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Muncy The Tang Dynasty 618-907 CE
Tong is the Golden Age of Chinese Culture. They took poetry seriously as other arts. This was a time of high culture. The Tong was a cosmopolitan culture. They were a melting pot of the world. It was home to the Han Chinese, Turks, Persians, Arabs, Jewish, Muslims, Christians, etc. Chang’an capital. This cosmopolitan type was driven by the Silk Road. In 751 CE, they battled the Abassids in Sagdia. Women were also empowered here until the Communist Revolution. The first century and half was the power point. Emperor Taizong (r. 626-649 CE) – wasn’t the first but set the tone for the dynasty. Emperor Wu (r.690-705 CE) – the only woman to rule in her own right within Chinese History. Emperor Xuanzong (r.712-756 CE) – He was an excellent emperor but made dumb mistakes. In 755, his general rebelled against him. An Lushan. In 907, the last Tong Emperor was deposed by one of his generals. China then went into the Five Dynasties Period from 907-960 CE.
Eno: The Junzi Administrators of the Tang
The Legalist state was created by the Qin in order to prescribe what actions people have to perform, and they are rewarded or punished based on if their acts meet or fail to meet the standard the state has set. This leaves morality out of the question. It’s either pursue reward with greed or punishment because of fear. Confucian strives to become a “junzi” who is a cultivated and ethical gentleman. The idea of the junzi kept changing over time.
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Muncy: The Rest of East Asia in the Medieval Period
Vietnam, Korea, and Japan were Sinicized. This means the act of becoming Chinese. And these places adopted most of Chinese culture. Mahayana Buddhism is practiced in all three of these countries. All three adopted Confucianism. The Japanese and Korean writing is based on Chinese script. The Steppe peoples are largely nomadic people governed by clan and tribal loyalties, not by state. Cultural Diffusion is different practices and ideas to different cultures. There are differences in gender.
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Muncy: Classical and Medieval Southeast Asia