Fall 2012

Chinese Civilization to 1800

Listed in: Asian Languages and Civilizations, as ASLC-124  |  History, as HIST-171

Formerly listed as: ASLC-24  |  HIST-15

Faculty

Jerry P. Dennerline (Section 01)

Description

(Offered as HIST 171 [ASP] and ASLC 124 [C].) A survey of Chinese history from ancient times to the eighteenth century. We will focus on texts and artifacts to explore the classical roots and historical development of Chinese statecraft, philosophy, religion, art, and literature. Using these media for evidence, we will trace the histories of inter-state relations, imperial institutions, global commerce, and family-based society through the ancient Han empire, the great age of Buddhism, the medieval period of global trade, and the Confucian bureaucratic empires that followed the Mongol world conquest. We will also compare these histories to those of European and other civilizations, considering Chinese and non-Chinese views of the past. Readings include the Analects of Confucius and other Confucian and Daoist texts, Buddhist tales and early modern fiction, selections from the classic Records of the Grand Historian (Shiji), and Jonathan Spence’s Emperor of China: Self-portrait of Kangxi. Two class meetings per week.

Fall semester. Professor Dennerline.

HIST 171 - L/D

Section 01
Tu 02:30 PM - 03:50 PM CONV 302
Th 02:30 PM - 03:50 PM CONV 302

ISBN Title Publisher Author(s) Comment Book Store Price
Analects D.C. Lau, trans. Amherst Books TBD
Open Empire: History of China to 1600 Hansen, Valerie Amherst Books TBD
Emperor of China: Self-Portrait of K'Ang-Hsi Spence, Jonathan Amherst Books TBD
Hsun Tzu: Basic Writings Watson, Burton, trans. Amherst Books TBD
Mencius D.C. Lau, trans. Amherst Books TBD
Stories from a Ming Collection Birch, Cyril Amherst Books TBD
Tale of Two Melons: Emperor and Subject in Ming China Schneewind, Sarah Amherst Books TBD

These books are available locally at Amherst Books.

Offerings

2024-25: Not offered
Other years: Offered in Fall 2007, Fall 2008, Fall 2009, Fall 2010, Fall 2011, Fall 2012, Fall 2013