FREE ESSAY ON CHINESE ART DURING THE EARLY EMPIRE

CHINESE ART DURING THE EARLY EMPIRE

In this essay, I will look at the outpouring of thought, art and literature during the
early empire. More so though, I will focus on what factors led to this renewed focus on
culture in the early empire. It would seem that there were several factor which would
lead to this renewed interest in culture in early China, but the most significant of
these factors would be the re-establishment of a strong central government. This
re-establishment of a strong central government laid the foundation for cultural growth.
It brought with it prosperity to China, through improved infrastructure, such as the
canals and graineries. As a result of these improvements, China flourished both
economically, militarily and of course culturally. We first must look at some of the
history of the centralization of China, which occurred, then was destroyed and then once
more established. First by the Han Dynasty, then latter by the Sui and the T'ang
In 202 B.C the Han dynasty began and brought with it more contemporary thought and
inovations in culture and helped china progress as a nation. This was the beginning of a
glorious time and the Chinese people still refer to them selves as Han. The Han dynasty
rivaled even Rome. They were however conqured by nomadic barbarians around 220AD and this
threw China into its dark ages where nomadic uncetralized rule and Buddism ruled.
In 589 AD China was reunited by the Sui and began to bring back the culture that was
china. By 618 though the Sui resources were exahusted from reuniting china and they were
replaced by the T'ang dynastry which brought china to new peaks of organizational
stability , ecomonic and milllitary strenght, and cultural spendor. 
The first of the three great dynasty's of the Early Empire were the Han. The Han were
some what ruthless in their assention to the throne, but believed in ruling to serve the
people. The Han lessened the severity of punishments established by the Ch'in, but they
did grant heridity to certain powerful allies in the east to help centralize china as the
Ch'in had. The country flourished, and taxes were cut and graniers were once again
overflowing so as to hedge against famines which can frequent China. There was an out
pouring of culture and the country did well and the government had massive cash reserves.
One of the greatest emperors in chinese history was a Han named Wu-ti, he was young
assertive and made China proper greatly. Wu-ti cut back on the lords and merchants
powers, and made reforms. He was aggressive in his foreign policy and this was to build
power for the eminant show down with the Hsiung-nu nomads of the north and west boarders.
He conqured vast areas of Asia and set up a tributary system where the local rules
remained in power under him, while providing gifts to the emperor.
Under Wu-ti China saw a great cultural flowering and produced China's greatest historian
Ssu-man Ch'ien the most estemmed Han poet Ssu-ma Hsiang-ju and the most infulential Han
philosopher Tung Chung-shu. Confucian ideals were re-adopted , schools were formed for
teaching of Confucian ways, and it was the beginning of the civil service exams. With the
end of Wu-ti, the dynasty began to decline and he was succeded by a number of inferior
Han rulers, who were often seen as crule. It would seem that the Han's heavenly madate
expired and the death of Wu-ti was the beginning of the end of the Han, as china was
plagued by natural disaster, landlord and aristocratic rule. The Han dynasty offically
ended in 220 ad and the country was once again divided throwing china into their dark
ages. China was separated into north and south and the county as a whole weakend.
Barbarian invasion was rampant, and the Han capitols were destroyed by the Hsiung-nu
The Sui were to finnally reunite China led by Yang Chien in 589 AD. The Sui reunited
north and south China, rebuilt infrastructure. The Sui were very ambitous in the
rebulding of the infrastructer of China such as the great wall, cannals and graineries.
They were also very millitarily active and made many conquests. This disrupted domestic
economics and they were seen as oppressive and resented by the people. This gave way to
the T'ang Dynasty in 618 AD. 
Under the T'ang, China combined properity cultural grandeur, aristocatic sophistocation
military power and supremacy in foreign relations to achieve an age of greatness
unapproached since the Han. They owed much of their prosperity to the maturing
institutions that had been developed by the Sui. They began the civil service exams again
and peoples merit was based on knowledge and education. They helped to minimize ecomonic
inequalities by using the equal fields system of land tenture. All arable land was owned
by the state and allocated equally on a per capita basis for lifetime tenture and
collected taxes, as well as requisitioned labour servives in accordance with head counts.
They combined new and old elements of China. T'ang T'ai-tsung was considered the real
founder of the T'ang dynasty and is revered as on of the most heroic emperors in Chinese
history. He managed to consolidate all of China by 624, and all opposition was disposed
of. While T'ai-tsung was revered for his millitary exploits, he is estemmed for his
consientious capable and benevolent role as civil administrator. He promoted eductation,
welcomed advice, chose able ministers and delegated authority wisely (hucker 141) he was
tolerant to philosophical matters and religon. His policies and government were based on
confucian principals, but he enjoyed the concept of Taoism and buddhism, and even alowed
for a christian missonary to build a church. Other T'ang emperors that followed, were
very contientious in administration. Capitol punishment was abolished, the beauracracy
was tailored, court extravaganves were cut back and foreign policy was pursed with vigor.
Cultural gorwth was encouraged in all forms and the Hanlin Academy at court was set up to
encourage and teach talented scholars and litterateurs. Music and dance institute were
set up to teach theatrical performers for palace entertainment. Under T'ang rule the
court was splendid and some of the greatest cultural geniuses of the chinese tradition
came about, such as the poets Li Po and Tu Fu as well as some of the most notable paiters
Wu Tao-tzu and Wang Wei. (hucker 143) Hoever the T'ang would not rule for ever and their
dynasty soon came to decline. Presure from invading arabs and turks . The T'ang stability
began to fade around 760 and from there it was more in decline. Once again the Landlords
began to regain control and social mobility declined . As central government weakend,
early T'ang restraints on explotive landlordism, private commerce, and social mobility
withered away; and gradually the social and political eminence of the old aristocratic
class, the mainstay of early T'ang stability, was underminded by irreversible waves of
social change. By the end of the eighth century, trends were developing that would bring
about a vastly altered way of life in post T'ang age. (hucker 146) The T'ang Dynasty
would eventually fall in 914 giving way to a period of instability know as the five
dynasties era.
With the unification of the Chinese state, first under the Han, and then next primarily
under the T'ang, political and social concerns that preoccuoied early Confucian and
Legalist thinkers gave way to new forms of thinking and new areas of concentration. With
political stability now achieved, intellectuals could focus their energy on
administrative routines, politics and institution building. Metaphysical and cosmological
thinking, which had seemed rather capricious aberration in pre-Ch'in times now surged
into the mainstream of China's intellectual history. (Hucker pg. 191) Thinkers began to
contemplate larger questions of the universe and mans place in it. Taoism was given new
birth, and Buddhism began to capture the Chinese imagination.
In the arts and litterature, the most renowned achievements of China's early imperial age
were in historiography, poetry and Buddhist inspired statuary and paintings (Hucker 221).
China developed well orgainzed and detailed accounts in history to which no other society
can match over such a long period of time. Poetry became the persuit and passion of most
educated Chinese. Much of the poetry of the time was a reflection of inovations in music
and the performing arts, as well as other changes that were ongoing in China's cultural
development. Cultural changes were reflected in paintings and other forms of art such as
pottery. Chinese culture was to be of the envy of much of the surrounding areas, and was
emulated by Korea, Vietnam, and Japan. 
Of all of these cultural inovations poetry was the most prevalent, as it was persude by
most educated Chinese, and it reflected the feelings of the day, that of simplicity,
often influenced by renewed study of Taoism. One particual poem that I came across in my
reading was titled Resolutions on Walking with a Hangover on a Spring Morning
The world is like a great empty dream
Why should one toil away all one's life?
That is why I spend my days drinking,
Sprawled in a doze beside the front door.
Awaking, I blink at the courtyard before me.
A bird is singing among the flowers.
May I inquire, what season is this?
It's an oriole warbling in the springtime breeze!
I am almost moved to sighs and sobs, 
But I pour for myself another drink.
Lustily singing, I await the bright moon,
And by the end of the song I've forgotten my cares.
(Hucker pg 249)
This poem seems to indicate the carefree nature that many Chinese poets and thinker were
able to take during these times. It also seems to reflect a renewed interest in Taoism
and nature. 
The Early Empire, was indeed a time of great cultural growth in China. Philosophers were
able to contimplate much more than just how the society should be run, but they were able
to explore deeper areas of the human race and what their purpose was in the cosmos. This
ability to be able to sit back and reflect upon nature the cosmos, and society, was a
result of the stability of China. The Han and T'ang Dynasties brought with them strong
central government that focused on carring for the people and restructuring of the
beauraeaucatic system through advancement by achievement, not heiridity. This upward
mobility gave anyone from any class the chance to progress in Chinese society, and thus
the great thinkers, poets and artisans came not only from the small aristocratic
population, but rather from the entire vast population of China. This allowed the Chinese
culture to grow in all areas, so that they even rivaled great civilizations such as
Rome.
Bibliography
Hucker, Charles O. - China's Imperial Past.