Primary Sources with DBQs—CHINA
4000 - 1000 BCE
Ancestral Rites and Divination
• Oracle Bone Inscriptions of the Late Shang Dynasty [PDF]
Warfare
• Oracle Bone Inscriptions of the Late Shang Dynasty: On Warfare [PDF]
Women: Childbearing
• Oracle Bone Inscriptions of the Late Shang Dynasty: On Childbearing [PDF]
1000 BCE - 300 CE
Confucianism
Confucius/Kong
Fuzi/Kong Qiu, 551-479 BCE
• Selections
from the Confucian Analects [PDF]
• Selections
from the Confucian Analects: On Humaneness [PDF]
• Selections
from the Confucian Analects: On Confucius as Teacher and Person
[PDF]
Mencius/Mengzi/Meng Ke, 4th Century
BCE
• Selections
from the Mencius: On Human Nature [PDF]
Xunzi/Xun Qing/Xun Kang, ca. 310-ca.
219 BCE
• Selections
from the Xunzi: "Human Nature Is Evil" [PDF]
• Selections
from the Xunzi: "Encouraging Learning" [PDF]
• Selections
from the Xunzi: "A Discussion of Rites" [PDF]
Daoism
Laozi, ca. 3rd
Century BCE
• Selections
from the Laozi (Daodejing) [PDF]
Zhuangzi/Zhuang Zhou, ca. 360-280
BCE
• Selections
from the Zhuangzi: Chapter 3, "The Secret of Caring for
Life" [PDF]
Zhou Dynasty Government: Confucius, Mencius, Laozi
ca. 600 BCE
• Selection
from the Classic of Odes: King Wen (Ode 235) [PDF]
Confucius/Kong Fuzi/Kong Qiu, 551-479
BCE
• Selections
from the Confucian Analects: On Government [PDF]
Lord Shang/Gongsun Yang/Shang Yang,
d. 338 BCE
• Selection
from the Book of Lord Shang: "Making Orders Strict" [PDF]
Mencius/Mengzi/Meng Ke, 4th
Century BCE
• Selections
from the Mencius: On the Duty of Ministers to Reprove a Ruler
[PDF]
Laozi, ca. 3rd Century BCE
• Selections
from the Laozi (Daodejing): On Government [PDF]
Qin Dynasty Government: The Legalist Philosophers Han Fei and Li Si
Han Fei, d.
233 BCE
• Selection
from the Han Feizi: Chapter 49, "The Five Vermin" [PDF]
Li Si, d. 208 BCE
• Memorial
on Annexation of Feudal States and Memorial on the Burning
of Books, by Li Si (as recorded by Sima Qian) [PDF]
Han Dynasty Government
Court of Emperor
Zhao, 81 BCE
• A
Record of the Debate on Salt and Iron [PDF]
Dong Zhongshu, ca. 195-ca. 105 BCE
• From Luxuriant
Gems of the Spring and Autumn Annals: "The Responsibilities
of Rulership," by Dong Zhongshu [PDF]
Warfare: Zhou Period
Confucius/Kong
Fuzi/Kong Qiu, 551-479 BCE
• Selections
from the Confucian Analects: On War [PDF]
Sunzi/Sun Wu, Eastern Zhou Period
(770-221 BCE)
• Selections
from the Sunzi: Art of War [PDF]
Agriculture, Han Period
Han Emperor
Wen, r. 180-157 BCE
• Edict
of Emperor Wen on the Primacy of Agriculture [PDF]
• Memorial
on the Encouragement of Agriculture, by Chao Cuo [PDF]
Women and Family
Confucius/Kong
Fuzi/Kong Qiu, 551-479 BCE
• Selections
from the Confucian Analects: On Women and Servants [PDF]
• Selections
from the Confucian Analects: On Filial Piety [PDF]
Western Han Period, 206 BCE-8 CE
• Selections
from The Classic of Filiality (Xiaojing) [PDF]
Ban Zhao, ca. 48-ca. 116 CE
• Admonitions
for Women [PDF]
Literature: The Classic of Odes (Book of Songs); Poetry from the State of Chu
Eastern Zhou,
ca. 771 to 256 BCE
• Selection
from the Classic of Odes: I Beg of You, Chung Tzu (Ode 8) [PDF]
• Selections
from the Classic of Odes: "Quince" and "Big Rat" [PDF]
State of Chu, reign of King Huai,
328 to 299 BCE
• "Encountering
Sorrow" (Li Sao), by Qu Yuan [PDF]
Literature: Sima Qian
Sima Qian, 145?-85?
BCE, whose father Sima Tan (d. 110 BCE) was Grand Historian at
court of Han Emperor Wu (r. 141-87 BCE)
• Sima
Qian's Letter to Ren An [PDF]
300 - 600
Buddhism in China
Lotus Sutra,
composed after 483 BCE
• Selection
from the Lotus Sutra: "The Daughter of the Dragon King" [PDF]
• Selection
from the Lotus Sutra: "The Buddha Preaches the One Great
Vehicle" [PDF]
Mouzi, latter years of the Eastern
Han (ca. 220 CE)
• Selections
from Mouzi's Disposing of Error (Lihuo Lun) [PDF]>
Women
Lotus Sutra,
composed after 483 BCE
• Selection
from the Lotus Sutra: "The Daughter of the Dragon King" [PDF]
Northern and Southern Dynasties
Period, 317-589 CE
• The Ballad
of Mulan (Ode of Mulan) [PDF]
Literature: "A Song of Seven Sorrows"; "Peach Blossom Spring"
Wang Can, 177-217
CE
• "A
Song of Seven Sorrows" and "With the Army V," by Wang
Can [PDF]
Tao Qian, 376-427 CE
• "Peach
Blossom Spring," by Tao Qian [PDF]
600 - 1000
Buddhism in China: The Chan (Zen) School of Buddhism
Huineng, 638-713,
Sixth Patriarch of the Chan (Zen) school
• The
Platform Sutra of the Sixth Patriarch [PDF]
Linji Yixuan, d. 867, founder of the Linji (Rinzai)
school
• Seeing
into One's Own Nature [PDF]
Buddhism in China: Reactions of Confucianists and Daoists to the influence of Buddhism during this period
Han Yu, 768-824
• Memorial
on the Bone of the Buddha [PDF]
Emperor Wuzong, r. 841-846
• Emperor
Wuzong's Edict on the Suppression of Buddhism: The Edict of the Eight
Month [PDF]
Tang Dynasty Government: Effective Rulership, the Law, and Taxes
Emperor Taizong,
r. 626-649
• Emperor
Taizong on Effective Government [PDF]
Zhangsun Wuji, d. 659
• The
Great Tang Code: Article 6, "The Ten Abominations" [PDF]
Yang Yan, 727-781; Lu Zhi, 754-805
• Tang
Debate on the Twice-a-Year Tax [PDF]
Reflections on War
Emperor
Taizong, r. 626-649
• Emperor
Taizong on Effective Government: "Maintaining Military Forces" [PDF]
Li Bo, 701-762
• "Fighting
South of the Ramparts" [PDF]
Du Fu, 712-770
• "A
Song of War Chariots" [PDF]
Slavery in Tang China
• Deed of a Sale of a Slave [PDF]
Women & Family
Song
Ruozhao, 8th century
• Analects
for Women [PDF]
Yan Zhitui, 531-591
• House
Instructions of Mr. Yan (Yanshi Jiaxun) [PDF]
• Record of Family Division [PDF]
Tang Poets: Wang Wei, Li Bo, Du Fu
Wang Wei, 699-761
• Selected
Poems: "Fields and Gardens by the River Qi"; "Deer
Fence"; "Villa on Zhong-nan Mountain"; "Reading
the Classic of Mountains and Sea, I" [PDF]
Li Bo, 701-762
• "Fighting
South of the Ramparts" [PDF]
• Selected
Poems: "At Yellow Crane Tower Taking Leave of Meng Hao-jan
as He Sets Off for Kuang-ling"; "Summer Days in the Mountains"; "Drinking
Alone under the Moon" [PDF]
Du Fu, 712-770
• Selected
Poems: "On the River"; "I Stand Alone"; "Views
in Springtime" [PDF]
1000 - 1450
Neo-Confucianism
Lu
Jiuyuan (Lu Xiangshan), 1139-1193
• Mind
Is Principle [PDF]
Zhu Xi, 1130-1200
• Preface
to the Great Learning by Chapter and Phrase [PDF]
• The
Nature As Principle [PDF]
Song Dynasty Government: Reform under the Neo-Confucianists
Wang
Anshi, 1021-1086
• Memorial
on the Crop Loans Measure [PDF]
Cheng Hao, 1032-1085
• Remonstrance
Against the New Laws [PDF]
Ming Dynasty Government: Promotion of Social Order and Morality
Emperor
Hongwu (Zhu Yuanzhang), 1328-1398
• An
Imperial Edict Restraining Officials from Evil [PDF]
• Village Ordinances: "Prohibition Ordinance" [PDF]
Military: The Northern Song Defeated by the Jurchen Jin
Yue
Fei, 1103-1142
• Poem
to be Sung to the Tune of "Full River Red" [PDF]
Agriculture; Growth of Cities and urban Life during the Song and Yuan Dynasties
Chen
Pu (Chen Fu), 1076-1154
• On
Farming (Nongshu) [PDF]
Unknown Author,
ca. 1235
• The
Attractions of the Capital (Hangzhou) [PDF]
Women
Yuan
Cai, ca. 1140-ca. 1195
• "It
Is Difficult for Widows to Entrust Their Financial Affairs to Others" [PDF]
Empress Xu, d.
1407
• Instructions
for the Inner Quarters [PDF]
Literature of Scholar-Officials and Military Officers
Yue
Fei, 1103-1142
• Poem
to be Sung to the Tune of "Full River Red" [PDF]
Sima Guang, 1019-1086
• Comprehensive
Mirror in Aid of Governance [PDF]
Su Shi (Su Dongpo),
1036-1101
• Rhyming
with Tzu-yu's "Treading the Green" [PDF]
• The
Red Cliff, Part I [PDF]
Women Writers
• Poem to be Sung to the Tune of "Southern Song" (Nan-ge-zi) [PDF]
1450 - 1750
Neo-Confucianism during the Ming
Wang
Yangming, 1472-1529
• Wang
Yangming on the Unity of Knowing and Acting [PDF]
• The
Identification of Mind and Principle [PDF]
Books of Moral Instruction, Ming and Qing
Yuan
Huang, 1533-1606
• Excerpt
from Ledger of Merit and Demerit [PDF]
• Selections from The Twenty-four Exemplars of Filial Piety [PDF]
• Selections from Meritorious Deeds at No Cost [PDF]
Christianity Enters China
Yang
Guangxian, 1597-1669
• I
Cannot Do Otherwise (Budeyi) [PDF]
Zhang Xingyao,
1633-c. 1715
• An
Examination of the Similarities and Differences Between the Lord
of Heaven Teaching (Christianity) and the Teaching of the Confucian
Scholars [PDF]
Provincial and Imperial Government under the Qing
Reign
of Qing emperors Kangxi (r. 1662-1722) and Yongzheng (r. 1723-1735)
• The
Qing Dynasty "Sacred Edict" [PDF]
• Wang
Youpu's Sacred Edict Lecture: "Exhortations on Ceremony and
Deference" [PDF]
Lan Dingyuan, 1680-1733
• Excerpts
from The Casebook of the County Magistrate Lan Dingyuan: “Depraved
Religious Sects Deceive People” [PDF]
Chen Hongmou, 1696-1771
• On
the Duties of an Official [PDF]
• On
Substantive Learning [PDF]
Women
• Selections from The Twenty-four Exemplars of Filial Piety [PDF]
Lu Kun, 1536-1618
• Preface
to Models for the Inner Quarters
Essays, Poems and Fantasy Tales of the Qing
Li
Yü (Li Liweng), 1611-ca. 1680
• "On
Being Happy Though Poor" [PDF]
Yuan Mei, ca. 1716-ca.
1798
• "On
His Chair-bearers—A Case of Misplaced Sympathy" [PDF]
Li Ju-chen, ca.
1763-ca. 1830
• "In
the Country of Women" [PDF]
1750 - 1919
"Self-Strengthening" and "Learning from the West"
Feng
Guifen, 1809-1874
• Excerpts
from "On the Adoption of Western Learning" [PDF]
Yan Fu, 1854-1921
• Excerpts
from "Learning from the West" [PDF]
Liang Qichao, 1873-1929
• Excerpts
from "Observations on a Trip to America" [PDF]
Calls for Radical Social Reform
Han
Yi (Pseudonym, possibly written by Liu Shipei, 1884-1917)
• Excerpts
from "Destroying the Family" [PDF]
He Zhen (wife of
Liu Shipei, 1884-1917)
• "What
Women Should Know About Communism" [PDF]
The May Fourth Movement (ca. 1916-1920s)
• Before
and After the May Fourth Movement
The so-called "May Fourth" or "new culture" movement began in
China around 1916, following the failure of the 1911 Revolution to establish a republican
government, and continued through the 1920s. This unit includes a background reading
and three primary-source readings [Chen
Duxiu's "Our Final Awakening" (1916) [PDF]; Chiang
Kai-shek's "Essentials of a New Life Movement" (1934) [PDF]; Mao Zedong's "Reform
Our Study" (1941)], plus discussion questions and suggested activities for students.
The Taiping Rebellion (1850-1864)
• Excerpts from Ode for Youth [PDF]
The Years of Reform: Prologue to Revolution
• From
Reform to Revolution, 1842 to 1911
After China's defeat in the Opium War of 1842, thinkers tried to understand what
made the West so strong and how China could best respond. This unit traces the debates
about reform from the mid-nineteenth into the early twentieth century, as arguments
for more radical reform, including revolution, increased. Includes background readings,
two primary-source readings (Feng
Guifen's "On the Adoption of Western Learning" [PDF] and Yan
Fu's "Learning from the West" [PDF]) and brief discussions of Liang
Qichao's ideas on democracy and Sun Yatsen's "Three People's Principles." Also
see the Religion, Philosophy, Thought section, above, for more readings by these
and other reformist thinkers.
Chu Chengbo's 1895
memorial to Qing emperor Guanxu (1871-1908, r. 1875-1908)
• Excerpts
from Reforming Men's Minds Comes Before Reforming Institutions
[PDF]
Kang Youwei's 1898
memorial to Qing emperor Guanxu (1871-1908, r. 1875-1908)
• Excerpts
from Comprehensive Consideration of the Whole Situation [PDF]
Reform Imperial
Edict of 1901 (Issued by the Empress Dowager Cixi, 1835-1908)
• Reform
Edict of the Qing Imperial Government (January 29, 1901) [PDF]
International Relations: China and Europe (Macartney Embassy, Opium War)
• Macartney
and the Emperor
The Qing dynasty's restrictions on foreign trade increasingly frustrated Europeans,
especially the British. In 1792 Great Britain sent a diplomat, Lord George Macartney
(1737-1806), to present its demands to the Qianlong emperor (r. 1736-1796). This
unit includes an introductory note to teachers with suggestions for teaching about
Macartney's mission; a student reading discussing European contact and trade with
China prior to and on the eve of Macartney's mission to China; and the primary-source
reading Two Edicts from
the Qianlong Emperor, which were the Qianlong emperor's responses to the Macartney
mission. With discussion questions and suggested activities for students.
• The
Opium War and Foreign Encroachment
In the fifty years after Macartney's visit (see "Macartney and the Emperor," above),
Western powers pushed their demands on China further, leading to war and the gradual
shift from tribute to treaty relations. This unit examines the events surrounding
the Opium War and the Treaty of Nanjing, which concluded that war, and the increasing
foreign encroachments upon China during the nineteenth century. Included are two
primary-source readings: Commissioner Lin Zexu's "Letter of Advice to Queen
Victoria" (1839) and The Treaty
of Nanjing (1842) [PDF]. With discussion questions and suggested activities for
students.
Women
He
Zhen (wife of Liu Shipei, 1884-1917)
• "What
Women Should Know About Communism" [PDF]
1900 - 1950
The May Fourth Movement (ca. 1916-1920s)
• Before
and After the May Fourth Movement
The so-called "May Fourth" or "new culture" movement began in
China around 1916, following the failure of the 1911 Revolution to establish a republican
government, and continued through the 1920s. This unit includes a background reading
and three primary-source readings [Chen
Duxiu's "Our Final Awakening" (1916) [PDF]; Chiang
Kai-shek's "Essentials of a New Life Movement" (Speech, 1934) [PDF]; Mao
Zedong's "Reform Our Study" (1941)], plus discussion questions and
suggested activities for students.
Chen Duxiu, 1879-1942
• "The
True Meaning of Life" [PDF]
• "Our
Final Awakening" (1916) [PDF]
Chiang Kai-shek,
1887-1975
• "Essentials
of a New Life Movement" (Speech, 1934) [PDF]
• "China
Cannot Be Conquered" (Speech, 1939) [PDF]
Hu Shi, 1891-1962
• "Our
Attitude Toward Modern Western Civilization"
[PDF]
Liang Shuming,
1893-1988
• "Chinese
Civilization vis-a-vis Eastern and Western Philosophies"
[PDF]
Rebuilding China
Liang
Qichao, 1873-1929
• "Renewing
the People" [PDF]
Sun Yat-sen, 1866-1925
• Selections
from A Program of National Reconstruction: "The Three Stages
of Revolution" (1918) [PDF]
• "The
Principle of Democracy" (1924) [PDF]
Chiang Kai-shek,
1887-1975
• "Essentials
of the New Life Movement" (Speech, 1934) [PDF]
Mao Zedong (1893-1976) and the Chinese Revolution
• Commonly
Read Speeches and Writings of Mao Zedong (1927-1945)
With excerpts from three speeches and one article, all highlighting
two important themes in Mao Zedong's thinking: voluntarism and selflessness.
Includes excerpts from "In
Memory of Norman Bethune" (1939); "Serve
the People" (1944); "The
Foolish Old Man Who Removed the Mountains" (1945); and Report
on the Investigation of the Peasant Movement in Hunan (1927).
• Mao Zedong on War and Revolution
• From "The Dictatorship of the People's Democracy": On Leaning to One Side (Speech, 1949) [PDF]
Communism in China
Mao
Zedong, 1893-1976
• Quotations
from Chairman Mao on Being a Communist in China (1937-1938) [PDF]
Li Shaoqi, 1898-1969
• How
to Be a Good Communist (1939) [PDF]
Second Sino-Japanese War (1937-1945)
Chiang
Kai-shek, 1887-1975
• "China
Cannot Be Conquered" (Speech, 1939) [PDF]
• Generalissimo
Chiang Assails Prince Konoe's Statement [PDF]
• Japanese Ambassador Hiroshi Saito on the Conflict in the Far East [PDF]
Mao Zedong (1893-1976) on War and Revolution
• Mao Zedong on War and Revolution
• Report on the Investigation of the Peasant Movement in Hunan (March 1927) [PDF]
• Selections from On Guerilla Warfare (1927) [PDF]
Society and Family: Raising Children
Zhu
Ziqing, 1898-1948
• "My
Children"
[PDF]
Farmers and the Chinese Revolution
• Farmers
and the Chinese Revolution
This unit looks at the plight of China's farmers in the twentieth century. With a
background reading and two primary-source readings ["Spring
Silkworms," by Mao Dun [PDF]; Mao
Zedong's "Report on the Investigation of the Peasant Movement in Hunan" [PDF]].
20th-century Literature
Hu
Shi, 1891-1962
• "A
Preliminary Discussion of Literary Reform"
[PDF]
Lu Xun (Zhou Shuren),
1881-1936
• "My
Old Home"
[PDF]
Mao Dun (Shen Yanbing),
1896-1981
• "Spring
Silkworms"
[PDF]
1950 - 2000
"Hundred Flowers" Period
• Intellectual Opinions from the Hundred Flowers Period (1957) [PDF]
Land Reform, Socialized Agriculture, The Great Leap Forward
• From the People's Daily: "How China Proceeds with the Task of Industrialization" (1953) [PDF]
Mao Zedong, 1893-1976
• "The
Question of Agricultural Cooperation" (Speech, July 31, 1955) [PDF]
Cultural Revolution (1966-1976)
• The Sixteen Points: Guidelines for the Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution (1966) [PDF]
Socialism and Democracy in China after Mao Zedong
Wei
Jingsheng, b. 1950
• “The
Fifth Modernization: Democracy" (1978) [PDF]
Deng Xiaoping,
1904-1997
• "Uphold
the Four Basic Principles" (Speech, March 30, 1979) [PDF]
• "The
Present Situation and the Tasks Before Us" (Speech, January 16, 1980) [PDF]
Fang Lizhi, b.
1936
• "The
Social Responsibility of Today’s Intellectuals" (Speech,
November 4, 1985) [PDF]
• From the People's Daily: "Bourgeois and Socialist Democracies Compared" (March 1990) [PDF]
Tiananmen Square Demonstrations (1989)
• The May 13 Hunger Strike Declaration (1989) [PDF]
• Interview at Tiananmen Square with Chai Ling
China's Political System since 1949
• The
Chinese Political System and the Communist Party
This unit provides an overview of the Chinese political system and the Chinese Communist
Party (CCP) with excerpts from the constitutions of the Communist Party of China
and of the People's Republic of China. These primary documents can highlight for
students how the Communist Party is the real political power in China. A chart of
the political structure of China is also included, to help students better understand
the relationship between the party and the state in a communist system. Discussion
questions also included.
China's Foreign Policy; U.S.-China Relations
Mao
Zedong, 1893-1976
• From "The
Dictatorship of the People's Democracy": On Leaning to One Side (Speech, 1949)
[PDF]
• Taiwan
and U.S.-China Relations Since 1949
This unit offers an historical overview of Taiwan and U.S.-China relations. An introductory
reading is followed by two important primary-source documents ["Shanghai
Communiqué" (1972) and Taiwan
Relations Act (1979)] and discussion questions.
Literature
Hao
Ran, 1932-2008
• "Date
Orchard" [PDF]
