Monday, August 21
Topic: The Song Dynasty
SLIDESMANIA.COM
Where’s the Beef??
State Building in the Song Dynasty
The year is 1984 (not the Orwellian version). None of us is alive; it’s the waning years of the Cold War; Steve Jobs has launched the Mac; and Tina Turner wants to know what love’s got to do with it.
But there’s one major question hanging like a dark cloud over all this. The Burger Wars between McDonald’s, Wendy’s and Burger King are heating up, and these three grandmas have just blown it up with one question: “Where’s the beef??”
What’s wrong with a burger with a lot of bun but not much beef?
Where’s the figurative beef?
Just as a “big, fluffy bun” can overpower the rest of a burger and leave you wondering where the beef is, a document’s “fluff” can distract you from its underlying nuance. Sometimes we simply take a document at face value. We get so full on the bread, we forget the beef--the real meaning of the document that’s hidden in between that fluff. Burgers (good ones, anyway) are catered to their consumers: rare, medium-well, the works, no onions, extra pickles, etc. Similarly, documents are written for their audience. There’s rhetoric and nuance. There’s an ulterior purpose and message layered in between those fancy brioche word buns (and sometimes the author has a real beef with someone).
Metaphor
Hyperbole
Persuasion
Bun level content: on the surface, what is the document about/saying?
THE BEEF: What is the real purpose of the document? What do we need to know about its context (background), author, or audience?
Last bites: Those last few bites are always special! what’s our “so what?” Why is this document significant in relation to wider historical developments or questions (the prompt)?
Digging in
Context: What is occurring at the time the document is written that impacts what it says or how we understand it?
Author (perspective): How does the author’s background or point of view impact what the document says or how we understand it?
Audience (purpose): Why is this document being written and how does that impact what it says or how we understand it?
The Tang and Song
Territorial expansion
Internal economic improvements
Collapse of Tang: rise of Jurchen, Khitan, Tangut, Tibetan states
“Barbarians”
Semi-nomadic to settled states
Treaties and tribute from Song
Adoption of Chinese traditions & gov
The Longmen Grottoes
Reviewing Chinese Culture
“Divine right” to rule (Mandate of Heaven) as
Son of Heaven
Bureaucracy to delegate
Where’s the Beef in Song China?
Prompt: evaluate the extent to which the government of the Song Dynasty consolidated and maintained its rule in China.
Click for documents
Example: Imperial Exam Question
Bun Level (surface stuff) | Gov used the civil service exams to recruit qualified officials Required knowledge of Confucianism Question asks to consider a law that creates a rigid hierarchy based on occupation |
The Beef (dig in there) | Rise of Neo-Confucianism in the Song Dynasty Expansion of exam system to lower social classes More willingness to question old/traditional policies Search for officials who can apply knowledge, not just display knowledge |
Last Bites (what’s going to stick with us?) | Willingness to turn to reform to improve bureaucracy and officials, even if questioning traditional policies Expansion of exam system not only to more people/levels of society, but also to more subjects |
How does this activity help us answer our central question “How should society be organized?”
How can we answer the prompt: Evaluate the extent to which the government of the Song Dynasty consolidated and maintained its rule in China.
While the Song Dynasty did not command complete military control over all of China, the government’s focus on domestic issues allowed it to rule over a prosperous and relatively stable state by promoting Neo-Confucian reforms and economic policies aimed at benefiting all levels of society.