Sheng Xuanhuai's Contribution To Modernizing China

Great Essays
Weeks prior to the procession, Sheng Xuanhuai’s family had engaged in a grueling lobbying campaign to seek a permit for the funeral cortege to go through Nanjing 南京 Road and other major streets in the International Settlement. On October 25, 1917, the Chinese General Chamber of Commerce (Shanghai zong shanghui 上海總商會) filed a written request to the SMC at the behest of the Sheng family for the use of Nanjing Road for the procession. In the letter, Sheng was portrayed as a highly accomplished businessman that made an unmatched contribution to modernizing China’s industry, commerce, and education. His role in helping Shanghai avoiding the catastrophe of the Boxer Rebellion (1899-1901) found particular mention in the letter. To highlight Sheng’s …show more content…
Non-specialist participants were volunteers from enterprises that Sheng Xuanhuai had founded and managed such as Hanyeping 漢冶萍 and China Merchants’ Steam Navigation Company (Zhaoshang ju 招商局), beggars, students, and children from orphanages. It could be very costly to hire an entire band from an orphanage. One memoirist recalled that the fee for one band from an orphanage amounted to one thousand yuan. Most students came from the Nanyang College (Nanyang gongxue 南洋公學), a college founded and funded by Sheng Xuanhuai. The majority of the paraders were beggars. The use of beggars would constitute a vivid, if somewhat exaggerated episode in a novel about contemporary Shanghai, Renhai chao 人海潮 (Waves in a Sea of People, 1926). In the novel, on the eve of Sheng’s procession, thousands of beggars were ranked and paid based on their statures and appearances. Clothed differently, beggars were variously assigned to carry flags, banners, umbrellas, and other props. The Sheng family also supplied every beggar with a silver badge engraved with the picture of the deceased. The novelist’s description corresponded with the news released a few days prior to the parade. Shi bao reported on November 15 that the Sheng family was about to distribute 2,500 silver badgers to all the participants. While the beggars were designated to fill varieties of positions, the Sheng family preferred professional coffin carriers to show their respect to the late household head. Shi bao informed its readers that one hundred and twenty-eight carriers, whom the bereaved family was willing to pay of 2,000 yuan, would come from Tianjin. The Sheng family was meticulous in finding coffin carriers for the deceased, but they were equally careful in selecting appropriate means of

Related Documents

  • Improved Essays

    Classical China made various contributions in many areas such as, the areas of political institutions, religion, culture, economy, and society. The Qin and Han dynasties were agricultural states that valued ancestors, had a uniform tax system, a strict code of law, and a bureaucracy. The Han bureaucracy consisted of upperclassmen and people who could pass the civil service examination. Emperor Wudi established this exam, that tested law and Chinese literature. Emperor Wudi also established a training school for bureaucrats.…

    • 531 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    The reign of China’s first emperor, Qin Shi Huangdi, in the third century BCE is known for its unprecedented unity of Chinese lands and for the establishment of the Chinese imperial system. While the 221 BCE unification of the Warring States into a single Chinese state may seem like the natural progression of events in hindsight, it and the subsequent unity in the Qin dynasty was not an inevitable outcome and required active effort to accomplish. Qin Shi Huangdi had to take many measures beyond conquering the last six Warring States to truly bring a sense of unity to his newly-formed empire. Claiming supreme authority and centralizing power allowed him to standardize weights, coins, and script throughout his empire, as well as to build a unifying…

    • 1644 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Schmitt called her cleaning lady to ask why their neighbors were crying in the hallway the day before, to find out that, “The old man isn’t there anymore”(quoted in Faigley 127). Schmitt had to clarify who the “old man” was. She was then brought to the conclusion that it was an old man she had seen before in passing, one of the many people she shared a house with in Shanghai. Between people “pop[ping] out of doorways, hallways, and hidden bathrooms, often wearing slippers and underwear” (quoted in Faigley 128), he was the only one who would even acknowledge Schmitt. Saddened by this idea, Schmitt, “Made the bold decision to buy sympathy flowers” (quoted in Faigley 129).…

    • 970 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Year Of Red Dust Analysis

    • 799 Words
    • 4 Pages

    With regard to Chinese culture and beliefs, rapid fundamental change was not anticipated by the people of Shanghai after the Communist Party of China (CPC), led by Mao Zedong, defeated the Chinese Nationalist Party, also referred to as the Kuomintang (KMT), on October 1, 1949. However, significant adjustments were made to once the CPC took power. The book, Year of Red Dust: Stories of Shanghai, by Qiu Xiaolong, is a collection of fictional stories that illustrate the daily lives of the Chinese people previous and post the 1949 divide. Two stories in particular, “(Tofu) Worker Poet Bao I” and “Return of POW I,” give insight into how Shanghai was affected once CPC became the ruling party, and the culture of the city before October 1949, respectively . The prior story highlights how radically different Shanghai became under the CPC, such as the change in infrastructure and the development of communes.…

    • 799 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Decent Essays

    Even though that Shi Huangdi was a ruthless ruler, he still did unified China. But there were also several significant identities that further unified China. After the Qin dynasty was overthrown by the Han dynasty, under Emperor Wudi reign, who was the greatest Han Emperor, he expanded China’s territory by invading northern Vietnam and Korea, in which eventually was under his rule. A Chinese form of government ruled this invaded countries according to Confusian principles. China had became more unified when the Han dynasty achieved its period of greatest prosperity.…

    • 128 Words
    • 1 Pages
    Decent Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Ancient China underwent various changes in philosophy, dynasty, and advancements. First, Confucius, Daoism, and Buddhism grew to become the major religions of China. Next, China underwent a major shift of power of the Warring States period when the Qin conquered the Qin dynasty which also eventually collapsed to give way for the Han Dynasty. Lastly, the advancements made by the Qin and Han allowed China to flourish as an empire. Ultimately, Chapter 9 of Patterns of World History, Volume One encompassed 3 crucial developments in early Chinese History.…

    • 707 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Imagine you were an actor/actress in an important movie. You win an Oscar for your part in the movie, but then it is all taken away in an instant all the pictures articles magazines removed from stores off the internet they even shutdown your social media pages for no reason. No one wants to be forgotten even if all they did was feed a homeless person they would want at least one person to remember. Do you think should we celebrate everyone’s achievements? Zheng He, was a Chinese explorer, who’s exploration documents were almost removed from history when the Chinese burned all of them.…

    • 539 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Life as a Farmer The majority of the people in Ancient China were peasant farmers. Although they were respected for the food they provided for the rest of the Chinese, they lived tough and difficult lives. The typical farmer lived in a small village of around 100 families. They worked small family farms.…

    • 591 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Decent Essays

    Zetian Wu was born to an ordinary family. Her father was a petty businessman and it was the least respected profession at the time. Though her family was neither rich nor powerful, she managed to become the first women legitimate king of China. Through wisdom and ambition, Zetian Wu became the oldest successor to throne and the oldest living king of China’s…

    • 63 Words
    • 1 Pages
    Decent Essays
  • Improved Essays

    From: Patricia Niedzwiecki To: "patricia.beck@bbh.com" Date: 10/07/2015 08:19 PM Subject: Zack Zack Niedzwiecki COR 330 Professor Esckilsen October 7, 2015 "The Blue Kite": An Homage to the Unseverable Bonds of Family and Humanity A Beijing street filled with the bustle and hum of children playing games and kicking up dust from an unpaved courtyard. The excitement of an impending marriage -- a young couple surrounded by relatives and friends coming together to welcome them to their new home and celebrate the union. This opening scene, earnest in its wholesomeness, belies the tumult of the backdrop -- Communist China during the 1950s and 1960s -- some of the most unsettled years in the country's long history.…

    • 1241 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Essay On Ancient China

    • 1019 Words
    • 5 Pages

    Commonly known to most people, Asia is recognized to be the largest and most populated continent throughout the entire world. The reason behind this actuality lies within many different aspects, including: Resources, business, agriculture, farming, and so on. In today's world, the most populated country of Asia is People's Republic of China. In the 2nd place ranking, India is the next most populated country of Asia.…

    • 1019 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Decent Essays

    Over the course of a couple hundred years, Imperial China would begin to shift from dynasty to dynasty. They were successful, yet short lived from the north as well as multiple rulers that reigned in the south after the Tang Empire from 618 to 907 A.D. These kingdoms were famously known as the Five Dynasties and Ten kingdoms. Now beginning in 960 A.D China finally begins its united by the rule of the Song dynasty. However some areas were controlled by more independent societies which were Khitans, the prodecessors of the Mongols from Manchuriad.…

    • 143 Words
    • 1 Pages
    Decent Essays
  • Improved Essays

    The gathering together of all states in China into unity by the king of the Qin state is among the most important events in China's history. Even though the Qin dynasty ruled and developed in a short period of time, it implemented landmark reforms to improve the nation and established a model for China that can be useful for the years to come. Qin dynasty’s rule over states in China dated back to 256 BC but unification was not yet achieved until 221 BC. The Qin had been the stronger and most powerful state in China from 256 BC, since the fall of the Zhou, but in 246 BC its power was given to the control of a 13-year-old boy named Ying Zheng.…

    • 551 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Decent Essays

    Ying Zheng who declared himself as ‘Shih Huangti’ or first emperor of China was one of the persons credited for unifying China. Ying Zheng also established the Qin Dynasty also known as the imperial era in China. To destroy the walled fortifications that separated each city-state was one of his first orders and maybe one of the few steps in further unifying the people in China. It was also during his rule when the Great Wall of China’s construction begun. Shi Huangti also increased trade through easy travel by constructing roads which connected far places and…

    • 97 Words
    • 1 Pages
    Decent Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Alexander Gioe Mrs. Trahan English II 2 November 2016 Post-Classical and Classical China There are many similarities and differences in Post-Classical China. Two major time periods in Chinese history are the Classical and Post-Classical period. Religion, political structure, social and economic structure influenced many aspects of the Classical and Post-Classical China period.…

    • 1430 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Improved Essays