Culture In the Ming Dynasty

Porcelain, the Hanlin Academy, court eunuchs, and steamed glutinous rice are just a few of the variety of things that made up the culture of the Ming dynasty.

Porcelain was such a large part of life in China then because of the amount of it that was traded and brought in income. Artists decorated porcelain with images of lotuses and vines with blue paint that was made from cobalt. Flower designs represented the different seasons. Peonies for spring, lotus blossoms for summer, chrysanthemums for fall, and plum blossoms for winter.

The Hanlin Academy was an academy of scholars who wrote letters, treaties, historical documents, and poetry. Hanlin means the forest of writing brushes.

Stone pieces and bricks were glued together with egg white and steamed glutinous rice to form the building blocks of a structure. Builders made the frame work of the roof before putting up the walls. The walls weren't used for support as they were just screens.

Court eunuchs were forced to be illiterate and weren't allowed to have any part in government. They helped to control the emperor's palace, wives, and concubines.

Bibliography

Works Cited

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“Buddhism A brief discussion of Buddhist traditions: East & West.” Religious Tolerance. N.p., n.d. Web. 26 Feb. 2011. <http://www.religioustolerance.org/buddhism2.htm>.

“Confucianism.” Open History. N.p., n.d. Web. 26 Feb. 2011. <http://www.openhistory.org/jhdp/intro/node35.html>.

“Jin Ping Mei (The Golden Lotus) Summary and Reviews.” BookAPex. N.p., n.d. Web. 26 Feb. 2011. <http://www.bookapex.com/Jin-Ping-Mei-The-Golden-Lotus-1596544643.htm>.

Kleeman, Terry, and Tracy Barrett. The Ancient Chinese World. New York, New York: Oxford University Press, 2005. Print.

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“Taoism (a.k.a. Daoism) Concepts, beliefs, practices, symbol, names, Tai Chi, courses, & objects.” Religious Tolerance. N.p., n.d. Web. 26 Feb. 2011. <http://www.religioustolerance.org/taoism2.htm>.

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Interview with Dong Qichang

Question: What is unique about your paintings?
Answer: Many people consider my paintings to be dark. I like to call them real. Life is not a fairytale--there is some darkness in it. Also, there are no humans in my art.

Question: You divided Chinese painters into two different categories. One of these categories was the Southern School. What can you say about the Southern School?
Answer: The Southern School consisted of landscape painters, literati of the Yuan, and Ming painters. These artists were thoughtful men. They read much which led them to the understanding of the world around them. Since the artists of the Southern School were amateurs they expresses their feelings in their art. This is a very good thing.

Question: The other category was the Northern School. What can you say about this?
Answer: The Northern School housed the imperial court painters. They compromised their talents by following a strict procedure. Their paintings weren't art. I prefer the Southern School by a great deal. There is not much else to say on the matter.

Question: What attracts you to painting serious landscapes?
Answer:  As I said before, it is life. Yes, life can have a playful light to it but much of life is also serious. I like to paint the truth. If I am feeling serious, I will paint serious.

Question: Who would you consider one of the greater Ming artists of the 16th century?
Answer:  Most definitely Wen Zhengming! He paints unusual works of art and never stops to wonder if others judge him. This is something I admire as it is not one of my finest strengths.

Novels

     During the Ming Dynasty, the Chinese novel was developed. Most novels were written in the basic language that the people of China used everyday, called vernacular. What were considered to be the first four real novels, The Romance of the Three Kingdoms, The Water Margin, Golden Lotus, and The Monkey King, were created during the Ming dynasty. Chinese novels were generally about good versus evil. They usually included passages about everyday life mixed with the philosophical thoughts of scholars' writings. Lots of these stories were actually written by philosophers but they used pen names to disguise themselves.

     Storytelling had previously been the way to share a story but with novels you didn't have to rely on someone else to entertain you; the book would. The invention was important because it led to our current books and for many, many years books have been a main form of entertainment.

Taoism, Buddhism, and Confucianism

Taoism, also known as Daoism, Buddhism, and Confucianism were the three major philosophies and religions in the Ming dynasty.

Taoism is not a set religion but more of a mixture of teachings based on revelations. Taoism teaches people to follow "wu wei." Wu wei is about the act of doing nothing - letting nature take its course. Taoists think that people are naturally good and that they will be good on their own without expecting a reward or a punishment.

Buddhism has three basic teachings: nothing is permanent, everything you do has a consequence, and that change can happen. Meditation is Buddhism's main practice. Meditation is letting go of all thoughts and drifting into a conscious unconsciousness.

Confucianism teaches that people should respect their superior. Relationships are very important to followers of Confucianism. Parent to child, husband to wife, older sibling to younger sibling, ruler to follower, and friend to friend are the five relationships observed in Confucianism. Confucius believed that if everyone went along with their role in life, that was based on their relationship with others, the world would be stable.

These three religions and philosophies played a large part in the culture of the Ming dynasty, as without it, there wouldn't be a base to the lifestyles and the beliefs of the people.

Map of Ming Dynasty

During the Ming Dynasty, some important cities were Nanjing, the capital where the Imperial Palace was located, Beijing, Hangzhou, Guangzhou, Kaifeng, Xi'an, and Chengdu. Nanjing, which was previously named Jinling, was located at the juncture between the Yangzi River and the Grand Canal. Mount Zhong bordered the northern side of Nanjing. Beijing was also important seeing as it is where the Temple of Heaven was built during the Ming Dynasty, which was the place for the emperor to worship his ancestors and pray for a good harvest.

As you can see, current China has expanded a great deal and has many more established cities and towns. This map also shows how many of China's rivers and canals extend from China to other countries. 

Editorial

    The Prince of Yan burned down the Imperial Palace and this was awful because the only reason he did was so that he could swoop in and steal the throne. Zhu Di was only thinking from his perspective when he did all of this. He wasn't trying to "help" China or anything like that since at the time China wasn't actually having any sort of problems; he simply wanted the throne. It wasn't fair to Jianwen, Empress Ma, or the people of China. Zhu Di was a very selfish man and even though he brought good things to China in the end, most of what he did in the beginning of his life in a governmental position (starting with being the Prince of Yan and then going on to be emperor) was ridiculous and wrong. The Imperial Palace was a historical landmark. It was also the private property of Emperor Jianwen, who Zhu Di killed during the burning along with Empress Ma. Then for selfish reasons, Zhu Di went on to change the legal records, naming Empress Ma his mother. Zhu Di didn't seem to understand that at the time being emperor wasn't something that you decided for yourself; it was passed down through the family. Even though Hongwu (Jianwen's father, the previous emperor) did actually want Zhu Di, instead of Jianwen, to become emperor, Zhu Di should not have taken over the position. Being emperor was rightfully Jianwen's and Zhu Di pretty much just stole that from him. Zhu Di was a selfish man and burning the Imperial Palace was a selfish act.

Zhu Di Burns the Imperial Palace

    Just yesterday, the Prince of Yan attacked the capital at Nanjing! Dragging his troops behind him, he refused to comply with Jianwen's generals at the gate. Zhu Di marched through the gates and burned the Imperial Palace to a crisp. "Watching the palace burn made tears come to my eyes. I had never seen something so tragic!" says a guard. Many bodies were found under the ashes and two were suspected to be Jianwen and Empress Ma, though nobody is sure just yet. Details as to what Zhu Di is planning on doing are also not out yet as he hasn't shared with anyone. An anonymous person says, "I suspect Zhu Di is wishing to become the third emperor of the Ming dynasty. That's what I would do if I were him."

     Three years prior to this, in 1399, the Prince of Yan began the long and hard battle to get into the Imperial City. In May, 1400, they fought along the Baigou River in Zhuozhuo. Zhu Di's army, once again, won. But by 1401, he had lost over 10,000 troops and so decided to use guerrilla tactics. Nobody knows exactly what kept him so stubborn and so intended on continuing the war but, lucky for him, he did and now he has won!