Introduction
Confucianism is the term of a cultural development, which began in Ch’ing period. Confucianism is the tradition that shaped the moral beliefs and social relationships of the Chinese people. Kong Qiu, and in Latin name was Confucius was the founder of Confucianism. Confucius was a teacher to people of the nobility back in the days when proper education was just starting in China. Confucius’ teachings were soon translated by strict political theorists into strict rules, and more on Chinese history, Confucianism was associated with a supreme hierarchy of influence and absolute obedience (patheos.com). In this essay, we will discuss how Confucianism has formed the social and political development in China. We will also discuss how Confucianism has shaped the foreign relations of China.
Political Development
Confucianism in Ming and Sung periods was described as the principle of learning, while in Ch’ing period; Confucianism was the study of ritual. The formal reorientation of Confucianism provided the structure, in which the gentry wanted to reevaluate their culture in Confucian forms only (Chow, 04). The boundary between the common people and the gentry became more visibly defined because of the rise of Confucian ritualism and purism. Ritualism and purism had dishonored accommodating thoughts toward popular sentiments and values. The high society of Ch’ing displayed great strictness in practicing the Confucian convention of core values and familial devotion, wifely fidelity, and loyalty to the ruler. During the Ch’ing period, people experienced the extraordinary development of the Confucian cult by the purity of women. By the late eighteenth century, widow decency became a religion, and the obsession with sex isolation and female chastity made to the point of insanity. This social conservatism has been practiced in the criticism of the main forms of urban society.
The leaders of Tung-lin wanted a greater part on the imperial state in preserving the cultural order, which was attained under the Ch’ing period. The close connection between the imperial state and the Confucian leaders was re-established and was observed in the attempt of emperoe K’ang-hsi, to restore the supremacy of Confucianism by Ch’eng-Chu learn the imperial thoughts. The superiority of Confucianism contributed considerably to the development of the familial religion, which helped rebuild the relationship between the high society at the sectional level and the imperial state. The Ch’ing period also observed a general development of growing strictness in implementing the laws and in measuring punishments for violators of moral rules by the Board of Punishment. People who agreed to concede by Confucian rules received highest legal protection, and violators of these rules were treated cruelly.
Social Development
Theatrical performances during the Ming dynasty had frequently been presented in the imperial palace, in the private houses of government officials and businessmen, or on public stages in front of ancestral halls and temples (Chow, 06). These performances have been affected by the significant changes during the Ch’ing period. The changes continued until the late sixteenth century, and the local performances remained famous. Their inferior legendary quality clearly signifies the lower social class of the writers and the audience.
The conservative part of the Ch’ing society attempted to carry the meaning of dramas together with their rules, which they were reevaluating in a gradually stricter manner. Though the meaning of most lines was hardly opposed to social morality, there were attempts to forbid all theatrical performances. Many theatrical performances were made as instruments to promote and cultivate Confucian values, but influential scholars in Ch’ing disputed the drama because of the threatening effects on social morality. The Ch’ing society showed an increasing opposition to dramas and novels because of their dangerous effects on civilization and social morality.
Development in China’s foreign relations
Italian society presented a great concern in creating drama and other types of literature in the language. Ch’ing traditionalists were aggressive to language plays and novels. Several great researchers of the Italian Renaissance were famous poets and popular prose writers. However, only few of the Ch’ing traditionalists dedicated themselves to cleansing their writing abilities or thinking about prose and poetry. The society reestablished the various schools of Greek philosophy, while the Ch’ing traditionalists made philosophizing forbidden. The society was devoted to presenting the real uniqueness of a person’s opinion, feelings, surroundings, and experiences. The adoration of independence in Renaissance literature, arts, and thoughts rests in sharp difference with the Ch’ing traditionalists’ attempt to support the individual with what they understood to become the universally appropriate patterns of conduct, which are the rituals.
Conclusion
Confucianism has shaped the political development in China by the strict rules and laws that were implemented in accordance to its definition such as female chastity, in which a woman was required to be faithful and obedient as a wife and to stay pure as a widow. Confucianism has also shaped the social development in China by expressing the its meaning through theatrical performances, poems, and prose. Confucianism has formed China’s foreign relations by its practicing its tradition and literature, which attracted foreign scholars such as the Italian scholars, and reestablished many schools of Greek philosophy.
Works Cited
Chow, Kai-wing. The Rise of Confucian Ritualism in Late Imperial China: Ethics, Classics, and Lineage Discourse. Stanford, Calif: Stanford UP, 1994. Print.
Patheos Library. "Confucianism Origins, Confucianism History, Confucianism Beliefs." Patheos | Hosting the Conversation on Faith. N.p., n.d. Web. 9 Oct. 2014. <http://www.patheos.com/Library/Confucianism.html>.
