SOURCE3 Chinese life under the Han
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A In cities like Xianyang, busy marketplaces were just inside the gates for travelling merchants. Even if they were rich, merchants were not respected like farmers. The market sold and traded goods from all over China and beyond. B In the noisy markets, people bought and sold food and animals. There were musicians, acrobats, jugglers, letter writers, dentists and craftworkers. C Owls, panthers, deer, dogs, pigs, ant eggs, snails and turtles were all available, mostly bought by the rich. D Ancient Chinese cities had two walls to protect the people. You can still see some of these walls today. The inner wall was called cheng , and the outer wall was guo . Moats, called chi , often surrounded them. The inner city was known as geng. E Rich and poor people lived in large family groups. Confucian values helped strengthen family ties. Respect for elders and ancestor worship were also very important. F Murals, jade jewellery and carvings, glazed pottery, silk goods and objects made from cast iron such as ploughs were bought and sold. G Confucian beliefs held that women were less important than men. Girls didn’t get an education and worked under their mothers. Fathers chose their husbands. After marriage, they lived with their husbands’ families and obeyed their mothers-in-law. A woman had no status until she had a son.
SkillBuilder discussion Causes and consequences
1. What were some key features of daily life for people living in China during the Han dynasty? 2. How did Han policies and governance affect social structure and relationships among families? 3. In what ways did cultural practices and innovations during the Han dynasty inþuence future generations in China?
The fall of the Hsin dynasty Wang Mang’s reforms were stopped by powerful people, leading to peasant revolts in 14 CE. In 23 CE, rebels called the Red Eyebrows attacked and killed him. The Hsin dynasty ended, and a new Han emperor took over in 25 CE.
212 Jacaranda Humanities Alive 7 Victorian Curriculum Third Edition
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