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

The Ming dynasty was one of the most prosperous dynasties in ancient China and one of the most distinctive and important periods in the history of Chinese feudal society. The late Ming dynasty was an important turning point in social and economic development. In the context of social transformation, the development of commercial agriculture caused structural changes in the agricultural economy and rural society; the prosperity of regional commercial trade, the growth of merchant power and the formation of inter-regional market networks created a new stage in the development of regional commerce. This paper examines the economic development of the Dali region in the late Ming dynasty from a regional perspective against the backdrop of social transformations, taking into account the economic development of the region in the late Ming dynasty in terms of factor inputs and outputs of economic activities, foreign trade and commercial development, and finance and finance. The findings of this paper can provide a reference for deepening the study of regional economic history and promoting regional economic development.

Reviewed by: Fragile Scholar: Power and Masculinity in Chinese Culture Jennifer W. Jay Fragile Scholar: Power and Masculinity in Chinese Culture. By Geng Song. Hong Kong: Hong Kong University Press, 2004. Pg. 256. $39.50 (cloth). Despite a sweeping title, Fragile Scholar: Power and Masculinity in Chinese Culture, based on the author's doctoral thesis, is more narrowly focused on the masculinity of the caizi, translated by the author as "fragile scholar" (more accurately, "talented scholar"), who is the male protagonist found in a minor genre of Chinese literature, the "talented scholar meets beautiful girl" romantic fiction and drama. Student Zhang is the archetypal fragile scholar in the early-fourteenth-century drama Western Wing, itself based on an eighth-century short story, The Story of Yingying. His masculinity is characterized by a handsome demeanor, physical weakness, androgynous and effeminate looks, literary talent, heterosexual orientation, and persistence to the point of setting aside the civil service examinations and kneeling before a maid to pursue and consummate his love and yearning for the attractive girl, Yingying. [End Page 345] Song chiefly uses textual analysis to locate the constitution of the fragile scholar in the masculinity of elite men within a broader historical context, from the time of Confucius in 500 bce to the eighteenth century. Supported by a large array of selected literary and classical sources spanning over two thousand years, from The Book of Poetry to the eighteenth-century novel The Dream of the Red Chamber, he constructs two other masculinities driven by the mainstream ideology of Confucian patriarchy, that of the shi, the scholar-officials with education who were bound for a public office, and the junzi, men upholding morality and aspiring to public office, whom Song describes as the "signifier of the official masculinity in traditional China." In these two masculinities he accounts for the similarly submissive, effeminate voice of the fragile scholar by equating it with the "emasculation of the mind" of the official when he assumes the voice of women in addressing or writing poetry to their superiors and the rulers. Song is convincing when he traces this masculinity to the legendary Qu Yuan (ca. 300 bce), a paragon of loyalty and a major poet. But he is on shaky ground when he goes further back and includes The Book of Poetry's eunuchs, who were liminal and marginal individuals throughout the course of Chinese history. Student Zhang, the fragile scholar who temporarily rejects the Confucian prescriptive ideology, is seen as an alternate and ideal masculinity, a male fantasy with male voice and male perspective. After all, characters such as Student Zhang sprang from the imagination and literary production of the shi scholar-official class. But the fragile scholar's life course changes when he adopts Confucian ideology and protocol, passing the examinations and legitimizing his sexual tryst through parental- or ruler-sanctioned marriage. Song asserts that these two steps initiate Student Zhang into the desexualized and emasculated masculinities of the shi scholar-officials and of the junzi, the moral, public men, and he enters their public world and drops the private world of the fragile scholar. On the other hand, Baoyu from The Dream of the Red Chamber remains a fragile scholar and does not go through this initiation process. To explain why this effeminate image of the fragile scholar was accepted without the homophobia characteristic of the West Song includes a chapter on homosexuality as an alternate masculinity in traditional China. He argues that the homosexual discourse, as in the literary representations of the astonishing beauty of legendary figures Song Yu and Pan An, became subsumed in heterosexual discourse. In fact, homosexual practice, known as nanfeng, or male-southern custom, was generally accepted due to the traditional Chinese conceptualization of gender as a yin (female) and yang (male) binary from which all individuals emerge with male and female components. Homosexuality was seen as a shifting masculinity or bisexuality as individuals later assumed the mainstream Confucian path of heterosexual marriage and siring of children. The sexualized fragile scholar stands in sharp contrast to the desexualized macho male warriors in Three Kingdoms and Water Margin, historical novels [End Page 346] written in the fourteenth century. At the...

The formation of good character or morality is the core of national education goals as mandated by USPN No. 20 of 2003. To be implemented in life, the process of character building needs to be carried out in a systematic, systemic and continuous way, touching the physical and spiritual dimensions, which need to be built from before birth until the end of life. Pondok Pesantren as the oldest educational institution that is attached to the journey of the nation's life still exists and has been proven to contribute to the formation of the nation's character. Suryalaya Islamic Boarding School with its Sufism and Tarekat is more focused on spiritual education in shaping the character of its practitioners. This study aims to describe family education, riyadhah, and character, as well as how the relationship between these three variables in the formation of the character of TQN pontren Suryalaya practitioners. There are two steps in optimizing the character building of TQN Pontren Suryalaya practitioners. namely: First, family education is the first and foremost find that must be built by parents in their families, especially through example and habituation. Second, riyadhah in the qodiriyah naqsyabandiyah congregation is a ritual that must be carried out continuously and seriously starting from talqin dhikr, practicing dhikr, khataman, kiamullail, manakiban, and pilgrimage. To answer the research questions, a mixed-method (quantitative and qualitative approaches) was used, with survey methods and content analysis. This study concludes several things, namely: (1) The family education of TQN practitioners is generally good, although in this modern era there is a shift in the value of family education, especially role modeling and habituation. (2) Riyadhah is a ritual practice of TQN commanders that is carried out well and consistently, although some rituals such as manaqiban and pilgrimage are still carried out by certain circles due to time constraints, while the character of TQN practitioners is classified as good. (3) Family education is positively and significantly related to the character-building of TQN practitioners at Suryalaya Islamic Boarding School. (4) Riyadhoh is positively and significantly related to the formation of the character of TQN practitioners at the Suryalaya Islamic Boarding School. (5) Family education and Riyadh are positively and significantly related to the character building of the TQN practitioners of the Suryalaya Islamic Boarding School.

Abstract: This article first offers a postcolonial critique on Japanese colonial historiography and post-1945 South Korean historiography on Confucian tradition of Korea that they both have shared a very essentialized understanding on Confucian tradition of Korea as unique nature of Korean society based on the same overarching evolutionary modernization narrative in spite of their contradictingly different definition of it as either premodern backwardness or Confucian modernity. In order to go beyond these still dominant essentialized bipolar views on Confucian tradition of Korea, based on a transnational perspective, this paper seeks to show how post-1945 South Korean historiography has redefined Confucian tradition of Korea. Then, to do so, this paper tries to historicize post-1945 South Korean historiography's appropriation of Max Weber's bureaucracy and modernization theories from U.S. academia of social science and East Asian studies for its studies of Koryŏ-Chosŏn civil service examination and social status system. Then, this paper goes further to look at how post-1945 South Korean historiography on late Koryŏ and early Chosŏn history has struggled from 1945 to early 2000 to redefine and reinvent Confucian tradition of Korea such as Koryŏ-Chosŏn civil service examination as the unique origin of its own meritocratic modernity that is as close as "Western Modernity," based on this appropriation of Max Weber's bureaucracy and modernization theories. Then, this paper finally turns to rethink the meaning of this appropriation within the broader context of Cold War and South Korean postcoloniality.

A Longevity Mechanism of Chinese Absolutism

My analysis suggests that Weber's typology of domination - the cluster of patriarchalism, charisma, and law - does not fit Chinese history as it does European history. The typology has particular relevance in Europe because Weber purposefully developed types of domination that reflected and synthesized essential elements of Western historical experience: the struggles between kings and nobles, between popes and priests, between leaders and followers of all types. Deeply aware of the patterns of Western history, Weber understood that his concepts of analysis constituted “historical summaries,” not simply ideas and abstract beliefs but distillations of patterns of actions and of the justifications supporting and channeling those patterns. Roth, “Introduction,” xxx. Although Weber fashioned these ideal types from his knowledge of Western history, he wanted to make them genuinely “trans-epochal and transcultural” so that he could test, through “comparative mental experiment and imaginative extrapolation,” causal explanations about the course of Western history. Ibid. That the generations of students of Western society continue to learn from and struggle with Weber's concepts and historical theories demonstrates that Weber was hugely successful in his work. But are Weber's typologies as useful in the analysis of non-Western societies as they are in that of Europe? I have only dealt with Chinese society, but for this society my analysis suggests that the answer to this question is no. As Weber defined them, patriarchalism, charisma, and law do not apply to China in the way that they apply to Europe. They do not represent summaries of Chinese history; they do not distill the debates and struggles of two millenia; they do not tap those shared understandings that informed Chinese patterns of action. And because they do not gain an equivalent grasp of Chinese as they do of Western history, they are less useful and often very misleading when one uses them to analyze and explain the course of Chinese history. If those concepts do not get at the same reality in China, what is the logical status of the conclusions drawn from using them to analyze China? As I have attempted to show in this paper, they can be used to indicate through comparison what configurations are absent from China. But they are less useful in developing a genuine understanding of Chinese history. Therefore, to understand China, and perhaps most non-Western societies, Weber's typology of domination and particularly his analysis of traditional domination, should not be used directly as a summary of an underlying reality. Weber's warning about the “perniciousness” of Marxian concepts and theories when “they are thought of as empirically valid or real ‘effective forces’” should be applied with particular vigor to Weber's own concepts and theories when applied to non-Western societies. Max Weber, (Glencoe, 111.: Free Press, 1949), 103. But, by equal measure, if one assumes that Weber's typology of domination misrepresents non-Western societies in some regard, it still provides an example of the sort of conceptual framework needed to analyze the historical development of state structures in any society. Weber championed comparative research, because he believed without comparisons it was impossible to examine rigorously the course of history and to develop theories of historical change. Weber rightly believed that comparisons were only possible with generalized historical concepts. But to Weber, historical research does not lead to better or more general sociological theories. Instead, sociology, as Weber put it to a noted historian, “can perform ... very modest preparatory work” to an adequate historical analysis. , lviii. Concepts must lead the way to historical explanations and not the reverse. Similarly, Weber's analysis of the West provides the preparatory work for a better understanding of non-Western society. In this sense Weber's concepts are indispensable for the analysis of non-Western society, not because they are the last word, but because, along with other products of Western sociology, they are the first word, words that are used only to have their meanings altered by subsequent research. This, too, is the conclusion of Wolfgang Schluchter () 17: “Weber did not understand his terminology as a final one. This does not mean that it is unsystematic or only useful to specific problems, but the sequence of terms is not always obvious in its ramifications, and therefore it sometimes needs an explication or interpretation. A critically productive evaluation of Weber's work has to include a clarification of terminology and the investigation of the historic content.”

In recent years, the late Qing invention of national history has received considerable attention. Taking a “history of ideas” approach, scholars such as Prasenjit Duara, Rebecca Karl, Xiaobing Tang, Edward Wang, and Ying-shih Yu discuss how late Qing historians adopted foreign concepts such as the nation-state, linear progress, and scientific rationality. This chapter examines the late Qing historical discourse from the perspective of the social and political changes at the turn of the 20th century. Focusing on history textbooks, the author's premise is that the late Qing historical discourse emerged in a critical moment when the Qing government was building a national school system to replace the civil service examinations. Described by Ping-ti Ho as “the ladder of success” for the literati, the civil service examination system had been the main vehicle of social mobility for the educated elite for centuries. Keywords: civil service examination; foreign concepts; historical discourse; history textbooks; late Qing; national history; national school system; Qing government

The implementation of a regularly scheduled civil service examination every three years was a common feature of the civil service examination systems in Chosŏn Korea, Ming and Qing China, and Lê and Nguyễn Vietnam. In Chosŏn, however, the custom of implementing the civil service examination as an element of the rites marking the observance of “joyous occasions” (kyŏngsa 慶事) emerged in the fifteenth century. This particular type of examination was known as the “state celebration examination” (kyŏngkwa 慶科). As justifications for its implementation proliferated in the late Chosŏn period, the state celebration became the linchpin of the civil service examination system. While there emerged in China and Vietnam in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries the “grace examination” (Ch. enke 恩科), a conceivable counterpart to the Korean state celebration examination, the justifications for and frequency of this examination were comparatively restricted. The centrality of the state celebration examination could thus be described as an important and unique characteristic of the civil service examination system in Korea. This article investigates the question of why state celebration examinations were held in Chosŏn. It focuses on the process by which the state celebration examination became so frequent in the late Chosŏn period in terms of the increasingly diverse justifications for its implementation.

Reviews 93 Benjamin A. Elman and Alexander Woodside, editors. Education and Society in Late Imperial China, 1600-1900. Berkeley, Los Angeles, and London: University ofCalifornia Press, 1994. xvi, 575 pp. Hardcover $65.00. Traditional Chinese education is not an easy topic, because it is so intertwined with the problem of state ideological control. Even the institutional history of Chinese education is difficult, because not only the immense diversity ofpractices throughout a vast region over time defies simple presentation, but the official records on government schools, which are encumbered with a complex, archaic symbolism and a kaleidoscope ofbureaucratic names, are also frustrating for even the most diligent student. Moreover, the record ofdie education ofa nation is basically diat nation's history. Any serious student cannot pretend not to understand this most fundamental point about a nation's self-image and character, and how it comes to be the way it is. In a remarkable way, this collection ofessays has succeeded in dealing with almost all of these problem areas and has presented us, with admirable lucidity, an account ofhow late imperial China viewed itselfand how, on the eve of "modern " education, China sought to redefine itself within its social and political parameters . But above all, this book provides a definitive answer to the question of how the Manchu state interacted with the Chinese gentry community in the sphere ofeducation and how the civil service examination system was related to die educational experiences ofindividual scholars. With the publication of this book, we are now better able to perceive the positive roles played by a local society in a despotic state. This revised picture gives ample evidence of the editors' vision and originality. It is also an important corrective to the conventional view that has dominated our interpretation of Confucian education in the past halfcentury . The editors, in their introduction, make it clear that this book seeks to substantiate with historical evidence the contention that the Neo-Confucian education diat began in the Sung was by no means "debilitating" and "rigid" (p. 2), and that, instead, Neo-Confucian education contributed to the success of present-day East Asia. Even if one does not agree with this pronouncement, one still can find much to learn in this volume. Four basic issues were given special attention during the conference upon which this volume is based: the relationship of the late imperial state to education ; the totality of the civil service examination experience (i.e., how important it© 1995 by University was tQ educauon and whether it served to define scholarship [orthodoxy]); how of awai? resseducation created national and individual identity; and, finally, how education affected the accumulation and use ofknowledge. 94 China Review International: Vol. 2, No. 1, Spring 1995 Any reader of this volume will be immediately impressed by die fact that the state seemed to be nearly omnipresent in Chinese education, although for an experienced Chinese historian, this volume actually suggests the active participation ofthe local, and somewhat independent, gentry leaders in the creation and management of education at all levels. The editors' afterword clearly confirms this (p. 527). The pictures presented by several authors show that there was a high degree oflocal activism, and hence elite autonomy. I only wish that someone had taken into consideration die alien nature of the Manchu regime and offered an explanation for this special Ch'ing dynasty phenomenon. I believe that its alien identity was a major factor behind die comparatively tolerant attitude adopted by Ch'ing rulers toward die Chinese gentry—and, for that matter, European missionaries , at least in the first half ofthe dynasty. Hints at local activism are found in Kent Guy's excellent study on Fang Pao's attempt to use the civil service examination to influence scholarly pursuits. The examination itselfwould seem to be only a gauge of changing scholarly orientation , a point Elman demonstrates with force by examining hitherto littie-studied examination essays that unmistakably reflected the intellectual trends developing almost independendy, outside state control. Similarly, the autonomy of the elite comes out clearly in Angela Leung's study on charitable schools and in Barry Keenan's study ofa post-T'ai-p'ing academy, in which he points to...

This study aimed to test and prove through data collection that the formation of the character of Christ in adolescents is influenced by the implementation of Christian religious education in the family and parenting patterns. The research method used in this research was the survey method - correlational. Based on the data analysis, the results showed that: 1) Christian religious education in the family had a significant effect on the formation of the character of Christ in adolescents; 2) Parenting patterns have a significant effect on the formation of Christ's character in adolescents; 3) Christian religious education in the family and parenting patterns together have a significant effect on the formation of the character of Christ. Thus, efforts to form the character of Christ in adolescents can be done by increasing the intensity of the implementation of Christian religious education in the family and increasing the right parenting pattern.

The purpose of this study was to determine and examine how family education contributes to the formation of Islamic character in early childhood (ages 0-5 years) in Talaga 1 Village, Talaga Raya District, Central Buton Regency. To determine the influence of the family on the formation of children's character within the framework of Islamic faith, this study used qualitative methodology. The methods used to obtain data in qualitative descriptive research are documentation, interviews, and observations. Based on the results of the study, the family is the main educational factor that significantly influences and plays an active role in the formation of Islamic character through the instillation of moral values and good behavior. This study highlights the importance of the role of parents in instilling awareness and involvement in daily life education in children. In addition, this study can also provide knowledge about the role of the family as the main foundation for the formation of Islamic character in children. Thus, it is clear that parents have a very important role in efforts to form Islamic character in children.

There is still a dearth of emphasis on the family environment, particularly on family education, despite the fact that a lot of attention has been devoted to the psychological difficulties that kids face in schools, such as anxiety, mental health concerns, and bullying. The engagement of parents in the education of their children is essential for the development of emotional intelligence, the instillation of values, and the promotion of self-discipline and responsibility. The purpose of this study is to analyze the ways in which family education plays an important role in the formation of children’s emotional, intellectual, and moral foundations. This paper argues that the method and content of family education have an important impact on students’ growth. This influence covers the development of students’ character, moral character, personal academic achievement and career development. However, at present, there are still problems such as insufficient concepts and improper methods in family education. Therefore, parents should create a good environment for their students, and at the same time improve their own educational concepts and methods.

A counterpart of what is known as “European exceptionalism”—political stability and institutional arrangement that enabled modern economic growth and political development—is a “Chinese anomaly.” This anomaly takes the form of a sharp contrast with premodern Europe: Chinese imperial rulers stayed in power longer than their European counterparts, but this political stability was accompanied by a high level of institutional stasis. In this article, we argue that a well-known Chinese institution, the civil service examination (CSE) system, contributed to China’s imperial longevity. We use detailed historical data on individual CSE performance to demonstrate the longevity-contributory mechanisms of CSE—constraining access to power by aristocrats and other wealth holders. We argue that a key to unpacking the so-called Chinese anomaly is to understand the role of bureaucracy in political development in China and potentially in other regions.

This book is a path-breaking study of print culture in early modern China. It argues that printing with both woodblocks and movable type exerted a profound influence on Chinese society in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries. The book examines the rise and impact of print culture from both economic and cultural perspectives. In economic terms, the central issues were the price of books and the costs of book production. Chow argues that contrary to accepted views, inexpensive books were widely available to a growing literate population. An analysis of the economic and operating advantages of woodblock printing explains why it remained the dominant technology even as the use of movable type was expanding. The cultural focus shows the impact of commercial publishing on the production of literary culture, particularly on the civil service examination. The expansion of the book market produced publicity for literary professionals whose authority came to challenge the authority of the official examiners.

This book is a path-breaking study of print culture in early modern China. It argues that printing with both woodblocks and movable type exerted a profound influence on Chinese society in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries. The book examines the rise and impact of print culture from both economic and cultural perspectives. In economic terms, the central issues were the price of books and the costs of book production. Chow argues that contrary to accepted views, inexpensive books were widely available to a growing literate population. An analysis of the economic and operating advantages of woodblock printing explains why it remained the dominant technology even as the use of movable type was expanding. The cultural focus shows the impact of commercial publishing on the production of literary culture, particularly on the civil service examination. The expansion of the book market produced publicity for literary professionals whose authority came to challenge the authority of the official examiners.