REQUIREMENTS

The majority of readings for the course are original sources (in translation), and it is only by attending class that the student will gain an understanding of how the texts fit into the greater picture of Chinese society. Therefore, attendance at all lectures is mandatory. Two tests will be administered. Questions on these tests will be based on points raised in class, so it is imperative that the student pay close attention to all lectures and take sufficient notes. Each test is worth 45% of the final grade. In addition, each student will deliver an oral presentation on the subject of the Analects , the Te-Tao Ching, or Monkey, which will be worth 10% of the grade. There will be no final exam. Extra credit will be awarded for lively class participation.

CLASS SCHEDULE

The feudal state of Chou which ruled the central China plain from the 11th to the 3rd centuries B.C. laid the foundations for the world's premier centralized bureaucracy. This system of statecraft and the philosophies it supported were the model for Chinese civilization until the twentieth century. The first part of the course will analyze this world view using primarily original texts, including the great classics of history, poetry, and philosophy. 

 

From the 3rd to the 13th centuries the Chinese maintained a level of scientific knowledge and artistic excellence rarely approached in the West. It was also at this time that the foreign religion of Buddhism entered and captured the hearts and minds of many Chinese people. The second part of the course will examine the pseudo-scientific tradition of medieval China and investigate the impact of Buddhism on Chinese society.

 

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Week 1 CHINESE LANGUAGE

Readings: Sources of Chinese Culture, pp. 3-16

The "Three Languages" of Modern Chinese

Aug. 30	Speaking in tones (5)
Sept. 1	Romanized spelling (3, 6-9)
Sept. 3	Logographic writing (10-16)

Weeks 2-3 CHINESE MYTH AND LEGEND

Readings: Sources of Chinese Culture, pp. 17-18

Sept. 8	"The Patterns of Heaven" (1-12) Link 1
Sept. 10, 13	"The Patterns of Earth" (14-32) Link 2
Sept. 15, 17	"The Affairs of Man" (34-101) Link 3, Link 4, Link 5

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Weeks 4-5 HISTORICAL RECORDS

Readings: Sources of Chinese Culture, pp. 19-69

Sept. 20, 22	Shu Ching, or Book of Documents, excerpts (19-39)
Sept. 24, 27	Ch'un Ch'iu, or Spring and Autumn Annals; Tso Chuan, or Commentary of Tso, excerpts (40-55)
Sept. 29, Oct. 1	Chan-kuo Ts'e, or Intrigues of the Warring Kingdoms, excerpts (56-69)

Weeks 6-7 CLASSICAL CHINESE POETRY

Readings: Sources of Chinese Culture, pp. 70-126

Oct. 4	Shih Ching or Book of Odes, "The Weniad" (71-84)
Oct. 6	Shih Ching, "The Seventh Month" (85-7)
Oct. 8	Shih Ching, selected folk songs (88-93)
Oct. 11	Ch'u Tz'u, or The Songs of Ch'u, "Nine Songs" (94-99)
Oct. 13	Ch'u Tz'u, "Encountering Sorrow" (100-116)
Oct. 18, 20	Selected Poems of T'ao Ch'ien, Wang Wei, and Po Chu -i (117-126)

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Test 1, October 25

Weeks 8-9 CLASSICAL CHINESE PHILOSOPHY

Readings:  Read all of Ames and Rosemont's Analects of Confucius, but first see Sources of Chinese Culture, pp. 127-8;  Read all of Henricks' Te-Tao Ching, but first see Sources of Chinese Culture, pp. 129-31.

Oct. 27	Confucius, Analects (read topically, see pp. 127-8 in Sources)
Oct. 29, Nov. 1	Oral presentations
Nov. 3	Lao Tzu, Tao Te Ching (read topically, see pp. 129-31, Sources)
Nov. 5, 8	Oral presentations

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Weeks 10-11 CHINESE SCIENCE

Readings: Sources of Chinese Culture, pp. 132-154, plus two articles on my webpage, the Fengshui Gate

Nov. 10	Yin and yang
Nov. 12, 15	I Ching, or Book of Changes (132-146)
Nov. 17	Wu Hsing, or the "Five Elements" (149-54)
Nov. 19, 22	"Qimancy: the Art and Science of Fengshui," and  "The Cosmological Origins of Fengshui"

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Weeks 12-13 CHINESE BUDDHISM

Readings: Sources of Chinese Culture, pp. 183-7, Monkey: Folk Novel of China

Nov. 24	Concepts of Indian Buddhism (183)
Nov. 29	Concepts of Chinese Buddhism (184)
Dec. 1	Journey to the West: the Legend
Dec. 3	Journey to the West: The Novel (186-7)
Dec. 6	Oral Presentations

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Test 2, December 8