《中国的传统与转型》课件第二章[1].lnk.ppt

China:TraditionandTransformationLecturer:LiewJien中国的传统与转型SWUFE,2.EarlyChina:TheBirthOfaCivilization,2.1ThearchaeologicalRecordAgricultureseemstohavestartedinNorthChinaintheregionofthegreatbendoftheYellowRiver,inafringeareabetweenwoodedhighlandsonthewestandswampylowlandsontheeast,wherehunter-fisherfolkcoulddomesticateanimalsandbegintocultivateplantsforfood.ItthenspreadalongthemiddleandlowercourseoftheYellowRiverandoutovertheNorthChinaPlain,which,despiteseverewinters,waswellsuitedtoagricultureinprimitivetimes.,Infact,thiscenterofearlyChinesecivilizationresembledinsomewaysthehomesofotherancientcivilizationsthefloodplainsoftheNileinEgypt,theTigrisandEuphratesinMesopotamia,andtheIndusinmodernPakistan.Ineachcase,rainfallwastoolighttoproduceforeststhathadtoberemovedbeforetillingcouldbegin,andthegreatriver,ifadequatelycontrolled,providedamplewaterandreplenishedthesoilsfertilitywithperiodicfloods.,ItissignificantthattheNorthChinaplainisthepartofagricultureEastAsiamostaccessiblebylandfromIndiaandWestAsia.Asfaraswenowknow,manybasicelementsofancientcivilizationappearedmuchearlierinWestAsiaandtheIndusValleythaninEastAsiaandthereforemayhavespreadslowlyacrossthesteppesandmountainsofCentralAsiatotheNorthChinaplain.Examplesarethecultivationofgrainslikewheat;domesticationofanimalssuchassheep,cattle,andhorses;Thewheelandchariot;bronzeandiron.,Recentfinds,ontheotherhand,haveshownthatpotterygoesbackasfarinEastAsiaasanywhereintheworld-perhapssome10,000years-andthatbronzemayhavebeenproducedevenealierinnorthernThailandthaninthemiddleEast.Rice,thechiefcerealofEastAsiatoday,isofSoutheastAsianorigin,anditscultivationwaswellestablishedintheYangtzeValleybyprehistorictines.,TheprehistoricChinesealsoproducedsilk,whichspreadtotheWestverymuchlater.Someimportantdomesticanimalswereofdifferentderivationpigs.chickens,anddogsforfoodandthewaterbuffaloforricecultivation.ThebasicagriculturetoolofEastAsiahasalwaysbeenthehoe,incontrasttotheplowoftheWest.ThemostcharacteristicPaleolithicremainsarestonechoppers;intherestofthe“oldworld”theyarechippedstoneaxes.NeolithicremainsinEastAsiaaretypifiedbyhalfmoon-shapedstoneknivesandgreypotterywithmatandcordmarkings,bothquitedifferentfromWesternEurasianartifacts.,Thereis,thus,goodreasontoassumethatinEastAsiaagricultureandearlycivilizationdevelopedquiteindependentlyofWesternEurasia.TheculturethatarosearoundthebendoftheYellowRiverinnorthwestChinawasprobablybasedonthisEastAsianculturebutseemstohavealsoreceivedenrichmentfromregionstotheWest.However,thereisnoevidencethattheseinfluenceswerebroughtbyinvadersormigrants,andtheNeolithicpeoplesofNorthChinaandpossiblytheirPaleolithicpredecessorsappeartohavebeenthedirectancestorsofthemodernChinese.EvenatthisearlytimethecultureofNorthChinashoweddistinctiveEastAsianfeatures.,2.1.1ThePaintedandBlackPotteryCultures,Twodistinctcultures,namedfortheircharacteristicpottery,occupiedNorthChinainlateNeolithictimes.TheywerefirstthoughttoshowaclashbetweenWestAsianandlocalinfluences,butmorerecentstudieshaveprovedthattheBlackPotterycultureinlargepartfollowedthePainted,occupyingmostofitsarea.,ThePaintedPotteryculture,whichisalsoknownasYang-shaofromatypesiteinnorthwestHonan,isfoundthroughoutNorthChina,exceptforShantungprovinceintheextremeeast,anditlingeredonlongestinKansuprovinceinthenorthwest.ItsmostfamoussiteisthepartlyexcavatedvillageatPan-ponearSian(theancientChang-an),whichdatesfromthefifthmillenniumB.C.Thecultureistypifiedbylargebulbouspots,paintedinreadandblack,usuallywithboldgeometricdesigns.WhileitbearssomeresemblancetothepaintedpotteryofWestAsia,onecannotassumethatitwasmerelyacultureborrowingfromtheWest,becausethereisnocleararchaeologicaltrailbywhichitcouldhavecome.,TheBlackPotteryculture,alsocalledLung-shanfromtypesitesinShantung,coveredthesameareaasthePainted,exceptfortheextremenorthwest,andalsoextendedintoShantungandthemiddleandthelowerYangtzevalleys.Itistypifiedbyaverythin,shiny,blackpottery.ThiscultureshowedthatsincethetimeofthePaintedPotterynewinfluencesformWestAsia,suchasdomesticatedsheepandhorsesandthepotterswheel,hadreachedNorthChina.Italsoshowedstrongculturalcontinuitywiththefollowingbronzeage.Forexample,itsharedthesamehollow-leggedtripods,acommonsystemofdivination,andtownwallsofpoundedearth,muchlikethosethatstillmaybefoundinNorthChinatoday.,2.1.2TheBronzeAge,Bronzecastingbythepiece-moldprocess,differentfromthemethodusedinancientWestAsia,madeitsappearanceinChinabythemiddleofthesecondmillenniumB.C.,ifnotearlier.ThefirstknownsitesarefoundspreadoutinHonansouthoftheYellowRiverfromitsgreatbendeastward,buttheonlybronzestheycontainaresmallweapons.AsecondstageistypifiedbyasitenearCheng-chouinthesamearea,whichwasaformidablecapitalcity,surroundedbyapoundedearthwallmorethantwentyfeethighandamilesquare.Outsidethewallsweretwobronzefoundrieswhichproducedelaborateritualvessels.,ThethirdbronzestageisbestrepresentedbyasitenearAn-yanginthepartofHonannorthoftheYellowRiver.ItwasdiscoveredbyChinesescholarswhoin1899becauseintriguedbywhatappearedtobeancientwritingscratchedontothe“dragonbones”thatPekingapothecaryshopsweregrindingupformedicine.TheytracedthesebonestotheirsourcenearAn-yangandonfurtherstudydiscoveredthattheyboretheearliestknownformofChinesewritingandcorroboratedmuchoftheearlyhistoricaltradition.,TheinscriptionscontainedthenamesofvirtuallyallofthetraditionalrulersofanancientdynastyknownastheShangandawealthofdetailaboutthelatterhalfofthedynasty,whenthecapitalwassaidtohavebeenatAn-yang(roughlyfromabout1400to1050B.C).Clearlythearchaeologicalrecordandhistoricaltraditionsflowedtogetheratthispoint.Scholars,whoatthetimelookedcompleteskepticismontheShangDynasty,hadtoreversecourseandacceptitsexistenceasverifiedhistory.,2.2EarlyChineseTraditions,TheoldestremainingChinesebooks,datingfromthefirsthalfofthefirstmillenniumbeforeChrist,donottellusmushaboutpreviousages.Inthenextfewcenturies,however,theChinesewroteagreatdealaboutthebeginningsoftheircivilizationanditsearlyhistory.Infact,asoneapproachesthetimeofChrist,theChinesewritershavemoreandmoretotellaboutearlierandearlierperiod.Theirworks,ofcourse,tellusmoreaboutthebeliefsandcustomsoftheperiodinwhichtheywerewrittenthanofthehistoryofearlierages.Still,theycontainmuchmaterialonearliermythologyandtraditionsandundoubtedlysomesolidbitsofhistory.,Fromtheseworksandthearchaeologicalrecordemergesashadowypictureofaoncematriarchalbutincreasinglypatriarchalsociety,dividedintotribalorclan-likeunits.Fromtheclanname,thehsingorfamilynamehadalreadydevelopedinancienttimes.Then,asnow,italwaysprecededamanspersonalname,insteadoffollowingitasintheEuropeantradition.Therewasastrongemphasisonexogamy,thatis,marriageoutsideonesclan,whichhaspersistedthroughoutChinesehistory,sothateventodayChinesefeelthatpersonsofthesamesurname,eventhoughnotactuallyrelated,shouldnotmarry.,Religiousideascenteredontheclananditsdeities,oftenidentifiedasancestors.AncestorworshiphasremainedeversinceacharacteristicofChinesecivilization.Aswasnaturalinanagriculturalsociety,therewasalsostrongemphasisonheavenasacontrollingfactorinagriculture,onthefertilityofthesoil,ongraingods,andoncosmologicalandcalendricallore.Authoritywasstronglyreligious,andtherulerwasinasensethechiefpriestandalsocalendarmaker.,TheChineseearlydevelopedastrongfeelingofhistoryandtheideaofpoliticalunity.Unawareofthegreatculturestothewest,theyconsideredChinatheuniquelandofcivilization,surroundedonallsidesbythefourbarbarians.TheythereforecalleditChung-kuo,literallythe“CentralCountry”butcommonlytranslatedthe“MiddleKingdom”.Chung-kuoisstilltheChinesenamefortheirland.Thetermtien-hsia,meaning“allunderheaven”,meanttheworldbutcametobeusedfortheChineseEmpire.InformationandspeculationaboutearlierageswasorganizedintoastricthistoricalsequenceofeventsattributedtorulersofapoliticallyandculturallyunifiedChinathatconstitutedthewholeofcivilization.,2.2.1TheCultureHeroes,Thereareseveralversionsofthisearlypseudo-history.Theusualsequenceisofthreeearlyrulers(huang)orpossiblyfraternalgroupsofrulers,followedbyfiveemperors(ti),followedbythreedynasties,whichtakeuswellintohistoricaltimes.Thethreerulersandfiveemperorsareoftencalled“cultureheroes,”becausetothemandtolesserfigureslikethemareattributedtheearlyachievementsofcivilization,suchasthediscoveryoffire,theoriginationoffishing,hunting,andagriculture,thedevisingofthecalendar,thedevelopmentofmedicine,andtheinventionofwriting.Thewifeofthefirstofthefiveemperorsiscreditedwiththedevelopmentofsericulture,forsilkproductionistypicallytheworkofwomen.,Thelasttwoofthefiveemperors,YaoandShun,arebestknownforhavingpassedontheirrule,nottosons,buttoworthyministers.YaoselectedShun,andShunamannamedYu.Thethreetogetherareknownasthethreemodelemperors.YuisalsofamedastheherowhodrainedoffthefloodwatersoftheNorthChinaPlainanddividedtheempireintonineprovinces.AChinesereflectionoftheworldwidefloodlegendcanbedetectedinthisstory.,2.2.2TheEarlyDynasties,WithYualsocommencesasomewhatmorecredibleaspectofthetradition.HestartedadynastycalledtheHsia,whichhasbeenassignedthedates22051766B.C.(or19941523B.C.accordingtoanothersource).TheHsiarulersarecreditedwithreignsofreasonablelength,incontrasttotheMethuselah-likespansofthecultureheroes.,ThelastHsiaemperorwassodepravedthatpeoplerevoltedundertheleadershipofamanwhofoundedanewdynasty,namedShang.TheShang,whichistraditionallygiventhedatesof1766-1122B.C,or15231027B.C.hasbeenprovenbyarchaeologytobefullyhistorical,fortheAn-yangfindsindubitablycorrespondtothesecondhalfofthedynastyhalfofthedynastyandtheCheng-choufindspresumablytoitsearliercenturies.ThisraisesthequestionofwhatactualfactsmayliebehindthetraditionoftheHsiadynasty.Mightitnotcorrespondtotheearliestbronzeage,orperhapstheBlackPotteryculturewhichprecededit?,ThelastoftheShangemperorswassaidtobeadebauchedtyrannicalruleranallegationwhichtheboneinscriptionsfromAn-yangtendtosubstantiate.OneofthosewhosufferedmostathishandswasasubjectknowntohistoryasKingWen(WenWang)oftheprincipalityofChou.Hissonandsuccessor,KingWu(WuWang)eventuallyrevolted,accordingtothetraditionineither1122or1027B.C.,andfoundedthethirddynasty,whichhecalledChouafterthenameofhisprincipality.Hisbrother,theDukeofChou(ChouKung),becametheconsolidatorofthedynasty,asthewiseandsaintlycouncilorofKingWusyoungsonandheir.,WhilethestoryofthefoundingoftheChoubearsthemarksoflateridealization,muchoftherecordoftheearlycenturiesoftheChouisacceptableashistory,becauseourearliestsurvivingbooksdodatefromthisperiod.After841B.C.thetraditionaldatingseemsquitereliable,andinthenextcenturywebegintoencounterourfirstfullyverifiableeventseclipsesofthesunthatdidoccurjustwhentheChineserecordsdatethem.,2.3TheChineseWritingSystem,TheoutstandingfeatureofthelateShangfindsatAn-yangisthewritingtheycontain;notonlyisitunmistakablytheChineselanguagebutitisalsoanearlyformoftheChinesewritingsystemthatstilldominatesEastAsiancivilization.Somesymbolarerecognizableeventotheuntutoredeyeasidenticalwithcharactersappearinginnewspaperstoday.ItismuchasiftheArabic-speakinginhabitantsofEgyptorIraqwereabletorecognizeinhieroglyphicsorcuneiformthesamelanguagetheynowuseandcouldpointoutoccasionalwordsthatanyschoolboycouldread.,TheChinesehavealwaysfeltacompleteculturalandracialidentitywiththeancientinhabitantsoftheirland,andhereisstrikingproofthattheyarerightindoingso.TheyhavegoodreasontofeelagreatersenseofdirectcontinuityfromtheShangthanwesternersfeelfromtheearlyEgyptiansandMesopotamians,oreventheancientGreeksandRomans.,OneofthecharacteristicsoftheSiniticlanguages,towhichChinesebelongs,isthatarelativelyhighpercentageoftheirwordsaremonosyllables.ThisistruerofancientChinesethanofmodern.AnotherfeatureofChineseandmostotherSiniticlanguagesistheabsenceofinflections.TheChinesewordshan,forinstance,canmean“mountains”aswellas“mountain”.InthecaseofverbsthedifferencefromthelanguagesoftheWestisevenmoremarked.Therearenovariationslike“go,”“went,”“gone,”oreven“look,”“looks,”“looked.”AnotherfeatureofmostSiniticlanguagesistheirtonalcharacter.,Monosyllabicwordswhichotherwisesoundalikearedistinguishedfromoneanotherbythetoneinwhichtheyarespoken,somethinglikethedifferinginflectionsweuseinconversation:“Whatsyourname?”“Name?”“Yes,name.”InmodernMandarintherearefourtones.Mapronouncedinthefirstofthese,forexample,isaninformalwordfor“mother,”butinthesecondtoneitmeans“hemp,”inthethird“horse,”andinthefourth“tocurse.”,2.3.1ChineseCharacter,ThemonosyllabicanduninflectednatureoftheChineselanguagehelpsaccountfortheretentionbytheChineseofawritingsystemwhich,likethatofancientEgypt,originatedfrompictographsbut,unlikehieroglyphics,alwaysremainedtruetothebasicprinciplethateachmonosyllabicwordshouldhaveitsuniquesymbol,orcharacter.InflectionswouldlongagohaveforcedtheChinesetoamoreflexiblephoneticsystemofwriting.,TheChinesewritingsystemencounteredintheAn-yangfindshadalreadyundergonealongdevelopmentandhadprogressedfarbeyondsimplepictographs.Antecedentsforthiswriting,infact,seemtoexistinsitesofthefifthmilleniumB.C.Thewritingusuallyranfromtoptobottom,asremainedtheruleuntilrecentyears.ThemorethantwothousandcharactersfoundintheShangremainslookforthemostpartquitedifferentfrommodernChinesecharacters,butalmostallhavebeenclearlyidentifiedwithlaterforms,andalltheprinciplestobefoundintheeightorninethousandcharacterscommonlyusedinmoderntimes(dictionarieslistuptofiftythousandcharactersandvariants)werepresentintheShangwriting.,2.3.2AdvantageanddisadvantagesoftheWritingSystem,TheChinesewritingsystemhascertaindrawbackswhencomparedwiththesimplerphoneticsystemoftheWest.Itobviouslytakesagreatdealmoretimeandefforttomaster.Theindividualcharacterstendtoberathercomplex.Theaveragecharactermayrequiresometwelveorthirteenbrushstrokestowrite,andafewtakeasmanyastwenty-five.Atleasttwoorthreethousandcharactersmustbememorizedbeforeonecanreadevensimpletexts.,TheemphasisonrotememoryworktolearnallthesecharactersmayhavehadalimitinginfluenceinChineseeducation,puttingapremiumonmemorizingability.Thecomplexityofsystemliteracymoredifferenttoachievethanitwasincultureswithsimplerwritingsystems,andthushelpedlimitupper-classlifetotherelativefewwhocouldfindthetimeforprotractedstudy.Thewritingsystemhasbecomeincreasedhandicapinmoderntimesastheneedforwidespreadliteracyhasincreased.,EventhoughtheChineseinventedprinting.charactershavemadeprintingamuchmoredifficulttechniquethanintheWestandsofaralleffortstoconstructChinesetypewriterthatisanythinglessthanasmallprintingpressorelectronicbrainhaveprovedunsuccessful.Therecentsimplificationofsomeofthemorecommonlyusedcharacters,thoughhelpful,hasnotsolvedthebasicproblemsinherentinthewritingsystem.,Ontheotherhand,theChinesewritingsystemhascertainmeritsthattheWesternsystemslack.Theverycomplexityofthecharactersandtheirgraphicqualitiesgivethemaestheticvaluesfarbeyondmerephoneticscripts.CalligraphyisagreatartinEastAsiaandtheancestorofallthegraphicarts,forthewritingbrushisalsothebrushofthepainter,Adistinguishedhandhasalwaysbeenconsideredthemarkofawelleducatedman.,Thecharactersthemselvesalsohaveasortofvitalitylackinginphoneticscripts.Oncetheyhavebeenlearned,whocanforgetthatthecharacterfor“peace”isawomanunderaroofandthecharacterfor“bright”acombinationof“sun”and“moon”?Chinesecharactersseemtocarrywiththemrichersubstanceandsubtlerovertonesthantheoralwordstheyweredesignedtorepresent,thuslendingthemselvestoatersevividnessinbothproseandpoetrythatisquiteunattainableinourphonetically-boundwritingsystems.Oncemastered,theycanalsobereadmorerapidlythanaphoneticscript.,Itiseasytoimbuethecharacterwithmagicqualities,astheancientChineseundoubtedlydid.Thewrittenwordalwaystookprecedenceoverthespoken.Chinesehistoryisfulloffamousdocuments-memorialstothethrone,essays,andpoems-butfewgreatspeeches.Everythingwritten,andparticularlythatwhichsurvivedfromantiquity,wasconsideredtobeofalmostsacredvalue.SuchattitudesmayhelpaccountforthehighstorethepeoplesofEastAsianhaveplacedonbooklearningandformaleducation.ItmayseemironicbutitisonaccidentthatliteracyratesinEastAsiatendtorunmuchhigherthaninotherareasofcomparableeconomiclevelbutsimplerwritingsystems.,AnothergreatadvantageoftheChinesewritingsystemisthatiteasilysurmountsdifferencesofdialectorevenmorefundamentallinguisticbarriers.AllliterateChinese,eveniftheyspeakmutuallyunintelligible“dialects”,canreadthesamebooksandfeelthatclassicalwrittenChineseistheirownlanguage.Iftheyhadhadaphoneticsystemofwriting,theymighthavebrokenupintoseparatenationalgroups,asdidtheItalians,French,Spanish,andPortuguese.ThestatureofChinaaslargestnationalgroupingintheworldistobeexplainedatleastinpartbythewritingsystem.,ThelargerunityofEastAsiancivilizationhasalsodependedonitingreatpart.AloveandvenerationforChinesecharactershasbeenastronglinkbetweenthevariouscountries.Untilacenturyago,mostbookswritteninKoreaandVietnamandmanyofthosewritteninJapanwereinclassicalChinese,notinthenationallanguages.EventodayeducatedChinese,Japanese,andKoreancanrecognizethousandsofwordswrittenincharactersinbooksfromtheothertwocountries,eveniftheyallpronouncethesewordsquitedifferently.IfChinahadhadaphoneticsystemofwriting,EastAsiawouldcertainlynothavebecomesodistinctaunitinworldcivilization.,2.4ShangCulture,Nexttowriting,themostremarkablefindsatAn-yangandotherShangsitesarebronzes,consistinglargelyofweaponsorelaborateceremonialvessels,oftenofimposingsize.Thevesselsarecoveredwithrichdesignsinsharplyincisedlinesorhighrelief,suggestingclayorwoodenprototypes.Theirbeautyisenhancedbypatinationofvariedshadesofgreenproducedbythechemicalactionofthesoilinwhichtheylay.,ThequalityofbronzecastinginthelateShangwasextremelyfineandhasneverbeensurpassedanywhereintheworld.ThedesignsappeartobeentirelyEastAsian.Therearebronzetripods,forexample,whichharkbacktothehollow-leggedtripodsoftheBlackPotteryculture.Somevesselswerecastintheshapeofanimals,suchastheelephant,whichstillinhabitedNorthChinainthisperiodwhentheclimatewassomewhatwarmerandwetterthanitistoday.,Thechiefdesignelementonthebronzesisthetao-tiehoranimalmask.Itisafrontalviewofananimalhead,suchasawaterbuffaloorram,portrayedwithangularlinesinahighlyconventionalmanner.SimilardesignsarefoundatAn-yangonboneartifactsandmarblesculptures.ThewholeShangapproachtotheproblemofdesignisquitedistinctfromanythingknowninthepreh