Chinese History and Region
The article by William Rowe (2009) discusses the political authorities and ancestral rights in late Imperial China. The article mostly revolves around the governor of Jiangxi Chen Hongmou(1696-1771). Under his leadership, he performed an experiment where he gave the lineage headsman disciplinary and judicial powers that day exercised over the relatives (Rowe, 2009). These powers are also exercised alongside the officiation of sacrificial rites performed at the temples known as ‘zongsi.’ That code states that change became a renowned leader in this time and history due to his exemplary leadership models that he exercised as a provincial governor. He undertook several actions during his reign that Contributed to his fame as an outstanding leader (Rowe, 2009). The basis of leadership sustainability during this era was based on the strength and unity of families, as was the case with governor Chen Hongmou who placed much significance in support of family in his leadership.
The article also indicates that the governor understood the implications of cultural practices and ensured their leadership implications as a way to unite the people. In this case, therefore, he stressed the significance of dwelling together as a family based on his emphasis on the ability to demonstrate moral superiority and long-term survival. This article thus signifies Chen’s leadership’s implications in demonstrating his part in the continuity of the Chinese culture through leadership and sustainability. Different aspects of ideas could not be attending to this during that time due to several psychological Reasons (Rowe, 2009). However, governor Chang managed to write and implement several struggles that he went through in order to achieve effective, ethical aspects and rituals of family and patrimony. According to the article, his emphasis was placed on formal propriety with emphasis on rituals such as ancestral sacrifices, marriages, and funerals.
The article by Yongtao Due (2012) focuses on imagined spatial order loyalty and literati. The article acknowledges the implication of local history As a field of study to develop English language scholarships among Chinese over the past few decades. Chinese history has been filled with different myths, events, and experiences, most of which have shaped their current societies and cultural approaches (Due, 2012). Therefore, this article is a significant illustration of Chinese history, emphasizing Huizhou (1200-1550). According to this article, the mid-1970s or considerable change in historians’ development of the Ming-Qing dynasty, ask several historians to distinguish different aspects of history by avoiding overgeneralizations to understand Chinese societies. The focus of the historical development, in this case, was the era between the 13th century and 16th century that showed remarkable significance in literati development Add the establishment of spatial order.
Several aspects of history can be noted from the Ming and Qing dynasty, such as elite localism. Although this has been regarded as a new topic in history, it can be deduced that the mid-1970s was a significant development in historical research with particular emphasis on localism as a way to rally resistance against any invasion (Du, 2012). Therefore, this article has presented different studies that have taken place in history over the past two decades, especially on the subject of literati local identity. Local history suggests that the basis of scholarships focused on local history prepared to study issues such as literati imagination of spatial order to understand a new context that is constituted in the localist turn. Du (2013) indicates that Huizhou was discussed in this article and became famous among modern historians as merchants were pronounced in the Chinese Commerce between the 16th and 18th centuries. Therefore, the emphasis of this article is the implication of literati and imagined spatial order to the historical development of Huizhou. Religion played a significant role in this society between the 13th and 16th centuries us two most dominant religions or Confucianism and Mencius (Du, 2012). During the Imperial era, therefore, the model of the home in Huizhou was marked by Confucians which the people of the city maintained as its literati until the end of the Imperial era.
The article by Susan Naquin and Evelyn Rawaki on “Chinese society in the 18th century” Discusses the several social changes that occurred within this period with several aspects of economic changes as well. The Qing Dynasty was crater raised by diversification and economic expansion during the 18th century. It increased trade activities with other regions and several technological developments that increased agricultural products and mining (Naquin &Rawaki, 1987). This magnitude’s growth was based on the trade ties that developed with neighboring countries such as Europe and Africa. According to this article, agriculture was the primary contributor to the economic development of the Qing dynasty. Therefore, the agricultural produce became the basis of trade as they were the primary trade goods (Naquin & Rawaki, 1987). During this century, China was technically divided into two major zones: drylands, where most of their crops were planted, were cereal such as sweet and varieties of Millet. The southern parts of the Huai river were dominated by a variety of other crops, such as wet rice cultivation.
Therefore, this article illustrates the different aspects of Chinese development economically and socially during the 18th century, an aspect that has defined the country’s current economic development significantly (Naquin &Rawaki, 1987). Although agriculture was the primary source of economic development in the country, there are several aspects of technology and trade that also contributed to the development of the economy. On the other hand, social change was characterized by the diversification of different communities and people from cultural backgrounds across the world that interacted with this country for trade goods. Some aspects of social change included religion and education. The market for these agricultural products was also available due to the Chinese people’s high population during the 16th, 17th, and 18th centuries economic development(Naquin &Rawaki, 1987). the 16th century, for instance, was characterized by a boom that created markets from the rural areas and the development of urban centers that also increased demand for agricultural products. Several other significant economic effects or cutting the 18th century further facilitated the economic growth of the Chinese. For instance, financial institutions such as the native bank were invented at the end of the 18th century due to the demand by business people and other merchants to expand their long-distance trade credits and ensure easy money transfer and storage.
Michael Szonyi wrote the article on the illusion of standardizing the Gods Illustrates an analysis of the concept of multiple representations of cult deities and how they shipped local cultures’ creation and development. This article also prevents the relationship between local culture international cultures with respect to their representation of cults and other religions (Szonyi, 2009). Szonyi begins by providing an analysis of early Daoist texts And other aspects of exorcism schools that were available in China as a way to provide an alternative genealogy of the five Chinese emperors in question. The Chinese emperors sanction several state cults that were more pronounced than others, as detailed in this article. The other presents detailed analysis and discussion about the perception of the five emperors by the people of the same religion and the implications of sanctioning particular deities to facilitate a unified religion in the country (Szonyi, 2009).
The people who gazetted the Fuzhou religion Best on the Ming and Qing dynasty Implied the presence of several temples which were linked to a group of deities preferred it was five manifestations. This article provides an analysis of the implications of the five emperors and their five Manifestations as a basis for their continuity of religion in China. Religion played central economic, political, and social aspects of Chinese lives, especially in the Ming-Qing dynasties (Szonyi, 2009). Scholars who tried to understand the implication of goods to the Chinese culture equated the five manifestations with the five emperors and solved the paradox that existed about the correlation between the two. The article, therefore, highlights the role played by religion, especially cults, to the historical development of the Chinese in relation to their gods. Religion and politics have been intertwined in the Qing and Ming dynasties for centuries, hence influencing the current culture.
References
Du, Y. (2013). Locality, Literati, and the Imagined Spatial Order: A Case of Huizhou, 1200-1550. Journal of Song-Yuan Studies, 42(1), 407-444.
Naquin, S., & Rawaki, E. (1987). Chinese society in eighteeth century. Change and Diversity in the Eighteenth Century , 21.
Rowe, W. T. (2009). Ancestral Rites and Political Authority in Late Imperial China: Chen Hongmou in Jiangxi. Modern China, 24(4), 378-407.
Szonyi, M. (1997). The illusion of standardizing the gods: the cult of the Five Emperors in late imperial China. The Journal of Asian Studies, 56(1), 113-135.