Han Dynasty

Jorn Tumrongwit
Thanit Chitavatanabhakdi
1005
Economy Questions
What proof is there that the ideas practiced by the dynasty affected the
economic system? (Focus on role that government played in the economy)

In Han dynasty, there was a huge rise of population. It increased from 20 million to
60 million. So, the ruler needed to find the way to control the population. The ruler used
feudalism, which is a renting society. That caused the farmers to became the most populous
class, but were in the lowest class of the social structure.

The main jobs in Han dynasty were Artisans, merchants, Nobles, Officials, Pleasents,
Slaves, Farmers and Soldiers.

The dynasty mainly bought grain and sold it at stable prize. The dynasty also
monopolized the salt and iron industries in that era.

The Silk Road, which was invented in 206 BC - 24 AD, linked the two superpowers
empire, China and Rome. The Han dynasty traded grains, fibers, and mostly silk with the
western people through the Silk Road and and in return they got new foods such as grapes,
figs and cucumbers from Southern Asia. They also got Furs from Central Asia and glass
from Rome.

The Han dynasty invented a lot of technology and a lot of them is known across the
globe such as magnetic compasses, loom, paper, the silk road, wheelbarrow, cast iron, hot
air balloon, and the seismograph. The silk road is created mainly to trade the silk that they
made with European. The most famous invention is the invention of paper making process.
Cai lun is the guy who receive the credit for this invention, he used Mulberry bark as the
main ingredient.

How did the ideas the dynasty had affect people's jobs and economic
status at the different levels of society?

The Han dynasty use feudalism to rule their people, with the nobles having
centralized power. Because there were a huge increase in population, there were less
resources and farmers became the most populous class. They taught people that they need
to listen and obey to their parent with the teachings of Confucianism, and set the ruler as
someone high in the hierarchy ranking so that they need to obey and follow him.

There are 4 social classes that existed which is The Emperor, The upper class, the
middle class and the lower class. The Emperor was the most powerful person in the dynasty,
being the one who made the Decisions within the country
The Emperor had the most money because he was the most powerful person and
ruled everything in the dynasty, and the upper class also gained a lot money because they
worked in the kingdom and was close to the Emperor. The middle class had less money
than the upper class but still higher than the lower class. Their jobs are based on skills and
expertise. Finally, the lower class had the least money compared to the other classes
because their jobs were mostly craftsmens who made the weapon and other stuff and their
status is even lower than the farmer and other jobs.

The social class would determine the jobs that you had, The Emperor was the ruler
and their job was to control and hire other people. The upper class would be the most
knowledgeable and would had their own land in the kingdom. The middle class’s jobs would
be based on using their skills, such as blacksmiths. They mostly lived a comfortable life.
Finally, the lower class jobs were based on making useful tools for the kingdom, and had
only little say in matter to the society and hardly owned a land. Only some of them that had
enough money to rise up in the social class would live a comfortable life.
Political Questions:
What proof is there that the ideas practiced by the dynasty affected the
political system? (Focus on how the dynasties ideas are reflected in the
government and how it works)

During Emperor Han Wudi’s rule, he promoted the idea of Confucianism over
legalism, which legitimized the power of the emperors and helps supports the system of
feudalism. Furthermore, there are civil-service examinations, which officials have to take
before they get their rank. The exam tests their knowledge of Confucianism, which cements
the belief of the philosophies of Confucianism in the officials' consciousness, and also
judges people’s rank in society based on intelligence rather than birthright.

The dynasty was ruled in two sections with two different way of controlling their
territory. Self-independent territories, or princedoms, are ruled by a prince, titled as a king or
marquess. High-ranking official can also be titled a marquess. The territory is under that
family’s rule until the line died out. Other territories are ruled by the emperor. It was
administered by the governor and the defender (military governor). Inspectors and governors
were assigned with the task to inspect and assess the work of regional administrators. the
capital was at Chang’an, then moved to Luoyang in late Han. Government officials have to
take the civil service examinations to be able to become an official. The grand school was
also built in emperor Han Wudi’s rule so young males can study what will be tested.
However, the inequality in this school was that the people who got enrolled in that school are
usually rich folks.

The government, in a way, used the philosophies of Confucianism to make the

nobles act justly towards citizens. However, having Confucianism as their main philosophy
led to the Nobles having more power over the citizens. This is due to the fact that
Confucianism promoted the belief of hierarchy and humanitarianism. The humanitarianism
part instilled virtue into the government officials, but also raised the nobles’ power over
others as the nobles would present themselves as someone high in the hierarchy, so they
would have higher power over the citizens.

Most of the laws in the Han Dynasty was passed on from the Qin Dynasty, but many
cruel punishments, such as torture and mutilations, were discarded. There are two types of
laws, penal laws and administrative law. The administrative laws were made by imperial
edicts and decrees of the emperor, and the penal laws are passed on from the Han dynasty.
The laws were, however, still unfair. The rich could simply pay the officials to lower the
severity of their punishment, but the poor would not have enough money to do so.
 The first emperor of the Han dynasty, emperor Gaozu (formerly named Liu Bang
during the time of the Qin Dynasty) raised an army to claim the vacant throne after the death
of Emperor Qin Shi Huangdi. He was a commoner before becoming a government official.
After quelling multiple rebellion, he rose to power as an Emperor. The eldest son would rise
to power by receiving the title of emperor that was passed on from their fathers.
The Han Dynasty had a big influence, especially with the completion of the silk road.
This caused the mix of culture between civilizations, such as religion, culture, products, etc.
The Han also expanded their civilization by quite a lot towards the south, which is Northern
Vietnam.

How did the political ideas of the dynasty affect people in the different
social classes?
The dynasty ruled with the idea of feudalism, which means the the farmers would sell
their land to those who can afford it and the farmers would need to pay the land rent. Also,
those in higher power would present themselves as someone high in the hierarchy ranking,
which would make the citizens more obedient with the belief of Confucianism.

In the Han Dynasty, the emperor and empress is ranked at the top of he social
structure, followed by upper classes (bureaucrats and aristocrats), middle classes (farmers
and skilled laborers), and lower classes (slaves). Even though farmers are ranked in the
middle, realistically, farmers are almost, or even, at the bottom of the social structure due to
the effects of feudalism.

The social that would be able to participate in the government would be the Emperor
and Empress, since they are the highest ruler, and the upper classes, consisting of various
government officials. However, that did not mean that those in the lower classes have no
chance in participating in the government. They could take the civil examination test and
become a government official themselves. There are still inequalities with the fact that those
who get to study in the grand school for the test are usually very rich, but they still have a
chance if they are knowledgeable enough.

With the opening of the silk road, Han Dynasty viewed different societies as someone
who they can trade with. Other than that, they see the nomadic societies, mainly the Huns,
as enemies which they have to fend off.
Social Questions:
How did the economic situation or decisions made by the government
affect the different social classes?

The level their of society were divided into 3 tiers. The top of the society class,
second tier of the social class and Third class citizens. The highest of The Han dynasty is
the Emperor, who ruled the kingdom and was top of the hierarchy system, followed by
governors and kings. The second tier of social class was the farmers and peasants. The
Third class of the social class is mainly the craftsmen and artisans, they make the tools for
the upper tier to use.

The primary role of women was to raise her child and other household duties such as
cooking and cleaning. They have no say in any family except about child raising. The women
were only supposed to produce a male offspring, and the kid would learn man’s duties.
When they grew up, they would be traded-off to their dad and learn the hands-on
experiences with their father.

With the opening of the silk road, the economy was very prosperous during Han
dynasty. Those in the top classes and merchants definitely profited from this prosperity, as
there were much more chances to trade with other countries. However, those in lower
classes and farmers did not profit from the opening of the silk road, since their income is
lessened with the system of feudalism, while the other classes would not be affected.

How were the ideas of the dynasty shown in the arts and technology?
The philosophy that was widespread in the Han Dynasty is Confucianism, replacing
the previously used Legalism which was used in the Qin dynasty. Buddhism was also first
introduced to China in this dynasty. Most of the writings in this dynasty was either about
philosophy or for the emperor’s entertainment.

The arts of Han dynasty was to represent history and/or everyday lives. The types of
poetry that were prominent in this era was prose and gushi. prose was to write about
philosophy, and gushi was refinements of various folk songs. On the subject of songs, the
Han Dynasty reopened yuefu, or music bureau, to collect songs and musical scores. Silk
was the most important textile at that time, since Chinese silk was one of their main trading
product.

Han dynasty had a great leap in technology when it comes to agriculture.

Wheelbarrows allows farmers and workers to move objects more easily. Mechanised pumps
were used for irrigations, which worked by using a pole or counterweights. Ploughs were
improved with the improvement of metalwork by having two blades instead of one. The
improvement of metalworks also improved the quality of Han Dynasty weapons and
artilleries, such as swords and armors. Han’s weaponry has also seen a significant
improvement and usage of crossbows

Han dynasty arts, such as poems and musics, were used in everyday lives mainly as
entertainment. The emperor would have special musics and poems specially created for
him. The technology in Han dynasty is mainly used for improvement in everyday lives, most
noticeably in agriculture. The technologies that were improved in this dynasty was also used
to improve the country’s defenses.
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