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Denis VovchenkoGreat movie on the rise of Genghis Khan made in 2007, it was available from Netflix https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0416044/
Denis Vovchenko
Ayse Zarakol’s critically acclaimed “Before the West” focuses on the Chingisid pioneering notion of sovereignty. It has a chapter on the Mongol influences on the post-Yuan Ming dynasty.
Denis VovchenkoHi, Isaac,
I am glad your 3rd graders are less sensitive to role play!
I like the idea of presenting polar opposites like Gandhi and Malcolm X in lieau of a role play!
Denis VovchenkoGoing back to Clay’s lecture, the Jurchens and the Khitay seem sidelined in most secondary account and primary source collections. Did they continue any Tang and Northern Song practices? For example, were elite women under the Jurchens able to enjoy a degree of prominence they had in the Tang courts (like riding horses etc)?
Marco Polo’s “Cathay” is derivative of “Khitay”, right? In Russian, even today “China” is “Kitay.”
Denis VovchenkoHow widespread was slavery in Song China? From the Attractions of the Capital, it seems that there were no slave markets. We can assume that most prostitutes were enslaved persons as in the Roman Empire, right?
Denis VovchenkoI posted those comments in our last week's forum but here they are just in case.
Clay’s Q = how effective are debates and simulations? Post on Db.
My experience with historical debates has not been very positive. Their success depends on all students’ preparing carefully and not taking offense if someone’s performance is not in keeping with today’s “political correctness.” I had two groups of students debate the Crusades and at least two students “forgot” that it was just a role-play and became upset.
Your father broke the law knowingly. What should you do as a Legalist?
As a prominent Legalist scholar, I would use my influence at the royal court and other high circles of power to obtain a pardon issued by our illustrious and generous sovereign. Long live the Emperor! Even if my father committed a crime, the Legalist school of thought advocated harsh punishments only for the lower classes who can’t otherwise control their base bestial instincts. There may be exceptions like my father who prove the rule that the educated gentlemen general behave virtuously.
Denis Vovchenko
Hangzhou description mentioned various shops, I was curious about the “candy center” and the “wine chambers” – was candy sugar-based at that time (1200s)? Was wine just plum- and rice-based?
Denis VovchenkoAsking students if it matters whether Marco Polo really visited China.
I would try to guide the discussion in two directions – I would remind the students of the Prester John legend who was clearly legendary (although eventually identified by the Portuguese with the Ethiopian dynasty). Even if Marco Polo’s travels were just a collection of fairy tales, it would have had the same impact as it did inspiring Columbus among many other Europeans to head to Asia. On the other hand, I would present a history detective view. Proving Marco Polo right or exposing him as a fraud are legitimate avenues for real scholarly research (as Morris Rossabi has done).
Denis VovchenkoHave students compare Mongol rule of China and other areas. Were Mongol priorities different from Tang, Song, and Ming rulers? Was the Manchu approach different? What worked? What didn’t?
The textbook I chose for my world history survey (Strayer-Nelson, Ways of the World, 5th edition) has a chapter on Mongol Eurasia with a big section comparing their control of Russia, Persia, and China.
From my limited understanding, Tang and Mongol rulers were similar in their expansionist drive. Song and Ming dynasties were less interested in conquest especially into Central Asia. Characteristically, the Ming rulers focused on the defense of their northern areas fearing another Mongol invasion. The Manchus seem similar to the Mongols even more than the Tang. The Manchus also privileged themselves and borderland minorities like the Mongols and Xingjian Turks over the Han majority.
Denis VovchenkoMy experience with historical debates has not been very positive. Their success depends on all students’ preparing carefully and not taking offense if someone’s performance is not in keeping with today’s “political correctness.” I had two groups of students debate the Crusades and at least two students “forgot” that it was just a role-play and became upset.
Denis Vovchenko
As a prominent Legalist scholar, I would use my influence at the royal court and other high circles of power to obtain a pardon issued by our illustrious and generous sovereign. Long live the Emperor! Even if my father committed a crime, the Legalist school of thought advocated harsh punishments only for the lower classes who can’t otherwise control their base bestial instincts. There may be exceptions like my father who prove the rule that the educated gentlemen generally behave virtuously.
Denis VovchenkoWhy is Mohism less popular in China and unknown in America?
I suspect Mohism was silenced because it challenged the state-sponsored ideologies (Confucianism, Legalism, and even Buddhism in the Tang period) more than Daoism did. Unlike Daoism, Mohism did not develop a quack medicine arm, whose promise of mercury-induced immortality appealed even to the tough founder of the Qin dynasty. Swept under the rug in China, the Mohists were not well-known in the West either, as I understand it.
Denis VovchenkoLet me try to answer Clay’s question from the first video – Have you seen early Chinese thought in popular culture? How would you share such examples with the students?
The Monkey King stories include elements of Confucianism, Buddhism, and Daoism.
The Journey to the West - a classic Chinese 16th-century novel strongly promoted Daoism and Buddhism inspiring several modern film adaptations. I suspect that the novel might have had a huge influence on The Wizzard of Oz. It would be easy to relate many Buddhist concepts to students. Upon googling anything on that connection, It seems that nobody else saw obvious parallels except for this short post. I should probably write a paper about it.
https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/wonderful-wizard-oz-v-journey-west-dominique-n-thieu-l-i-o-n-
Denis VovchenkoExtra teaching resources:
I was going this teaching resource that I used in many online discussions to help students visualize the readings. It is a good documentary on China’s environmental catastrophe in the early 2000s
Denis VovchenkoClay mentioned that huge water scarcity in China led to a gigantic engineering project to bring water from south to north. Those efforts will not be enough if industrial water pollution continues at the same rate. From Levitt’s article on Ma Jun it seems that there is little progress in the reduction of waste dumped into China’s rivers, right?
That Guardian piece was published in 2015 so one would expect that things are less bleak now.
There may be a bias on the part of the author – he wrote off the government efforts and pinned all hope on the common citizens and the multinational corporations. While large-scale corruption complicates the enforcement of green initiatives, Beijing does deserve a credit on that front.
Correct me if I am wrong but already by 2015 China produced more solar panels and wind turbines than anyone else making that technology much more affordable. China had long beat USA and France in the number of new nuclear power plants constructed every year domestically and internationally (and is second only to Russia in that market niche). Another energy success was to build in many countries in Africa and Asia coal power plants using Chinese coal. That way Chinese miners are staying busy as China is replacing coal with natural gas and renewables (Carolyn Kissane published a couple of good articles about China’s green turn in 2021 and 2022). In contrast, a similar policy of financing coal plant construction overseas did not enable Japan to reduce its dependence on coal (according to Tabuchi 2020).
