AP World History

China: Song Dynasty (960-1279)

Did Song China experience an industrial and commercial revolution?

Use the website to explore the nature of the Song Dynasty. Complete the steps and answer the questions to learn about the contributions and significance of the Song Dynasty.

http://afe.easia.columbia.edu/song/

1.  Select Population:

  1. What caused a population boom in China during this time?

2.  Select Commercialization

  1. What organizations were established by merchants?
  1. What modes of transportation do you see in the scroll?
  1. What was Marco Polo’s impression of Chinese cities?

3.  Why was paper money created?

4.  Choose Iron and Steel

  1. What was Marco Polo’s impression of Chinese industry?

5.  Choose Textiles and Silk

  1. Who were the professional weavers? What were they responsible for?

6.  Choose Technology

  1. Describe the importance of rice to Chinese culture.

7.  Choose Printing and Moveable Type

  1. What was Francis Bacon’s opinion of Chinese innovation?

8.  Choose Shipbuilding and Compass

  1. What improvements did the Chinese make in these areas?

9.  Choose Gunpowder

  1. How did the Chinese military use gunpowder?

10.  Choose Scientific Experimentation

  1. What were the stereotypes concerning Chinese science and scientific inquiry?

11.  Choose Cities

  1. Describe Chinese cities and urban life of the time.

12.  Choose Hangzhou and the Urban Elite

  1. What was Marco Polo’s opinion?

13.  Choose Temples and Religious Life

  1. What was the function of a pagoda?

14.  Choose the Rainbow Bridge

  1. What was innovative about this bridge?

15.  Choose Scholar Officials

  1. Describe the civil service exam system

16, Choose Song Confucian Revival

a. What were “the three perfections”?

17. Choose “NeoConfucian” Family

  1. Describe the importance of family in China.

After accessing the website choose the see the entire scroll option. Take a few minutes to view the entire scroll and complete the questions as time allows.

Under economic growth select Rice Cultivation.

·  What impact does rice cultivation have on the population? Why?

Under economic growth, select Manufacturing. Read text on left then click on explore this scene. Position mouse over numbers on the scene to get to descriptions of the people.

·  How does this scene demonstrate the fact that Kaifeng is a cosmopolitan city?

·  Is it possible to identify social status from dress? How so?

Close the “explore the scene” window and select Construction and Building.

·  List examples of Song technical advances from the text on the left.

Select each of the numbers (1-4) on the right side of the picture. Identify evidence of technological advancements in each slide.

Under commercialization select Transport.

Read text on left and view pictures 1 & 2 on the right.

·  A river runs nearly the length of the entire scroll. What is the importance of water transport?

Under commercialization select Paper Money.

·  What were the benefits of paper money? What was the response of the west?

Click urbanization.

·  How are Song cities similar and different from the cities of previous dynasties?

·  Use the green boxes (at the bottom left of image) to scroll through the gate scene. What are your impressions of this scene (products, transport, volume, etc.)

Under intellectural life select Neo-Confucianism.

·  Why was Confucianism so important to Chinese society and government?

Under intellectual life select Printing and Education.

·  What is the impact of woodblock printing?

Under social changes select Elite.

·  Describe the new elite that emerge under the Song Empire. How does this compare to the Tang?

·  The Song Empire was a meritocracy. Support or refute that statement with evidence from the text and scroll.

Under social changes select Family.

·  In what ways did the status of women improve? In what ways did the status of women decline? Using pictures 1 & 2 what roles did women typically assume?

Under social changes, select Military.

·  Describe reasons for the relative unimportance of the military in the Song Empire.

Under social changes select Civil Service. Read text and click on link to “Confucianism and the Chinese Scholastic System” lower left.

Click on the bullet of the same name.

Read the quote at the top of the page. How does this quote exemplify the importance of Confucianism in society?

Read the rest of the page. What was expected of students and bureaucrats in China from the 7th century on?

Compare this to higher education in Medieval and Renaissance Europe.