Transcript Chapter 3 PP

Chapter 3
Discussion and Review
China’s Flourishing Civilization
Ancient China’s Topography
Topographical features
that lead to isolation:
• Gobi Desert: one of the
driest in the world
• Himalayas: 43% of
China’s land is
mountainous!
Impact of China’s Geography
1. Long distances and
physical barriers
isolated China, blocking
cultural diffusion
2. Protecting China from
invasion
3. Isolation contributed to
the Chinese belief that
China was the center of
the earth and the only
civilization.
Timeline of China’s
Earliest Dynasties
The Shang Dynasty
• First writing
system:
• However, few in
China would learn
to read and write!
Writing of the Shang
on a tortoise shell.
Religious beliefs of the Shang
Veneration of ancestors
people prayed to ancestors who would speak to
the gods on their behalf
Oracle bones
– Used by Shamans to understand the will of the
gods and to foresee the future
– Wrote a question on animal bones or turtle shells
and heated it till it broke
– When it cracked priests interpreted the lines
– Gods controlled the forces of nature and
shaped destinies.
The Shang Dynasty
• A class system and
division of labor developed
during this dynasty:
• Warrior and hunting
aristocracy was most
prominent
• Bronze was sign of status,
wealth and used in rituals
• nobles, artisans, peasant
farmers and slaves
More Shang Contributions
•Bronze weapons are
cast.
•Horse-drawn chariots
are used.
Downfall of the Shang Dynasty
Slave revolt in 1122
B.C.E led to downfall of
Shang dynasty
importance of the Mandate of Heaven in the
transition from the Shang to the Zhou period
Mandate of Heaven
Used to legitimize and strengthen their
claims to the Shang domain
– chief god “Heaven”
– the king was the “Son of Heaven”
– king’s rule was a product of the
“Mandate of Heaven”
Incompetent or otherwise unfit would
lose the “Mandate of Heaven”
allowed the development of important
largely secular philosophies during the
Zhou period.
Zhou Dynasty
(1027 B.C.–256 B.C.)
•
• Great advances in technology
and their economy and
commerce grew.
• Developed trade routes
• Population increased.
• First official coins in China
Religion or Philosophy?
Traditional Chinese beliefs are often
mistakenly called religion and they are
not…
Confucianism, Legalism and Daoism
are not religions!
They are philosophies the Chinese
regard as more important than religion.
Confucianism
Teachings of Confucius
• China’s most influential scholar
was Kongfuzi (551-479 BCE)
• concerned with:
• how to ensure social order
• good government.
• His teachings were collected in
a work called the Analects
• Written by his students
Teachings of Confucius
Confucius & The Analects
His ideas included that everyone has duties and
responsibilities:
 Filial piety, or respect for parents, is the most
important duty.
 A ruler has the responsibility to provide good
government. In return, the people would be
respectful and loyal subjects.
 Government leaders and officials should be
well educated.
 Harmony is achieved when people accept their
place in society.
Legalism
•
•
•
•
Hanfeizi
People are evil
Emphasized the
importance of strict
laws and harsh
punishments
Strong leader and
central government
Became official
policy of Qin
dynasty
Daoism
Laozi
Emphasized living in
harmony with nature,
for example, improving
oneself mentally and
physically.
A direct reaction to the
formalism of
Confucianism:
Daoism looked for
the simple
Confucianism more
concerned with work
ethic and proper
conduct
Yin and Yang
Yin "moon"
They are the dynamic force of
the Tao, constantly interacting
with one another
Ying and Yang
The female is the yin (shady)
– principal of passive, shaded, and
reflective. (moon)
The male is the yang (sunny)
– principle of active, bright, and
shining. (sun)
Yang "sun”
Explain concept of yin and yang and how it represents
the relationship between men and women.
Patriarchal family
– importance of hierarchy
– the dominance of men over women.
Father has supreme authority!
– arranged marriages
– Men were permitted to have concubines, but only one wife.
Role of the wife
– bear male offspring and honor the ancestors.
Ying and Yang
– represent the balance of the natural order
– All things in the cosmos are in balance
– men and women play complementary roles in the natural
order.
The Dynastic Cycle in China
The dynastic cycle refers to the rise and fall of
dynasties.
3 Kingdoms of Egypt
Old Kingdom (2700 BCE -2200 BCE)
– Pharaohs organized a strong central state
– Policy of isolation
– Pyramid Age
Middle Kingdom (2050 BCE – 1800 BCE)
– Corruption and rebellion were common
– Hyksos invaded and occupied the delta region (1648 -1540
BCE)
New Kingdom (1550 BCE – 1100 BCE)
– The empire will extend to its greatest size (Syria and Nubia
Nubian Kingdom Meroe took control of Egypt as the
twenty-fifth dynasty (712-660 BCE)
– Driven out of Egypt by the Assyrians
332 BCE Alexander of Macedon conquered Egypt
– Ptolemaic Egypt
Ended in 51 BCE when the Romans conquered them
Hatshepsut:
The Lady Pharaoh 1473 – 1458 BCE
•Egypt’s only female pharaoh!
Great Leaders
of the New Kingdom
• Ramses II: most effective
leader. (1279 BCE – 1213 BCE)
---What is he famous for?
Pharaoh of the Exodus?
• The most powerful pharaoh,
Ramses II expanded Egypt to
the height of its power
• Palestine to Syria
Ramses II
Ancient Greece-Unit #3
3000 B.C.E. – 133 B.C.E.
Geography of Greece
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•
•
•
Rocky, rugged terrain
Poor soil; only 30% can support crops
No extensive river system
Few natural resources
• Required significant food imports
The Minoans
2500 B.C. – 1400 B.C.
• Located on the
island of Crete
• A trading empire…
took ideas from
Egypt and
Mesopotamia
• Traders not
fighters… Why?
• Dominated the seas
with no competition
Rulers of Mycenae
• Around 1900 B.C.E., a central Asian people
began settling in mainland Greece
• Spoke Greek
• Intermarried with the locals
• Became interested in trade because of the
poor soil and few natural resources
The Mycenaean World
of Ancient Greece
The Trojan War
• The traditional
legend is believed
to reflect a real war
• Between mainland
Greeks and the
inhabitants of Troy
• Troy was
destroyed by fire
between 1230 –
1180 BCE
BUT… legend “tells us” that is about a Trojan
youth kidnapping the wife of a Greek king!
Why? Because he could not live without her…
We love it don’t we… and so did the Greeks!
Helen being stolen by Paris!
Why So Remembered???
• Cause?
• desire to plunder the
wealthy city or to put an end
to Troy's commercial control
of the Mediterranean and
Black Sea
• purely economical
What were the reasons for the nearly simultaneous
collapse of several civilizations in the Middle East
and Mediterranean during the Late Bronze Age?
Many centers of civilization were either destroyed or
lost significant territories around the year 1200 B.C.E.
– Egypt lost land and trading connections
– The Mycenaean Greek civilization also fell
The nearly simultaneous collapse of those disparate
civilizations reveals their interdependence through
complex trade, diplomatic, and technological links.
Competition for limited resources led to internal unrest
and political collapse.
Displaced populations migrated to new areas, creating
a domino effect.