-
Looking Back, Looking AheadIn Section 1, you learned about
the Chinese government under theZhou dynasty. This section
describeswhat life was like during the Zhoudynasty.
Focusing on the • Chinese society had three main
social classes: landowning aristocrats,farmers, and merchants.
(page 285)
• Three Chinese philosophies—Confucianism, Daoism,
andLegalism—grew out of a need for order. (page 287)
Meeting PeopleConfucius (kuhn•FYOO•shuhs)Laozi
(LOWD•ZOO)Hanfeizi (HAN• fay•DZOO)
Content Vocabularysocial class
filial piety(FIH• lee•uhl PY•uh•tee)
Confucianism(kuhn•FYOO•shuh•NIH•zuhm)
Daoism (DOW• IH•zuhm)Legalism (LEE•guh•LIH•zuhm)
Academic Vocabularyconvince (kuhn•VIHNS)promote (pruh•MOHT)
Reading StrategyOrganizing Information Create apyramid diagram
like the one belowshowing the social classes in ancientChina from
most powerful (top) toleast powerful (bottom).
Life inAncient China
HistorySocial ScienceStandardsWH6.6 Studentsanalyze the
geographic,political, economic,religious, and socialstructures of
the earlycivilizations of China.
551 B.C.Confucius is born
c. 300 B.C.Laozi’s ideas of Daoismbecome popular
c. 200 B.C.Hanfeizi develops Legalism
600 B.C. 400 B.C. 200 B.C.600 B.C. 400 B.C. 200 B.C.
284 CHAPTER 5 • Early China(l)Robert Frerck/Odyssey Productions,
(c)ChinaStock, (r)Dennis Cox
-
WH6.6 Students analyze the geographic, political, economic,
religious, and social structures of the early civilizations of
China.
Peasants planted and cultivatedrice plants in large flooded
fields.
Villagers built walls that surrounded and protected the
town.
Since horses were more valuable as war animals, farmers used
oxen and water buffalo to pull
plows and carts.
Foot-pedaled hammers were used to remove grain and
rice from their stalks.
Life in Ancient ChinaChinese society had three main social
classes: landowning aristocrats, farmers, and merchants.Reading
Connection Have you heard the terms highsociety and working class?
They describe social classesin America. Read on to find out about
social classes inearly China.
A social class includes individuals whoshare a similar position
in society. EarlyChinese society had three main social classes:
• landowning aristocrats• peasant farmers• merchants
Classes in Chinese Society China’s aristo-cratic families owned
large estates in early
China. They lived in large houses with tileroofs, courtyards,
and gardens. Fine furni-ture and silk hangings filled their rooms,
andtheir houses were surrounded by walls tokeep out bandits.
The aristocratic families did not ownlarge estates for long.
Each aristocrat dividedhis land among his sons. As a result, sons
andgrandsons owned much less property thantheir fathers and
grandfathers had owned.
Aristocrats relied on farmers to grow thecrops that made them
rich. About nine out often Chinese were farmers. They lived in
sim-ple houses inside village walls. The aristo-crats owned the
fields outside the villagewalls. In these fields, farmers in
northernChina grew wheat and a grain called millet.In the south,
where the climate was warmerand wetter, they were able to grow
rice.
Chinese VillageChinese VillageChinese farmers lived in small
villages made up of several families. They farmed fields outside
the village walls.How did farmers pay for the use of the land they
farmed?
-
Chinese Farming Farmers in ancient Chinahad to find ways to grow
enough food to feed their large population. It was often difficult
because of the dry,mountainous land.
Over centuries, farmers learned to cutterraces—flat areas, like
a series of deepsteps—into the mountain slopes. Terracesmade more
land available for farming andkept the soil from eroding, or
wearingaway. Early farmers also used the terracesas a way to
irrigate their crops. As rain fell,it flowed down from one terrace
to the
To pay for the use of the land, the farmersgave part of their
crop to the landowners.
Most farmers also owned a small piece ofland where they grew
food for their family. A typical family ate fish, turnips,
beans,wheat or rice, and millet. The farmers had topay taxes and
work one month each yearbuilding roads and helping on other big
gov-ernment projects. In wartime, the farmersalso served as
soldiers.
In Chinese society, farmers ranked abovemerchants. The merchant
social classincluded shopkeepers, traders, and bankers.The
merchants lived in towns and providedgoods and services to the
landowners.
Many merchants became quite rich, butlandowners and farmers
still looked downon them. Chinese leaders believed that gov-ernment
officials should not be concernedwith money. As a result, merchants
were notallowed to have government jobs.
What Was Life Like in a Chinese Family?The family was the basic
building block ofChinese society. Because farming in ancientChina
required many workers, people hadbig families to help them produce
more andbecome wealthier. Even the young childrenof a family worked
in the fields. Older sonsraised their own crops and provided
foodfor their parents. Chinese families also tookcare of people in
need—the aged, theyoung, and the sick.
Chinese families practiced filial piety(FIH • lee • uhl PY • uh
• tee). This meant thatchildren had to respect their parents
andolder relatives. Family members placed theneeds and desires of
the head of the familybefore their own. The head of the familywas
the oldest male, usually the father.However, a son could take on
this role, andthen even his mother had to obey him.
286
Terrace farming in China
Lawrence Manning/CORBIS
-
WH6.6.3 Know about the life of Confucius and the fundamental
teachings of Confucianism and Daoism.WH6.6.4 Identify the political
and cultural problems prevalent in the time of Confucius and how he
sought to solve them.
Connecting to the Past1. How did farmers in ancient China
increase the amount of
productive farmland?
2. What three farming methods helped farmers in ancientChina
grow more food?
next, watering the crops. This method of farming,called terrace
farming, is still used in China today.
Farmers in ancient China were the first to useinsects to protect
their crops from damage by otherinsects. As early as A.D. 304,
Chinese farmers usedants to prevent other insects from damaging
theircitrus fruit trees. They also used frogs and birds forpest
control.
Head of a shovel
The ancient Chinese used bronze andiron tools like these to farm
their land and harvest crops.
Plow blade
Men and women had very differentroles in early China. Men were
respectedbecause they grew the crops. They went toschool, ran the
government, and foughtwars. The Chinese considered these jobsmore
important than the work that women did.
Chinese women could not hold govern-ment posts. However, women
in the royalcourt could influence government deci-sions. Wives of
rulers or women in the royalfamily often convinced men in power to
seethings their way. Although their role waslimited, women also had
an importantinfluence in the home. Most women raisedchildren and
saw to their education. Manywomen also managed the family
finances.
Explain Why did theamount of land owned by each
aristocratdecrease over time?
287
Chinese ThinkersThree Chinese philosophies—Confucianism,
Daoism, and Legalism—grew out of a need for order.
Reading Connection If people around you werearguing and
fighting, what would you do? Read to learnabout early Chinese ideas
for restoring order.
As the Zhou kingdom weakened in the500s B.C., violence became
common. Duringthe Period of the Warring States, rulers sentarmies
to destroy enemy states. Whole vil-lages of men, women, and
children werebeheaded. Many Chinese began looking forways to
restore order to society.
Between 500 B.C. and 200 B.C., Chinesethinkers developed three
major theoriesabout how to create a peaceful society.These theories
are called Confucianism,Daoism, and Legalism.
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288 CHAPTER 5 • Early China
Who Was Confucius? Confucius (kuhn •FYOO • shuhs) was ancient
China’s first greatthinker and teacher. He wanted to end
theproblems in China and bring peace to society.
Confucius believed that people neededto have a sense of duty.
Duty meant that aperson must put the needs of family andcommunity
before his or her own needs.Each person owed a duty to another
per-son. Parents owed their children love, andchildren owed their
parents honor.Husbands owed their wives support, and
EnglishNumber
ChineseNumber
Examples:
0
1
3
2
4
5
6
EnglishNumber
ChineseNumber
7
9
100
10,000
8
10
1,000
(2 10)
(2 100)
(3 1,000)
[(4 100) (5 10) (6)]
Chinese Numbering SystemChinese Numbering System
The Chinese system of numbering is basedon units of 10. It uses
characters torepresent 0 through 9 and the powers of 10 (10, 100,
1,000, and so forth).1. How would you write the number 328
using the Chinese numbering system? 2. Analyze What is the
English number for
?
wives owed their husbands obedience.Above all, rulers had to set
good examples.If a king ruled for the common good, hissubjects
would respect him and societywould prosper.
Confucius believed that if each persondid his or her duty,
society as a wholewould do well. He also urged people to begood and
to seek knowledge:
There are those who act withoutknowing; I will have none of
this.To hear a lot, choose the good, and follow it, to see a lot
and learn to recognize it: this is next to knowledge.
—Confucius, Analects
To Confucius, the best way to behavewas similar to an idea known
as the GoldenRule: “Do unto others as you would haveothers do unto
you.” Confucius urged peo-ple to “measure the feelings of others
byone’s own,” for “within the four seas allmen are brothers.”
Confucius traveled through China tryingto persuade government
leaders to followhis ideas. Confucianism (kuhn • FYOO • shuh •NIH •
zuhm) taught that all men with a talentfor governing should take
part in govern-ment. Of course, this idea was not popularwith
aristocrats, and few leaders listened.
Over time, Confucius won many follow-ers who honored him as a
great teacher.They wrote down his sayings and carriedhis message.
After Confucius died in 479 B.C.,his sayings spread throughout
China.
Abacuses were used bythe Chinese to solve mathproblems. These
ancient cal-culators held stones on
wooden pegs. The stones would be moved up anddown to add,
subtract, multiply, and divide.
Chen Yixin/ChinaStock
-
CONFUCIUS551–479 B.C.Historians believe that the great thinker
and
teacher Confucius was born in the small state of Luand named
Kong Qui. His parents were poor,although his family had probably
been wealthy atone time. One record says that Confucius was
onlythree years old when his father died. His mothermay have also
died when he was young, becauseanother record describes Confucius
as an orphan.
Even as a teenager, Confucius was a talentedscholar with strong,
fixed beliefs. He devotedhimself to learning and mastered
literature,history, music, and arithmetic. He served as
anapprentice to a bookkeeper and a stable managerbut really wanted
to obtain a governmentposition. When he was 19, Confucius married
andsoon had a son and a daughter.
Confucius lived in a time when many peopleno longer held to
traditional values and thegovernment was struggling. Because he
wasconcerned about these problems, Confucius took agovernment job
to help improve society. Hetaught that the most important thing was
forpeople to do their duty. In addition, he taught thatpeople
should honor their promises to others, useeducation to improve
themselves, avoid extremeactions or feelings, and avoid bad
people.Confucius also wanted everyone to return to thebeliefs and
rituals of their ancestors.
Government officials in Lu were not interested inhis ideas, so
at age 30 Confucius left politics and begana teaching career. He
devoted the rest of his lifeto improving society through learning
andteaching. Confucius did not write down any ofhis ideas, but his
followers put together a bookof his sayings called the Lun Yü
(Analects).
289
Confucius
“What you do not wantdone to yourself, do notdo to others.”
—Confucius
Give an example of how the above quotationfrom Confucius might
help society today.
WH6.6.3 Know about the life of Confuciusand the fundamental
teachings ofConfucianism and Taoism.
WH6.6.4 Identify the political and culturalproblems prevalent in
the time of Confuciusand how he sought to solve them.
Vanni/Art Resource, NY
-
290 CHAPTER 5 • Early China
What Is Daoism? Daoism (DOW • IH • zuhm)is another Chinese
philosophy that promotes a peaceful society. Daoism (alsocalled
Taoism) is based on the teachings of Laozi (LOWD • ZOO). Laozi, or
the OldMaster, lived around the same time asConfucius. Scholars do
not know if Laoziwas a real person. However, the ideas credited to
him became popular between500 B.C. and 300 B.C.
The ideas of Daoism are written in DaoDe Jing (The Way of the
Dao). LikeConfucianism, Daoism tells people how tobehave. Daoists
believed that peopleshould give up worldly desires. Theyshould turn
to nature and the Dao—the
Founder
Confucianism
Confucius
Many Chinese today accept his idea of duty to family. His ideas
helped open up government jobs to people with talent.
Daoism
Main Ideas
Influence on Modern Life
People should put the needs of their family and community
first.
Laozi
Daoism teaches the importance of nature and encourages people to
treat nature with respect and reverence.
People should give up worldly desires in favor of nature and the
Dao.
Society needs a system of harsh laws and strict punishment.
Legalism
Hanfeizi
Legalists developed laws that became an important part of
Chinese history.
Chinese PhilosophersChinese Philosophers
Some legends state that Laozi rode his waterbuffalo westward
into a great desert anddisappeared after writing Dao De Jing. When
did the ideas of Daoism become popular?
Three philosophies developed in early China.1. Which philosophy
encourages followers to
concentrate on duty and humanity? 2. Conclude Which of these
philosophies do
you think would be most popular in theworld today? Explain.
(tl)Robert Frerck/Odyssey Productions, (tc)ChinaStock,
(tr)Dennis Cox, (b)Giraudon/Art Resource, NY
-
Reading SummaryReview the • Early Chinese society had three
main social classes: aristocrats,farmers, and merchants. The
family was the basis of Chinesesociety.
• During a time of disorder, threenew philosophies developed
inChina: Confucianism, Daoism,and Legalism.
1. Describe the concept of filialpiety.
2. Why did many aristocrats favorthe philosophy of Legalism?
Critical Thinking3. Compare Draw a table to
compare the three main classesof ancient Chinese society.
4. Imagine that youare a farmer in early China.Write an essay
describing howyour social class affects yourlife.
5. Writing Questions Supposeyou could interview Confuciusabout
duty. Write five ques-tions you might ask him aboutthe subject.
6. Expository Writing Do youthink Chinese philosophiescould
benefit our societytoday? Write an essay explain-ing your answer.
CA 6WA2.2
CA HR1.
CA 6WS1.2
CA 6WS1.3
What Did You Learn?
Study Central Need help understandingChinese philosophies? Visit
ca.hss.glencoe.comand click on Study Central.
CHAPTER 5 • Early China 291
Aristocrats Farmers Merchants
Chinese Society
force that guides all things. To show how tofollow the Dao,
Daoists used examplesfrom nature:
Higher good is like water: the good in water benefits all, and
does so without contention. It rests where people dislike to be, so
it is close to the Way. Where it dwells becomes
good ground; profound is the good in its heart, Benevolent the
good it bestows.
—Laozi, Tao Te Ching
In some ways, Daoism is the opposite ofConfucianism. Confucius
taught that peo-ple should work hard to improve the world.Daoism
told people to give up their con-cerns about the world. It said
they shouldseek inner peace and live in harmony withnature. Many
Chinese followed bothConfucianism and Daoism.
What Is Legalism? A third group ofthinkers disagreed with the
idea that honor-able men in government could bring peace tosociety.
Instead, they argued for a system oflaws. People called their
thinking Legalism(LEE • guh • LIH • zuhm), or the “School of
Law.”
A scholar named Hanfeizi (HAN • fay •DZOO) developed the
teachings of Legalismduring the 200s B.C. Unlike Confucius orLaozi,
Hanfeizi taught that humans werenaturally evil. He believed that
the govern-ment needed to issue harsh laws and stiffpunishments to
force them to do their duty.His followers believed that a strong
rulerwas needed to maintain order in society.
Many aristocrats liked Legalism becauseit favored force and
power, and did notrequire rulers to show kindness or
under-standing. Its ideas led to cruel laws andpunishments for
Chinese farmers.
Explain Why did Hanfeizibelieve that people needed laws and
punishments?
http://ca.hss.glencoe.com
-
292
Confucius: Solution toChina’s Problems?
Beginning in the 500s B.C., Ch
inese
society descended into chaos. M
any dif-
ferent thinkers had ideas fo
r fixing
China’s problems. One of th
em was
Confucius. Were the ideas of C
onfucius
the answer to China’s problems
?
Confucius believed the best wa
y to
restore order to Chinese society
was for
the ruling classes to return to th
e moral
values of earlier times. When
rulers
behave in moral ways, he exp
lained,
they become models for the rest
of soci-
ety. Rulers cannot just speak
about
virtues. They need to act virtuou
sly in
their lives. Specifically rulers
should
adopt the following
values.• Rulers should
act
with love and
kindness toward
other people, as
expressed in the
Golden Rule.
• Rulers should fol-
low proper rituals
and behave prop-
erly when dealing
with the people. They should n
ever be
arrogant or violent.
• Rulers should love learning an
d
respect ancient wisdom.
• Rulers should be wise and vir
tuous
so that the people will have goo
d
examples to follow.
Here is some advice Confucius g
ave
to rulers:“If you, sir, wan
t goodness, the people
will be good. The virtue of the n
oble per-
son is like the wind, and the
virtue of
small people is like grass.When
the wind
blows over the grass, the gra
ss must
bend.”“Lead them by
means of regula-
tions and keep order amon
g them
through punishments, and the
people
will evade them and lack any se
nse of
shame [or self-respect]. Lead
them
through moral force and keep
order
among them through rites, and
they
will have a sense of shame an
d will
also correct themselves.”
—as quoted in Chinese Religion
s
Yes
292
WH6.6.3 Know about thelife of Confucius and thefundamental
teachings ofConfucianism and Taoism.
WH6.6.4 Identify thepolitical and culturalproblems prevalent in
thetime of Confucius and howhe sought to solve them.
Statue of Confucius
-
293
NoNot everyone agreed
with the ideas
of Confucius. Followers of Daoism
believed that society was having prob-
lems because people had stopped liv-
ing in harmony with nature. The only
true model, they argued, was the natu-
ral order, not rulers of human society. A
Daoist wise man explained:
“I do nothing, and the people are trans
-
formed by themselves.
I value tranquility, and the people
become correct by themselves.
I take no action, and the people become
prosperous by themselves.
I have no desires,and the people of
themselves become like uncarved wood
.”
—as quoted in Chinese Religions
Still others believed
the best way to restore
order was to pass strong
laws and make people
obey them, by force if
necessary. These ideas,
known as Legalism, were
based on the writings of
Hanfeizi. Forget the ideas
of the past, said Hanfeizi,
because times were differ-
ent then. A ruler must be
firm and pitiless. He must
trust no one and punish
anyone who disobeys or
performs poorly. Emperor
Qin Shihuangdi believed in Legalism
.
He governed ruthlessly saying “People
are submissive to power, and few of
them can be influenced by doctrines of
righteousness.”
293
Daoist temple
Document-Based Questions
1. Do you think a Chinese peasantwould have supportedConfucius’s
ideas of law andorder? Would an aristocrat havefelt the same way?
Explain.
2. Do you think it is possible togovern a society by
followingnature’s models? Why or whynot?
3. Do you think that the ideas putforth by Confucius would
workwell in today’s society? Write anessay defending your
position.Make sure to use informationfrom the text and examples
fromtoday to support your decision.
CA 6WA2.5
CA 6RC2.0
CA HR5.
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