Studies, cultivation of the mind, and formation of character: The life of scholars in Jiangnan in the Late Ming Dynasty

Abstract

During the late Ming Dynasty, the region of Jiangnan fostered a high number of remarkable figures who had extensive and important influence on the living world of officials and gentry as a whole. Apart from the requirements of the imperial civil service examination system, the family or clan’s education of descendants was particularly important. With respect to the plan for the life of a scholar, the civil service examinations were an avenue or ladder to becoming an outstanding member of society or entering the realm of success, and by this means, one could potentially achieve the objectives of wealth and high rank recognized by secular society. Progress in one’s studies lay at the heart of family culture and education, and this was naturally largely tied to the civil services examinations, while also being related to expectations regarding political life and service to the state, but for the most part, a fair degree of attention was also given to cultivation of the mind and the formation of character. This was not merely localized, but furthermore has had profound and far-reaching influence on Chinese society since the late Ming Dynasty. Further examination or analysis on these levels not only aids in revealing the atmosphere in that era, but furthermore also contributes to clearing such paradigmatic historical memories and impartially observing the shape of the lives of local intellectuals over the course of history at large. Setting out from Jiangnan allows us to better understand the sociocultural history of China since the traditional era as well as the living world of the Chinese people.