Asian Languages & Civilization 171 - History of Dynastic China

(Offered as HIST 171 and ASLC 171) This introductory course provides a broad overview of China’s long history and major cultural traditions from its very beginnings to the eve of modernity. No familiarity with China or previous experience in studying history is assumed or required. Over the course of the semester, we will learn about key events, figures, and stories that have profoundly influenced Chinese culture and investigate long-term economic, social, and cultural transformations in Chinese history. We will examine a broad array of issues, such as the important role of geography in Chinese history, the glorified antiquity in traditional Chinese political thought, the rise and fall of unified dynastic empires, China’s troubled relationship with the Inner Asian steppe and nomadic people, cycles of peasant rebellions and civil wars, the emergence of major philosophical schools and the canonization of Confucian thought, the establishment of the civil examination system and bureaucratic states, the formation of a literati culture, the rise of Buddhism and Daoism and the transformation of the Chinese religious landscape, the evolution of gender, family, and kinship structures, and China’s engagement with the outside world through trade, diplomacy, and warfare. In this course, students will study a wide range of primary sources—ancient classics, poems, paintings, novels, memoirs, and legendary tales—and learn to develop skills in critical analysis and historical contextualization. At several points in the semester, we will also examine how this history has been used and recycled in contemporary politics and popular culture, and reflect on the continuing legacies of this history for China and the world today. Classes require close reading and discussion of primary texts and secondary materials. Two class meetings per week.

Fall semester. Professor Qiao.

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Students who enroll in this course will likely encounter and be expected to engage in the following intellectual skills, modes of learning, and assessment: Close analysis of historical evidence, which may include written documents, images, music, films, or statistics from the historical period under study. Exploration of scholarly, methodological, and theoretical debates about historical topics. Extensive reading, varying forms of written work, and intensive in-class discussions.