Feudal Era Research Articles

A Comparative Study of the Divorce Systems of the Tang Dynasty and Japan at the same Era

The system of divorce, which is a very important part of the marriage system, also formed a complete system and developed to its peak in the feudal era of the Tang Dynasty. In the process of economic, cultural and political exchanges between the Tang Dynasty and other countries, the divorce system of the late Asuka Period, the Nara Period and the early Heian Period in Japan, which corresponded to the Tang Dynasty, had a certain influence. This paper mainly combines the historical material "Tang Laws and Regulations" and Japanese "Pension Laws", "Household Marriage Laws" and other laws to carry out theoretical research, literature research method, and comparative research method. In the process of transplantation of Chinese law, it also reflects the different social ideologies of two different countries for the divorce system, and it produces a certain difference for the maintenance of harmonious family relations, social stability, and the sense of well-being of the divorce system to different.

When ‘the broken’ breaks through: politics of struggle and solidarity in Manchadikkari

ABSTRACT Manchadikkari is a region in central Kerala occupied primarily by Dalit Christian communities. The majority of the people in the area are agricultural daily wage workers who have been economically and culturally marginalized. Caste discrimination and exploitation mark their past and present. The people in Manchadikkari articulate powerful anti-caste politics through their creative cultural productions like songs, stories, and plays that take shape in their community groups. The remembrance and reiteration of caste experiences in these community groups keep alive the history of caste exploitation and transmit these memories to the next generation. This paper analyses the play Azhakante Kutil (‘Azhakan’s Hut’), authored by Thankamma Titus from Manchadikkari in 2021 and performed by a group of women who are members of the community group ‘Sanjeevani.’ This study considers the processes of conceptualization, production, and performance of the play to show how these processes embody anti-caste politics. The play dwells on the community’s caste history to show that caste is not an anachronism of the feudal era but actively determines the present cultural and material conditions. When contextualized in the community, the play exists as a moving narrative of the community’s cultural activism.

ASSESSMENT OF V.D. DIMITRIEV’S ACTIVITY AND SCIENTIFIC HERITAGE IN MODERN HISTORICAL SCIENCE

The article analyzes the publications of the famous historian V.D. Dimitriev (1924–2013), the main directions of his research, as well as publications about his activities and scientific works. In 2024 the scientific community celebrated the 100th anniversary of his birth, so it is necessary to show some results of studying the activities and scientific heritage of this outstanding personality. The purpose of the article is to review and classify the entire range of publications about V.D. Dimitriev and to analyze some historiographical works on the historian’s scientific works. Materials and methods. When writing the article, the principles of historicism, objectivity and consistency, methods of historical research were used, i.e. historical-comparative, historical-typological, problem-chronological methods, as well as the ones of historiographical analysis. Study results. The largest number of publications about V.D. Dimitriev are biographical articles, mostly anniversary ones. Only some of them contain a historiographical assessment of his scientific heritage (the works of Y.P. Smirnov, I.Ya. Froyanov and others). Three collections were published for the anniversary of the scientist, which give a more detailed description of his works on ethnogenesis of the Chuvash people, the history of Chuvash towns, the history of feudalism in Chuvashia, V.D. Dimitriev’s research of Chuvash historical legends, biographical sketches of representatives of the Chuvash people, the scientist’s research methodology, etc. The scientist’s research was evaluated by leading experts on the problems studied by Vasily Dimitrievich: A.G. Ivanov, G.N. Aiplatov, A. Kappeler, A.I. Nogmanov, G.N. Plechov, E.K. Mineeva, Yu.V. Gusarov, V.P. Ivanov, Yu.P. Smirnov, A.A. Chibis, and others. Dimitriev’s research on the history of Chuvashia during the feudal era and the study of Chuvash historical traditions received the greatest number of responses in the scientific world. Conclusions. Despite a significant number of publications about V.D. Dimitriev, they are unsystematic in nature, that is why there is an urgent need to create a holistic monographic study on the activities and scientific heritage of the scientist. It is necessary to introduce the materials contained in the archive of V.D. Dimitriev into scientific circulation. It is advisable to post small-circulate.

Nihontō i shintō

The article focuses on the presence of elements derived from Japan’s native religion, shintō, visible in contexts referring to Japanese swords, nihontō. The text briefly discusses the idea of kami in Shintoism and touches on mythological stories about Japanese deities in which the sword plays an important role, and then describes Japanese edged weapons, focusing on swords of the feudal era. Subsequently, the author pays attention to the process of forging the blade, the work of blacksmiths, and beliefs regarding Japanese swords, including the custom of offering nihontō to the gods. The final paragraphs are devoted to martial arts and etiquette associated with weapons in Japan.

충청 지역 여성독립운동의 성격과 공적

The history of the Korean women’s independence movement was not only an anti-Japanese independence movement that sought national independence, but also a human liberation movement that sought to break away from feudalism within the nation. Ironically, it was only during the independence movement when the country was taken away that awareness of Gender Equality began to take root in society. In the course of Korea’s modern history, women’s activities have achieved remarkable growth compared to the previous era, but research results are still insufficient to give meaning.
 In modern times, the Christian gospel brought about an awakening that women had not experienced in the pre-modern feudal era. Since the Bible women educated by Christian missionaries had a greater ability to spread the gospel than any other missionaries, the Bible women can be evaluated as the leading figures who achieved great results in the Christian gospel and women's liberation in the Chungcheong Province.
 Women in Chungcheong Province were able to learn the Korean alphabet and overcome illiteracy by studying the Bible with female missionaries and Bible women from the Southern Methodist Church. Memories of learning and strong faith brought awareness and strengthened women’s inner self, giving them the strength to overcome any adversity.
 Feudalism persisted in the Chungcheong Province for a long time compared to other regions, and women were dismissed as socially inferior and in need of education. It can be said that the process of enlightenment and modernization for women in Chungcheong was more painful than any other region due to the dominance of the patriarchal idea that women are subordinate to men. This is because the long tradition of Confucianism, which was built as a moral system, and the wall of conservatism were that thick. Modern enlightened women had the dual task of reforming feudal society internally and opposing the Japanese imperialist invasion force externally, but women who did not enjoy the benefits of education remained stuck in medieval thinking even into modern times. Nevertheless, in the colonial system, women fought for the value of national liberation above their own liberation, and entered the independence movement with the determination that women's liberation could never be achieved without national liberation.
 Rather than staying in the Chungcheong province, women in Chungcheong left traces of an active independence movement by moving to other regions or abroad. Therefore, the Chungcheong region could not create an ecosystem for the independence movement where the women's movement could develop. At the time of the National Debt Compensation Movement in 1907, national debt compensation organizations were created by women in various regions, but they were not found in any of them in the Chungcheong Province. In addition, although the Geunwoohoe(근우회), which was founded in 1927 as the women’s only unified cooperative front organization, developed into a national organization, the fact that no branches were established in the South Chungcheong rigion speaks for this phenomenon.
 Although the proportion of women who participated in the March 1st Movement and the student movement is significantly lower than in other regions, we can see that awareness of women in gender and class discrimination is changing significantly as we witness the dedication and sacrifice of Chungcheong women who led the March 1st Movement. Along with these changes of the times, women’s worldview and historical awareness also changed significantly, leading to the realization that an intact community could not be maintained without women’s participation. In this way, the vision of building an independent nation-state without gender discrimination could finally be unified.

Why did the civil code of Meiji Japan provide the same surname for couples? Westernization, de-Chineseization, and the construction of a national state

ABSTRACTThis article challenges the question of how and why ‘the compulsory same surname system for couples’ was written into the Meiji Civil Code. Administrative documents related to surnames issued by the Meiji government, documents of the Code Research Committee, and the stenographic records of the Diet deliberations allow us not only to know that the form of the compulsory same surname system for the Couple was influenced and justified by the norms of marriage in Western society, but also to unveil an invention of tradition. ‘the compulsory same surname system for couples’, a product of Westernization, was then combined with the Japanese traditional ‘ie’ system and successfully implemented as a new tradition that was created and established in a short period of time. This article concludes in the Meiji period, during the construction of the modern national state, when ‘the compulsory same surname system for couples’ broke the norm of the surname belonging to the upper class under the feudal era, while the sense of family unity it brought also served to unify the nation. And so, internally, this served to homogenize and unify the nation. Externally, Meiji leaders believed it would play a role in correcting the unequal treaties with the West and removing any perceived influence from Chinese civilization. Using this system of the compulsory same surname for couples as one of the means to build the identity of ‘modern Japan’, was the true intention of the Meiji government.

Patterns Symbols in Auspicious Animal Decorate in the Imperial City of Hue, Socialist Republic of Vietnam

The Imperial City of Hue, the capital city of the Nguyen Dynasty (1802-1945), was the last dynasty in the feudal era that ruled Vietnam for 143 years. Emperor Gia Long ascended the throne ruling the Kingdom of Vietnam, choosing Hue as the capital city and building the Imperial City of Hue for the Nguyen Dynasty. The construction took 27 years. Emperor Gia Long adopted a system of governance and Confucian concepts to rule Vietnam. The emperor was likened to the Son of Heaven and sent to rule the human world. It was then necessary to create a living space that resembled heaven. The Imperial City of Hue was modeled after the Forbidden City in Beijing, China, to ensure that the royal palaces of the Imperial City of Hue were as marvelous as the Chinese Forbidden City. It also reflects the royal authority of the Vietnamese monarchy following the Chinese monarchy. According to the Cultural Diffusion theory, Vietnam has been culturally influenced by China through the architecture of the Imperial City of Hue, which emphasizes the uniqueness of its important strategic city location; suitable topographic features containing rivers, mountains, and sea as natural defenses against external invasions, and the uniqueness of the Vietnamese capital and the Imperial City of Hue, the Socialist Republic of Vietnam during the Nguyen Dynasty.

The multifaceted perspective: Confucius’ political philosophy as manifested in his perception and engagement with Ji Shi 季氏 (the Ji family)

ABSTRACT Three main themes emerge in Confucius’ response to the Ji family, reflecting the core tenets of his zeitgeist philosophy. Firstly, by criticizing the usurpation of Ji Shi 季氏 (the Ji family), he emphasized the moral principle of ‘overcoming oneself to return to ritual propriety’. Secondly, as a political philosopher, he stressed the importance of utility, emphasizing the concept of quandao 權道 (the way of the changeable), which implies that deviating from established principles can be valid in certain circumstances. Lastly, as an educator and reformer running the Confucian private school, he emphasized the importance of political realism. This educational goal stems from the specificity of the feudal era, and Confucius believed that governing the state and bringing peace to the world can only be achieved and advanced through public affairs.

Nomadism of public space dwellers in Metro Manila: On their home, mobility, and survival

The paper focuses on the contemporary urban nomadism of public space dwelling in a developing country. In particular, the paper considers the case of public space dwelling in Metro Manila which reportedly has the largest public space dweller population among the world’s metropolises. It examines their shift from sedentary living, and how they navigate the terrain of conflicts and compromises that come with the localized articulation of various modes of economic production. To probe into their characteristics, the paper employs a framework based on the heterogeneity of anthropolocal functions—i.e. how people use local spaces for economic production and human regeneration. The paper reveals that the circumstances underlying the shift to nomadic living are: unresolved land problems in the provinces that go back to the feudal era, vulnerability of local communities against natural disasters due to development unevenness between Metro Manila and the provinces, and deteriorating work conditions under a globalizing economy. The paper further identifies the living stereotype of public space dwellers as forager stereotype in which the individual band-members move relative to the mobile base camp. Lastly, the paper points out that the lives of public space dwellers in the capitalist urban environment are unstable and precarious. As a survival strategy, public space dwellers employ—albeit often unconsciously—subsistence from their urban habitat, living in small and non-hierarchical units, building social relationships that transcend consanguineous relationships, sharing of limited resource, reciprocity, and mutual aid within and outside the band, division of labour, and giving and receiving care.

Seignorial Economy in Feudal Times

There is a need and space for advancing the historical and theoretical exploration of the seignorial economy of the feudal era. Previous studies mostly focused on the field of manors, and did not pay attention to the importance of cities and feudalism to the composition and characteristics of the seignorial economy. Therefore, in this paper, the urban and feudal spheres are included in the seignorial economy in addition to the manor, and the seignorial economy is studied in a more holistic manner in order to reveal its intrinsic economic characteristics.

Indonesian Peasants in the Constellation of Power and the Trajectory of Capitalism

As an agricultural nation, Indonesia has a paradoxical situation where its peasants have never been a dominant political force. This condition can be seen from the lack of regulations in favor of peasants, the rampant criminalization of peasants in land conflicts, to the absence of peasant-based movements and political parties. This article explains the position of peasants in the constellation of power and the trajectory of capitalism in Indonesia. The article concludes that peasants have always been in a marginal political position at various periods, starting from the feudal era to the era of capitalism introduced by the Dutch colonial government. This position continued in the era of independent Indonesia where peasants remained on the periphery of Indonesian politics which was dominated by the bureaucracy and military during the New Order and oligarchy during the Reformation era.

The Paulician Heresy: Contradiction of National and Universal

Historical events always become the object of reinterpretation. The history of the Paulician heresy, which was widespread in medieval Armenia and Byzantium, is no exception. In this article, I will address the attempt to reinterpret the history of the Paulicians from a national-conservative position made by Karlen Mirumian. Analyzing his account of events and comparing it with the Soviet interpretation and a more detailed examination of the Paulician doctrine leads to interesting implications for understanding the specificity of the national discourse. The paper will compare the approaches to the interpretation of the role of the Paulicians in history given by Karlen Mirumyan and the Soviet author Hrant Bartikyan. Mirumyan's approach raises quite a few questions regarding methodology, especially his retrospective application of the framework of nationalist ideas to the feudal era. Besides, a more detailed study of the Paulician doctrine, conducted by Nina Garsoïan, shows us that the doctrine described by Mirumyan repeats the anti-Paulician propaganda of Byzantine authors, which has little in common with reality. All this allows us to move on to the peculiarities of Armenian nationalist ideology, which, when confronted with the Paulician phenomenon, reveals a surprising unity with the imperial discourse it is meant to oppose. That's why I turn to the ideas of the contemporary French philosopher Alain Badiou, who proposed the concept of three discourses - the discourse of homogenization, the discourse of exclusion, and the discourse of universalism. My assumption is that the Byzantine imperial discourse corresponds to the first, the nationalist discourse to the second, and the Paulician doctrine to the third, the universal discourse, against which the other two discourses merge.

Love in Eileen Chang’s works: Distinctive and ideological

In the realm of literature, the exploration of love has perpetually fascinated both creators and readers, serving as a dynamic mirror reflecting shifts in societal norms, cultural undercurrents, and ideological tides. Across the epochs, the portrayal of love within literary works has undergone a profound evolution. In the tapestry of classical Chinese literature, characterized by draconian dogmas and entrenched male chauvinism during the feudal era, women were often relegated to subordinate roles, their experiences of love marred by silent endurance. However, a literary luminary emerged who infused new vitality into the depiction of affection – Eileen Chang. Her narratives transcended conventions, empowering individuals of all genders to articulate their emotions boldly, resist societal constraints, and challenge the forces that dictated their fates. Within the intricate weave of her prose, love ceased to be a mere sentiment; instead, it emerged as an indomitable force of defiance and liberation. This research article delves meticulously into the exquisite tapestry of love woven by Eileen Chang, casting a spotlight on its enduring essence and providing a contemporary evaluation that harmonizes with modern perspectives.

Takarazuka Revue: atuação, atmosfera e gênero no teatro musical japonês

ABSTRACT Takarazuka Revue: acting, atmosphere and gender in Japanese musical theater –This article exposes the elements that legitimize the takarazuka musical theater, founded at the beginning of the 20th century, as a performative language. It starts with two shows, Rose of Versailles and Once upon a time in America, highlighting three elements of analysis: acting methodology, scenic atmosphere and gender performance. It infers the subversion of the woman's role as an artist and the negotiation between current gender standards through small reinventions and inherited technical attributes. Takarazuka performativity resorts to artistic and commercial choices that promote the friction and fantasy of genders, in addition to aligning political precepts from the feudal era with modernism.

Культовые места Демянской земли в контексте мифологемы героя

The study comes up with results of the analysis of historical material collected in the north of the Demyansk district of the Novgorod region during expeditions on the topic “Historical and cultural map of the Demyansk district” in 2021. In the course of processing the material, we drew attention to the fact that in this map, in addition to the historical and ethnocultural, the contours of the sacred landscape are clearly visible. For the Demyansk land, the sacred landscape is a geographical space where topochron meets the hero's mythologeme. While we studied the topos of the sacred landscape of the Demyansk land on the district`s north, its chronos covers the epochs of the formation of the Old Russian state, the time of the spread of Orthodoxy and its rooting in tradition, the Soviet period and its important part — the Second World War. For each of the determined toposes of the sacred landscape of the Demyansk land we identified corresponding hero mythologeme: a prince (a hero of the feudal era of the formation of the ancient Russian state), a priest (a religious figure, framer of the Christian sacred landscape of territories) and a Soviet warrior (hero of the Second World War).

중국 시민 정치참여의 단계적 변화 연구

Political participation has an important significance in political democracy and national governance in modern society which is also the basic operating system of modern democracy. Chinese citizens' political participation has always emphasized the concept of democracy in terms of not laying the foundation of the socialist political system.
 However, previous studies analyze the political participation of Chinese citizens in terms of institutional and case studies, not in macro-level. Therefore, this study examines the time-series changes and current status of Chinese citizen political participation at a macro level.
 The early form of Chinese civic political participation was mobilization-type political participation, which was an important driving force to break away from the feudal era and maintain a stable state system in the early days of the modern China. The next form that emerged is participation in various 'movement' dimensions reflecting the times when economic development was prioritized with independent civic political participation at a limited level. In the third stage, the form of government-led political participation appeared intensively after the 2000s, and at the same time, it was a process of more democratic political reform and institutionalization of citizens' political participation. The last stage is political participation in China's policy criticism, which is expanding based on ICT. A new form of political participation is emerging around online networked opinion leaders, which will establish itself as a basic participation method for generations living in the smart era in the future.
 Based on this analysis, the paper is concluded by presenting suggestions and limitations for the sound development of Chinese civic politics.

Imperial jade seals of China: transformations of content and form, artistic features

The great imperial seals, one of the most prominent jade articles in ancient China, were of great significence in those times. Two of its main components – a carved ornament on the top and a stamp, were not merely symbols of the feudal era, but also demonstrated the high level of technical proficiency of visual arts in ancient China. In the context of the history of the origin and development of jade seals, this article highlights the issues of evoluiton in content, form, and artistic features of the art of large imperial jade seals as it was developing during the long history of Chinese art. The article also highlights the relevance of formal and substantive features of jade seals in contemporary Chinese art, particularly in other types and genres of jade plastic arts. The form of imperial seals was developed during the early days of the Zhou dynasty. The nearly 3,000-year history of its development, spanning the Spring and Autumn period, the Warring States, Qin, Han, Sui and Tai, Song and Yuan, Ming and Qing dynasties, has contributed to the abundance of jade seals, their variety and the richness of their forms. During the first feudal dynasty of China - Qin, when the first highly centralized political system was established, the large imperial seal became a symbol of the emperor's power, and had administrative and social significance. The imperial jade seal had retained its status in long history of China until the end of Qing dynasty. During this period, its form and content were gradually enriched, and a unique and successive culture of the great imperial seal had been created.

신발굴 자료를 통해 본 『인민창작(구전문학)』 (1960-1962)의 내용과 전개 양상

In this paper, the entire image of People’s Creation (1960-1962) published by the Institute of Language and Literature of the Korean Academy of Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, an academy research institute representing North Korea, was explained. Along with all six volumes of People’s Creation (1960-1961), which were introduced in Korea, the contents of all nine volumes of People’s Creation were revealed for the first time by additionally reviewing the three newly discovered 1962 editions. The Institute of Science and Technology largely divided the data of old specialties (old literature) into ‘traditional old specialties’ in the feudal era and ‘modern people’s creation’ in the modern era. The former is familiar to us, whereas the latter is very unfamiliar. However, considering that old professional studies are a new modern study that started in earnest after modern times, it is important to examine the development of modern and contemporary people’s creation, and it is necessary to examine the practice in North Korea in detail. Accordingly, the text focuses on ‘revolutionary narrative’ among ‘modern people’s creation’. The institute made it clear that the materials were publicized, selected, edited, and published with a clear intention to collect the stories of Kim Il-sung and other revolutionaries by presenting “the true story of the battle during the anti-Japanese armed struggle in the 1930s.” As clarified in this paper, contrary to the intention of the institute, the stories of revolutionaries, including Kim Il-sung, were reported less, and the institute repeatedly requested reports of related data. We also looked at Hanryongok, who led this. In previous studies, it was analyzed centering on Gojeongok, but the necessity of reviewing Hanryongok was suggested and its role was clarified. Han Ryong-ok and Ko Jung-ok repeatedly emphasized the importance of the collection and research of “modern people’s creation,” especially “revolutionary tales,” but in fact, all of their books were limited to traditional folk tales. Until the 1960s, researchers in North Korea’s Gubi literature acknowledged the importance of ‘revolutionary narrative’ but developed discussions focusing on traditional narratives. In North Korea, Kim Il-sung’s unique ideology was strengthened and cultivated left-leaning, and as a follow-up to the May 25 period in 1967, the “Book Organization Project” was carried out from March 1968 to the mid-1970s, and the traditional narrative was also branded as an “old idea.” After the hiatus of old professional studies in the 1970s, research on old professional studies has been divided into traditional and anti-Japanese legends (revolutionary tales) since the 1980s. It was clarified that “People’s Creation” was located before these changes.

Between State and Empire, Or How Western European Imperialism in Africa Redefined the Polish Nation

The Warsaw positivists, one of Poland’s most influential intellectual collectives, emerged in the 1860s with an ambitious plan to strengthen the Polish nation. The self-proclaimed progressives, enamored with trends popular in Europe’s contemporary liberal circles, declared that Poles were a backward nation stuck in the feudal era. Consequently, they proposed comprehensive national reforms inspired by Western Europe, or the region that the Warsaw positivists designated to be the beacon of progress and civilization. However, as Western European empires intensified their colonial efforts in Africa in the final quarter of the nineteenth century, the Warsaw positivists felt compelled to reassess Western Europe through the lens of its ongoing imperial politics. This article examines the Warsaw positivist critique of Western European imperialism in Africa and argues that while the Warsaw positivists denounced Western European imperial methods, they stopped short of condemning imperialism per se. That allowed them to decry Western Europe for exploiting Africa and simultaneously justify Western European plans to subjugate the continent. Most importantly, the positivist critique of Western European actions in Africa opened space to redefine the place of Poles on the axis of progress and civilization. While never employing the category of whiteness explicitly, the Warsaw positivists included Poles in the increasingly racialized categories of civilization, progress, and Europeanness, even if, or perhaps particularly because, as a nation, Poles were politically vulnerable under the control of Russia, Germany and the Habsburg Empire, functioned on Europe’s margins, and in so many ways lagged behind Western Europe.

Women’s Voices and Patriarchal Hegemony of the Edo Period in Shinju Tenno Amijima (1720)

The Edo Period (1603-1868), known as the feudal era, lasted for nearly three centuries in Japan. Confucian teachings applied in all sectors of life had a great influence on the expansion of the patriarchal system in Japanese society at this time. Under the strict control of the Tokugawa shogunate government, the implementation of social class stratification was firmly established, including in the hierarchical relationship between men and women. The period of peace that occurred throughout the Edo period had contributed to a conducive situation for the rapid development of Japanese culture. Male artists were very dominant in the development of Japanese culture, and they were centred in big cities during this period. On the other hand, this era had become a dark age for women who did not get the opportunity to speak and create as men did. The female figures of the Edo period were presented in the works of male writers. This study focuses on examining women’s voices in the works of these male writers in the period. After exploring research on this period’s literary works, we found that these studies have various focuses related to the disclosure of women during the period, starting from the representation of women, their relationship with a male and other female characters, to their roles and positions. This research will contribute to discussions on gender, history, and literature, as well as on the way women's voices in this work serve a purpose in supporting the patriarchal hegemony that occurred in the period. We aim to reveal women’s voices in a male writer's play Shinju Tenno Amijima (1720) by Chikamatsu Monzaemon (1653-1725) through a feminist critique approach. To explain women's voice and patriarchal hegemony, we apply the concepts of silence from Olsen (2003) and hegemony from Antonio Gramsci. The results of this study indicate that women’s voices raised in this play are the ones who support men's interests and are subject to patriarchal values. This play consistently displays the exclusion of women's voices of opposition and defiance. This work also shows its existence as a locus for the dominant values emphasized for women in the Edo period.