Bea Diaz Mr.

Chan Period 2 WHAP

Chapter 13- The Spread of Chinese Civilization: Japan, Korea, and Vietnam
C. Focus Questions 1. Describe the influence of Chinese Culture on Heian Japan. The Taika reforms were basically built along Chinese-style bureaucracy, Japanese court scholars would copy the Chinese characters, etiquette based on Chinese protocol with ancient Japanese ideas about politeness and decorum, Buddhism became popularly practiced among common people, etc. 2. Describe court life during the Heian period. The elites of the Heian Era were inhabited in a closed world of luxury and aesthetic delights. They were very secluded, in a complex of palaces and gardens. Men and women lived under strict codes of polite behavior. Social status was deemed highly, love affairs were a social norm, and so was gossip as well. Writing verse was the most valued art and was usually brief and full of allusions to Chinese and Japanese classical writings. Women were expected to be poised and cultured as men. They would write poetry, play instruments in informal concerts, and would participate in schemes to disgrace rivals. 3. What led to the failure of the Taika reforms and what was the political result? The Taika reforms were introduced in 646 by the emperor and his advisors. The reforms were aimed to mirror the Chinese imperial administration, giving the emperor more power than what he possessed already under the Japanese imperial administration. The reforms would also form a genuine professional bureaucracy and peasant conscript army. The emperor and his advisors wanted this reform, because the Han and Tang Dynasties of China used this and they were both very successful. Unfortunately the reform was rejected by Aristocrats and Buddhist monks because they wanted to strengthen the Japanese tradition and not become exactly like the Chinese. Slowly the Aristocrats and Buddhist monks got a lot of support from the Japanese people and the Taika reforms were rejected and failed to influence the people of Japan. 4. How did the rise of provincial warrior elites change Japanese institutions? It built up the power of landowners, local officials, and state managers. Mini-kingdoms were formed all around; they were self sufficient but had constant threats from neighboring lords. Warrior leaders administered law, did public works, maintained armies, and collected revenue. 5. To what extent did Vietnam and Korea accept and reject Chinese influences? For Korea, the Koguryo tribe resisted Chinese rule. The Silla monarchs strove to turn their kingdom into a miniature of the Tang kingdom and even submitted to the rigors of the Confucian examination system. But positions in the government were mostly occupied by members of the aristocratic families by the virtue of their birth and family connections, not the knowledge of the Confucian classic. They favored Buddhism over Confucianism. They regularly attended the Chinese emperor and paid tribute to them. This tribute allowed trade and intercultural exchange between China and its neighbors (korea, Japan, Vietnam). Vietnam feared loss of identity, thus kept their own traditions rather than have an acculturation from China. They were overall very different from China. But borrowed political ideas, but the scholar-gentry never arose. 6. How did Korea and Vietnam maintain political independence from China? China couldnt control moving their armies across long distances, there were mountain barriers, and only a few Chinese actually went to Vietnam. Then as there was political turmoil in China, Vietnamese took control of that. 7. What were the common elements of Chinese culture passed to all three of the satellite civilizations? Chinese culture influenced all three of the satellite civilizations into becoming Buddhists. Buddhism was one of Chinas prominent religions, and it diffused to all three of the satellite civilizations. The Chinese also passed ideas, organizational models, and material culture to the three satellite civilizations. The satellite civilizations interactions with China, helped them flourish in world trade with other countries too. Influences of the Chinese still show in the satellite civilizations today.

D. In Depth Essay: Comparing Feudalism (pg 296-298)

Yes I think the characteristics of feudalism help explain the later success of Western and Japanese societies. Feudalism may have assisted their successful industrial development and shaped their capacity for running capitalist economies. It may also have contributed to their tendencies for imperialist expansion, frequent resort to war, and the rise of militarist regimes. No the outcomes wouldnt have been as positive. Factors such as the differences between the two, how and why they were different. Why didnt feudalism develop is any other civilizations besides japan and the west.