ENG ED 109 - FINALS REVIEWER

• Chinese calligraphy


  The art of writing Chinese characters, combining visual art and literary interpretation
• Confucius


  A Chinese teacher, philosopher, and political figure
• Yin and yang


  A relational principle in Chinese culture that means there are two complementing and opposing forces in the universe like sun and moon, good and bad, male and female
• Terracotta Army


  • A tourist spot in China composed of warrior statues guarding the tomb of China's first emperor, Qin Shi Huang
• Feng shui


  If translated to English, it means wind and water. Chinese believed that it brings good or bad fortune and is based on the Taoist principles of nature
• Along the Yellow river during the Shang era, Chinese civilization was born
• Historical records and bronze wares with the first Chinese inscriptions were preserved during the Shang Dynasty (c. 1600-1046 BC)
• The Zhou Dynasty (1045-255 BC) dominated the Shang Dynasty and ruled for about 800 years
• The Qin Dynasty (221-206 BC) had a powerful and controlling emperor who caused literary tragedy and implemented Legalism
• The Qin emperor ordered the reduction of One Hundred Schools of Thought into one, leaving only Legalism as the sole philosophy
• The Han Dynasty (206-220 AD) brought the restoration of Confucianism which later became the official philosophy of the current dynasty
• The Han Dynasty saw the writing of Historical Records, a book on China's history from before Shang Dynasty to Han Dynasty, by Sima Qian
• The Han Dynasty also saw the invention of writing paper by Cai Lun (50-121)
• Poets Li Bai and Du Fu were great influences of the Tang Dynasty (618-907), considered the greatest poets of China
• The Song Dynasty (960-1279) saw the discovery of movable type which paved the way to quicker and cheaper publication of printed materials
• The Confucian Classics were codified and utilized as texts needed to pass a test for China's bureaucracy during the Song Dynasty
• The Song Dynasty saw advancements in mechanical engineering and scientific articles written by Su Song (1020-1101) and Shen Kuo (1031-1095)
• The Yuan Dynasty (1279-1368) established by the Mongols saw the development of shadow puppet plays and operatic theater
• The Yuan Dynasty saw the writing of two of the best novels in Chinese literary tradition: The Roman of the Three Kingdoms by Luo Guan Zhong and Water Margin by Shi Nai An
• The Ming Empire (1368-1644) saw the writing of the Journey to the West book about a monk's travel to India
• The Qing Dynasty (1644-1911), the last of Chinese royal dynasties, was brought by the Manchus who maintained the Neo-Confucian government system from the Song and Ming periods
• Zaju style of opera


  • Cultivated thrilling plots, sophisticated actions, dance, music, and extravagant costumes which the Mongols adored
• The Ming Empire (1368-1644) started when the Chinese fought against the Mongols
• The Journey to the West book about a monk and his travel to India was penned during this time of isolation
• Isolationists were employed by the Ming Empire to explore the Middle East, Indian Ocean, and Africa
• The book utilized the vernacular and associated India with immorality and gross sin
• This period's literary trend was to imitate Tang and Han Dynasties' literature and write using the Classical Chinese
• The Qing Dynasty (1644-1911), the last of Chinese royal dynasties was brought by Manchus who came from the tribal-ethnic group, Jurchens
• Though they were not Han-Chinese, the Manchus maintained the Neo-Confucian government system from the Song and Ming periods
• As the Qing Empire experienced both internal rebellions and foreign attacks, its people became familiar to foreign literature and the culture of the West in the 19th century
• The last piece of China's four most prominent classic novels, Dream of the Red Chamber, was written during the middle of the era
• This novel utilized the Mandarin language and was possibly written by Cao Xueqin
• Another writer was to have finished the book and published it in the late 1700s
• At the end of the period, Western culture influenced the educated Chinese to study abroad and translate and produce foreign literature
• A revolution to end the rule of Chinese dynasties was led by Sun Yat-sen in 1911
• The transformation of government led to the modification in literature
• Westernized literature without much use of classical language flourished
• Women were more empowered, foreign literature could be easily accessed, and education opportunities abroad were offered
• In 1923, writers expressed their desire of leading China's transformation from following the Confucian way of life to becoming westernized through the New Culture Movement
• The Communist victory during the Chinese Civil War in 1945-1949 caused restrictions and control in literature