1. Ancient India and China (2600 B.C.-A.D. 550)
Lesson 4 Ancient Civilization in China

2. Understand how geography influenced early Chinese civilization.
Ancient India and China (2600 B.C.-A.D. 550)
Lesson 4 Ancient Civilization in China
Learning Objectives
Understand how geography influenced early Chinese civilization.
Analyze how Chinese culture took shape under the Shang and Zhou dynasties.
Describe the origins, central ideas, and spread of Confucianism and Daoism.

3. Key Terms
loess
clans
dynastic cycle
Feudalism
Confucius
Laozi
philosophy
filial piety
oracle bones
characters
calligraphy
Fine windblown yellow soil
Group of families common ancestor
Rise and fall of Chinese dynasties
Local lords governed their own land
Scholar and teacher Confucianism
Old Master creator of Daoism
System of ideas
Respect for parents
Used to predict future
Written symbol in Chinese
Art of beautiful handwriting

4. Geography Influences Chinese Civilization
In ancient times, the Chinese depended on rivers for irrigation and transportation. They highly valued the ability to control floodwaters and to develop irrigation systems. The Chinese also prized devotion to duty. The importance they placed on these skills played a key role in the development of Chinese civilization.

5. Geography Influences Chinese Civilization
Geographic Barriers Set China Apart
Deserts (Gobi), high mountain ranges(Tian Shan and Himalayas), thick rainforests, and Pacific Ocean

6. Geography Influences Chinese Civilization
Analyze Maps China’s geographic barriers made it difficult for both invaders and traders to make their way to the center of China’s emerging civilization. What physical features acted as obstacles to outside contact with China?

7. Early Peoples Settle Along the “River of Sorrows”
Chinese history began in the Huang River-Yellow River(loess)
Flows eastward from Siberia and Mongolia
Floods would destroy crops and brought mass starvation

8. The Shang Dynasty Begins to Form China
About 1766 b.c., the first Chinese dynasty for which scholars have found solid evidence arose in a corner of northern China. This dynasty, the Shang, would dominate the region until about 1122 b.c.

9. The Shang Dynasty Begins to Form China
Formation of Government
Ruled for about 644 years
Network of kings and loyal noblemen with the kings controlling a relatively small area

10. The Shang Dynasty Begins to Form China
Shang dynasty artisans were skilled in creating detailed objects in a variety of materials, including bronze and jade. This is a ceremonial bronze axe head.

11. The Zhou Dynasty
In 1122 b.c., the battle-hardened Zhou (joh) people marched out of their kingdom on the western frontier to overthrow the Shang. They set up the Zhou dynasty, which lasted until 256 b.c. They justified their rebellion by promoting the Mandate from Heaven, or divine right to rule. The cruelty of the Shang outraged the gods, so Zhou were given the power. The Chinese would use this idea to explain the dynastic cycle.

12. The Zhou Dynasty
Analyze Information What causes a dynasty to lose the Mandate of Heaven?

13. A Feudal State is established by rewarding their supporters with control over different regions
Local lords governed their own lands but owed military service to the ruler
Economic Growth under the Zhou
began using money for the first time.
Zhou Dynasty Ends by 256 b.c. when feudal lords ignored the emperor and battled one another in savage wars.

14. The Zhou Dynasty
Under the feudal system, feudal lords maintained their own armies and lands while owing military service to the Zhou king.

15. Religious Beliefs in Early China
By Shang times, the Chinese had developed complex religious beliefs, many of which continued to be practiced for thousands of years. The early Chinese prayed to many gods and nature spirits. Chief among them was the supreme god, Shang Di (shahng dee). The king was seen as the link between the people and Shang Di.
Gods as great as Shang Di, the Chinese believed, would not respond to the pleas of mere mortals. Only the spirits of the greatest people, such as the ancestors of the king, could possibly get the ear of the gods. Thus the prayers of rulers and nobles to their ancestors were thought to serve the community as a whole, ensuring such benefits as good harvests or victory in war.

16. Gradually, other classes shared in these rituals
Gradually, other classes shared in these rituals. The Chinese called on the spirits of their ancestors to bring good fortune to the family. To honor their ancestors’ spirits, they offered them sacrifices of food and other necessities. When westerners reached China, they mistakenly called this practice “ancestor worship.”

17. Religious Beliefs in Early China
Shang Di was considered the most powerful of the many gods worshiped in ancient China. This statue is in Taiwan.

18. Two Major Belief Systems Take Root
During the late Zhou period, when war and social changes were disrupting old ways of life, new belief systems developed that would form the basis of China’s culture and government for centuries to come. Thinkers such as Confucius and Laozi put forward ideas on how to restore social order and maintain harmony with nature.

19. Two Major Belief Systems Take Root
Confucius was born in 551 b.c. to a noble but poor family. A brilliant scholar, he dedicated himself to education and public service. He felt that educated people had a responsibility to serve in government so they could translate their good ideas into action. As such a person, Confucius hoped to become an adviser to a local ruler. He studied ancient texts to learn the rules of conduct that had guided the ancestors. For years, he wandered from court to court talking to rulers about how to govern.

20. Unable to find a permanent government position, he turned to teaching
Unable to find a permanent government position, he turned to teaching. As his reputation for wisdom grew, he attracted many students. Confucius never wrote down his ideas. Rather, his students collected many of his sayings in the Analects, a book of 497 verses compiled long after Confucius’s death.
According to Confucius, everyone had duties and responsibilities. Superiors should care for their inferiors and set a good example, while inferiors owed loyalty and obedience to their superiors. Correct behavior, Confucius believed, would bring order and stability. Confucius put filial piety, or respect for parents, above all other duties. Other Confucian values included honesty, hard work, and concern for others. “Do not do to others,” he declared, “what you do not wish yourself.”

21. Two Major Belief Systems Take Root
A scholar and teacher, Confucius had an enormous cultural influence on early Chinese civilization.

22. Two Major Belief Systems Take Root
Analyze Charts Confucius stressed the importance of five basic relationships that shape behavior. In most cases, these relationships are based on hierarchy. According to Confucius, what is the one relationship that is between equals?

23. Daoism Teaches Harmony With Nature Laozi, or “Old Master,” is said to have lived at the time of Confucius and to have founded a philosophy called Daoism (dow iz um). Although little is known about Laozi, he has been credited with writing the Dao De Jing, or The Way of Virtue, a book that had enormous influence on Chinese life.
Unlike Confucianism, Daoism was not concerned with bringing order to human affairs. Instead, Daoists sought to live in harmony with nature. Laozi stressed that people should look beyond everyday cares to focus on the Dao, or “the way” of the universe.

24. A Time of Achievements in Early China
The people of Shang and Zhou China are known for numerous cultural achievements. For example, Shang astronomers studied the movement of planets and recorded eclipses of the sun. Their findings helped them develop an accurate calendar with 365 and ¼ days. In addition, the Chinese also improved the art and technology of bronze-making, producing stunning bronze weapons and ritual vessels covered with intricate decorations.

25. Discovering the Secret of Making Silk By 2640 b. c
Discovering the Secret of Making Silk By 2640 b.c. the Chinese had made a discovery with an extremely long-lasting impact: they had learned how to make silk thread from the cocoons of silkworms. Soon, the Chinese were cultivating both silkworms and the mulberry trees on which they fed. Women did the laborious work of tending the silkworms and processing the cocoons into thread. They then wove silk threads into a smooth cloth that was colored with brilliant dyes. Only royalty and nobles could afford robes made from this luxurious silk. In time, silk became China’s most valuable export. To protect their control of this profitable trade item the Chinese kept the process of silk making a secret for many hundreds of years.

26. A Time of Achievements in Early China
Silk thread or silk woven into magnificent fabrics were key trading items for the Chinese. Because of this, the process of converting raw silk to smooth cloth was a closely guarded secret.

27. A Complex System of Writing Is Developed Written Chinese took shape at least 4,000 years ago, if not earlier. Some of the oldest examples are found on oracle bones. These are animal bones or turtle shells on which Shang priests wrote questions addressed to the gods or to the spirit of an ancestor. Priests then heated each bone or shell until it cracked. They believed that by interpreting the pattern of cracks they could provide answers or advice from the ancestors.

28. Over time a writing system evolved that includes tens of thousands of characters, or written symbols. Each character represents a whole word or idea. To write a character requires a number of different brush or pen strokes. In the past century the Chinese have simplified their characters, but Chinese remains one of the most difficult languages to learn to read and write. A person must memorize several thousand characters to read a newspaper. By contrast, languages such as English or Arabic, which are based on an alphabet, contain only about two dozen symbols that represent basic sounds.

29. Quiz: Geography Influences Chinese Civilization
Loess was a problem for the people of the Huang River valley because it
A. caused constant dust storms and eroded good farming soil.
B. settled on the river bottom, causing the water to rise and flood.
C. tended to coat young plants, preventing the crops from growing properly.
D. contaminated the freshwater supply for most of the valley.

30. Quiz: The Shang Dynasty Begins to Form China
During the Shang dynasty, the country was governed by
A. an authoritarian king who controlled all of the kingdom.
B. a special priest class who consulted with the king.
C. a king and a council of nobles, priests, and commoners.
D. a king who controlled a small area and relied on nobles and princes to govern their areas.

31. Quiz: The Zhou Dynasty
The Zhou kings explained their right to rule as
A. the Mandate of Heaven.
B. reward for defeating the Shang armies.
C. the will of the people.
D. the basic rights of the strong over the weak.

32. Quiz: Religious Beliefs in Early China
What was the king’s relationship to Shang Di?
A. As the equal of the god, the king could grant the prayers of the people.
B. The king was the mortal presence on Earth of the god Shang Di.
C. The king was the link between the common people and Shang Di.
D. The king would translate visions he received from Shang Di.

33. Quiz: Two Major Belief Systems Take Root
Which of the following statements is an example of Confucianism?
A. All people should live according to the roles and responsibilities outlined in the five key relationships.
B. People should always seek to better themselves and not be limited by the circumstances of their birth.
C. Staying in harmony with nature is the key to a successful life.
D. People should seek to keep a certain level of separateness from everyday life.

34. Quiz: A Time of Achievements in Early China
What feature of Chinese writing helped people to understand it even if they spoke a different language?
A. Tens of thousands of characters allow for endless ways of putting them together so they can form words in any language.
B. The many thousands of characters represent whole words or ideas.
C. The characters of the Chinese alphabet were common to all languages so could be understood by anyone.
D. The Chinese continually added characters to the written language so that all spoken languages could be reproduced.