out of the contradictions between Liu’s vision of himself as an educated man and potential government official and his actual situation (19).” He even “traced his ancestry back to Liu Zhiyuan, a tenth century emperor of the short-lived later Han dynasty (21).” The holder of a provincial degree, Liu watched with dismay as the countryside began to wither under the slow but relentless assault of modernization. Despite his constant belief he was qualified to hold government office, he never did, and…
Qin Shihuang, the ruler of the Qin Dynasty, is revered as the first emperor of China. His quest for immortality is well known and eventually led to his death from mercury poisoning. In 1977 his vast tomb was discovered near Xi’an and is today one of the most visited sites in China, for he…
lifestyle, esthetics and good taste. What one wore said where one stood in society and who one was to be. Styles change from dynasty to dynasty and the history is imprinted in the clothing. Depending on one’s political and economic status, the distinction between the different styles of clothing existed not only throughout the dynasties but many times through the dynasty itself. The Chinese resume the necessities of life within four words: clothing, food, habitation and transportation. Clothing…
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…
travels down the family line as they become successors. Moss Roberts notes this as one of the philosophy’s strongpoints in his afterword for his translation of Three Kingdoms: “It is a concept less active in times of stability, [because] changes of dynasty are relatively infrequent; they are the exception, not the rule.” He also talks of its strengths outside of times of crises, saying “it is always a useful reminder to the ruler of the penalty for misgovernment.” Not only does this philosophy…
Tehran, Iran: From Persia to Present Tehran wondrous, mysterious past gives the capital city a mystic fascination that makes anyone curious about it anxious to visit. From being part of the biblical Persian Empire to the unfortunate hostage siege of the United States Embassy in 1979, Tehran has a history that is as rich as any other capital on earth. The people of Tehran are friendly, polite, and are not representative of the governmental powers of Iran. Its architecture is unique for this city…
elaborate during the Classical period, offering government leaders more control over the population. We see many different approaches to maintaining this control throughout the classical period civilizations. The Classical period Han and Mauryan dynasty sought and achieved political control through both religion and social hierarchy. Both civilizations geniously wove people 's beliefs with politics, giving the people moral reason to obey and respect the political decisions made by the heads of…
Introduction A vigorous indication of the country’s abiding durability was an exclusive configuration known as the Great Wall of China. The Great Wall was assembled and established by a man named Qin, the first emperor of China. He conceived this complex as a forcible blockade to defend the Chinese and their homeland as well. Much of the Chinese society became endeavored to death in the development of this unforgettable wall in China. Qin was frightened that one of his rivals of the other six…
Buddhism and Christianity in China Buddhism and Christianity, both originally foreign to China, rose to prominence in their own right during times of change in Chinese history. While Buddhism established a close bond to Chinese culture during the Tang Dynasty, Christianity was unable to co-inhabit as a main religion due to several factors after its initial success in the 1600s. The efforts of these vastly different religions to seamlessly assimilate into a Chinese lifestyle can be compared and…
“Nothing of me is original. I am the combined effort of everyone I 've ever known.”- Chuck Palahniuk. Chuck Palahniuk states that our own identities are not only formed by ourselves, but also by the culture around us. Gene Luen Yang 's Boxers & Saints follows the lives of Bao and Four during the Boxer uprising in China, as they struggle to find their identities. The uprising forces Bao and Four to chose whom they identify with, their fellow countrymen or the foreigners and christians. Through…