Deck 9: E: China and the World East Asian Connections 500-1300

Question 1

Comparative Analysis: Compare and contrast the ways that Vietnam, Japan, and Korea experienced Chinese influence.

Answer 1

•Vietnam was fully incorporated into the Chinese state for more than a thousand years.
•Elite culture in Vietnam borrowed heavily from China (Confucianism,Daoism,Buddhism,administrative techniques,civil service,artistic and literary styles).
•Vietnamese rulers adopted the Chinese imperial system,court rituals,and the idea of the Mandate of Heaven.
•Vietnamese elite viewed their culture as an extension of the universal civilization of China.
•Vietnam and Korea achieved political independence while participating fully in the tribute system as vassal states.
•Korea was under the political control of China for a time,while Japan was not.
•Both Korea and Japan participated in the Chinese tribute system as vassal states,although Japan withdrew from the system after the tenth century.
•The cultural elite of both states borrowed belief systems,especially Confucianism and Buddhism,from China.
•Both Korea and Japan drew heavily on Chinese government models,including ideas about the emperor and his court,administrative institutions,governing techniques,and the examination system.
•Both Korea and Japan were influenced by Chinese artistic and literary styles.
•Both Korea and Japan maintained distinctive cultures despite substantial Chinese influence.
•Unlike Korea,Japan's adoption of numerous elements of Chinese civilization was wholly voluntary.
•Japanese women,unlike Korean women,largely escaped the more oppressive features of Chinese Confucian culture.

Question 2

Historical Analysis: How did outside influences shape China during the Tang and Song dynasties?

Answer 2

•The spread of Buddhism to China
•China's participation in the Silk Road and Sea Road trade networks,which transformed the Chinese economy
•China's adoption of sugar and cotton cultivation from India,along with techniques to refine those goods
•China's adoption of fast-ripening and drought-resistant strains of rice from Vietnam
•China's dealings with neighboring societies-including Vietnam,Korea,Japan,and the pastoral peoples on its northern frontier
oWar,trade,and the tribute system
oCultural exchanges that resulted (adoption of aspects of nomadic culture by Chinese elites in the north)

Question 3

Personal Reflection: How would you describe China's place in the history of East Asia during China's "golden age"?

Answer 3

By definition,there is no "right" answer to a personal reflection essay,but a good essay should include the following:
•China's cultural and intellectual impact on its neighbors
•China's role in the Silk Roads and the Sea Roads
•China's role in the transmission of Buddhism to East Asia
•The role of the tribute system in the political world of East Asia
A really good answer might note that China was not the sole driving force in East Asian history.

Question 4

To what extent was China's view of itself as the center of the world reflected in the reality of the world between 500 and 1300?