes, consisting of 311 poems which reflected conditions of early Zhou dynasty, had political implications, recorded deeds of heroic figures and sage-kings also about daily life of Chinese people. They also created furniture and scupltures from metal.
What pre-600 BCE religions strongly influenced later eras? They believed in karma, the idea that you will be rewarded for doing good things, and will be punished if you do otherwise. They also believed in being close as a family and forming good relationships with those they loved. They buried the bodies of the deceased because they believed that by doing so, they would be granted access to heaven, an afterlife where all is good.
What trade routes and outside peoples did your early civilization utilize? They utilized slave labor and the concept of a "peasant" class that did most of the work, much like servants. They used the silk road and other international highways for trade.
How did social and gender identities develop pre-600 BCE in your early civilization? Men held the most power, but women were respected since it was by virtue of women/birth that granted access into the royal family, so women were still respected, men typically served in the government and did "dirty work" (smithing, butchering) while women did the sewing and took care of the house. Women were shown perfectly capable of doing a man's job, like when Fu Hao supervised her state and carried on sacrificial ceremonies and military campaigns.
Cassandra Semaan Joshua Ong Nich Rosen Miss Kononchuk, Period 5 AP World History