History 184B: History of China (589-1644 CE) Instructor: Anthony Barbieri-Low T-Th 9:30-10:45 am barbieri-low@history.ucsb.edu Phelps 3523 Office: HSSB 4225 Office Hours: Tuesday, 12:30-2:30 or by appt. Course Description: This course investigates the greatest flowering of Chinese civilization, focusing on the key dynastic periods in Chinese history: the Tang, Song, Yuan, and Ming dynasties. Readings will consist mostly of primary documents, including historical texts, legal codes, plays, novels, journals, philosophical treatises, and sailing charts. Themes covered in the course include legal history, cultural history, social history, and cross-cultural interaction. Requirements and Grading: Regular attendance and participation in discussions & attendance quizzes (20%) Completion of reading assignments Short essay (3-4 pages) (20%) Mock Confucian Civil Service exam(s) (20 %) Zheng He map project (10%) Take-home final essay (5-6 pages) (30%) Class Policies: Late papers will be deducted one letter grade for each calendar day they are handed in late. No late work can be handed in after the last day of class, so, no late final papers can be accepted. The instructor promises to abide by the university s guidelines on academic integrity for instructor conduct and student evaluation. Students are expected to maintain the same standards of integrity and honesty. Violations of university policy will be handled according to the regulations concerning academic integrity, including failure of the class and possible expulsion. Please refer to the university s guidelines for more information: http://www.sa.ucsb.edu/regulations/index.aspx?page=conduct If you have a disability for which you are or may be requesting an accommodation, you are encouraged to contact both your instructor and the DSP (Disabled Students Program) as early as possible in the term. http://dsp.sa.ucsb.edu/ Textbooks: (available at UCSB Bookstore or online retailers such as Amazon.com) Valerie Hansen, The Open Empire: A History of China to 1600 (New York: Norton, 2000). Patricia Buckley Ebrey, ed., Chinese Civilization: A Sourcebook. 2nd edition. (New York: The Free Press, 1993). Additional PDF readings will be available on GauchoSpace.
Lecture Topics and Reading Assignments: Complete the reading assignments prior to the date listed. We will discuss the readings on the date listed. Week 1: Sui and Tang Political History Tuesday, March 30, 2010: Sui Dynasty and Tang Dynasty Political History Hansen, 191-202. Ebrey, Emperor Taizong on Effective Government, 112-115. Thursday, April 1, 2010: Tang Political History (cont.) & Tang Legal Documents Hansen, 221-58. Ebrey, The Tang Legal Code & Family Business, 116-19, 125-7. Week 2: Tang Cultural History Tuesday April 6, 2010: Tang Cosmopolitan Culture and Tang Poetry Hansen, 203-219. Ebrey, The Dancing Horses of Xuanzong s Court, 123-4. Selection of Tang Poetry of Wang Wei, Li Bai, Du Fu, and Bai Juyi (PDF) optional : Explore the Tang Capital of Chang an on CD-ROM (library) Thursday April 8, 2010: Civil Service Exams in Imperial China Ebrey, The Examination System, 128-131. Bo Xianjian, The Story of Miss Li (PDF) Introduction to our Civil Service Exam project: Begin to memorize: James Legge, trans. The Great Learning (PDF) Selections from The Analects of Confucius (PDF) Week 3: Song Political History Tuesday April 13, 2010: Song Political History Hansen, 261-98. Ebrey, Wang Anshi, Sima Guang, and Emperor Shenzong, 151-54; The Mutual Responsibility System, 186-87. Wang Anshi, Memorial to Emperor Renzong Memorial on the Crop Loans Measure (PDF)
Thursday April 15, 2010: The Song International Order (The Liao, the Xia, and the Jin) Hansen, 299-333. Ebrey, The Tanguts and Their Relations with the Han Chinese 139-141 & Longing to Recover the North, 169-171. Week 4: Song Economic, Cultural, and Social History Tuesday April 20, 2010: Song Economic History Ebrey, Rules for Fan s Lineage Charitable Estate, 155-56; The Attractions of the Capital, 178-85; Thursday April 22, 2010: Song Cultural and Social History Ebrey, Women and the Problems They Create, 164-8; Ancestral Rites, 157-64; Zhu Xi s Conversations with His Disciples, 172-77. The Synthesis of Song Neo-Confucianism in Zhu Xi (PDF) Week 5: Civil Service Exams Tuesday, April 27, 2010: Provincial Exam: Take Confucian exam for entire class period (as midterm) Bring blue-book, snack, and a pen. Thursday, April 29, 2010: Metropolitan Exam: Take Confucian exam for entire class period (as midterm) Bring blue-book, snack, and a pen. Week 6: Yuan Political History Tuesday, May 4, 2010: Movie Day!!: Mongols: Storm from the East Thursday, May 6, 2010: The Mongols and the Conquest of China Hansen, 335-367. Selection from The Secret History of the Mongols. (PDF) Week 7: Yuan Social and Cultural History Tuesday, May 11, 2010: Khubilai Khan and his Era Chapter from The Book of Maro Polo (PDF) Selections from the writings of William of Rubruck. (PDF) Ebrey, A Mongol Governor.
Thursday, May 13, 2010: Yuan Culture and Society Ghost in the Pot (PDF) Week 8: The Ming Dynasty Tuesday, May 18, 2010: Ming Political History 1 Hansen, 369-407. Ebrey, Proclamations of the Hongwu Emperor, 205-7. Thursday May 20, 2010: Ming Philosophy Moral Intuition and Action in Wang Yangming (PDF) Ebrey, Li Zhi s Letters, 258-62. Selection from writings of Wang Fuzhi (PDF) Essay: Compare the philosophy of the Song scholar Zhu Xi to that of the Ming scholar Wang Yangming. (3-4 pages) Due Thursday May 27, 2010.. Week 9: The Ming Dynasty Tuesday, May 25, 2010: Ming Political History 2 & The Ming Economy Ebrey, A Censor Accuses a Eunuch, 263-70; Village Ordinances, 211-12; Commercial Activities, 213-20; Tenants, 223-25. Thursday May 27, 2010: Ming Literary Culture and Ming Gender Relations Ebrey, Shi Jin the Nine-Dragoned, from Outlaws of the Marsh, 226-237. Chapter from Luo Guanzhong, Romance of the Three Kingdoms (PDF). Ebrey, Windows Loyal unto Death, 253-55; Concubines, 245-52. Week 10: Ming Science and Technology Tuesday, June 1, 2010: The Voyages of Zheng He Selections from the Overall Survey of the Ocean s Shores, by Ma Huan (PDF) Zheng He map project, due Thursday, June 3rd by midnight to Gauchospace. Thursday, June 3, 2010: Final course summary
Final Essay: Research and write an essay comparing the European voyages of exploration and colonization to the Seven Voyages of the Treasure Fleet of Zheng He. What were the motivations for each? How were they organized and carried out? What were the short-term and long-term consequences of each? (5 pages) Due Tuesday, June 8 th, by midnight on GauchoSpace.