European University Institute Library

The age of Confucian rule, the Song transformation of China, Dieter Kuhn

eng

Includes bibliographical references (pages [313]-340) and index

illustrationsmaps

index present

non fiction

The age of Confucian rule

bibliography

192050158

Dieter Kuhn

"With the chaotic dissolution of the Tang dynasty, the old aristocratic families vanished. A new class of scholar-officials - products of a meritocratic examination system - took up the task of reshaping Chinese tradition by adapting the precepts of Confucianism to a rapidly changing world. Through fiscal reforms, these elites liberalized the economy, eased the tax burden, and put paper money into circulation. Their redesigned capitals buzzed with traders, while, the education system offered advancement to talented men of modest means. Their rationalist approach led to inventions in printing, shipbuilding, weaving, ceramics manufacture, mining, and agriculture. With a realist's eye, they studied the natural world and applied their observations in art and science. And with the souls of diplomats, they chose peace over war with the aggressors on their borders. Yet persistent military threats from these nomadic tribes - which the Chinese scorned as their cultural inferiors - redefined China's understanding of its place in the world and solidified a sense of what it meant to be Chinese"--provided by publisher

History of imperial China

the Song transformation of China