EALC001
Introduction to Chinese
Civilization
Fall 2021
MW 12:00-1:00, F recitation
McNeil Building 286-7
Ori Tavor
Email: oritavor@sas.upenn.edu
Office: Williams Hall 854
Office Hours: M2-3, or by appointment
COURSE DESCRIPTION
This course offers an introduction to Chinese civilization from ancient times to the contemporary era.
Throughout the semester we will learn about the major figures and events that shaped Chinese history, its
main religious and philosophical traditions, social and cultural institutions, as well as key literary and
artistic works. The course is designed to briefly touch upon many topics that will be covered more fully in
other EALC courses. The Monday and Wednesday sessions will take the form of a lecture, but during the
Friday recitations, students will be expected to participate in an active discussion about the weekly readings.
REQUIREMENTS AND GRADING:
Class Attendance and Participation in Recitations: 20%
Short Papers (3): 45%
Final Exam: 35%
ATTENDANCE AND PARTICIPATION:
Class attendance is part of the learning process. Students are expected to finish the weekly readings before
the Friday recitation; bring the assigned readings and your notes to the recitation and be prepared to engage
in discussion. You may miss up to one recitation – any further absences will impact your final grade.
SHORT PAPERS (3):
Each paper (~1000 words) will focus on the analysis of a specific primary source or a set of sources. Paper
prompts will be distributed two weeks before the due date. To encourage continuous improvement, we will
grade your papers on a progressive scale. The submission dates are clearly marked on the syllabus. As these
are short assignments, there will be no extensions, except for unusual circumstances. You must turn in all
three assignments if you want to pass this class.
If you submit a plagiarized paper, you will fail the assignment and the class. If you are unsure of what
constitutes plagiarism, consult the professor or TFs before submitting any work. See the university’s Code
of Academic Integrity at: https://catalog.upenn.edu/faculty-handbook/iv/iv-b/
FINAL EXAM
The final exam will feature 20 ID questions (you will be able to choose 20 out of a total of 25 terms). The
answer to each question should be a brief essay (1-2 paragraphs) explaining the significance of the
person/title/object/event in Chinese history. A question pool of 50 ID terms will be distributed in the final
week of classes.
TEXTBOOKS:
•
Patricia B. Ebrey, Cambridge Illustrated History of China, 2nd Edition (CIHC) (available at the Penn
Bookstore). If you purchase/rent the book online, please make sure to buy the 2nd edition (2010).
•
Patricia Buckley Ebrey, Chinese Civilization: A Sourcebook, 2nd Edition (CC)
•
Victor H. Mair et al., eds., Hawai’i Reader in Traditional Chinese Culture (HR)
•
Additional Readings posted on Canvas
CIHC is the only book you need to buy. All other readings will be posted in the “Files” section on Canvas,
arranged by week.
COURSE SCHEDULE AND READINGS
Week One
9/1 – Course Introduction
Week Two
9/6 – NO CLASS (Labor Day)
9/8 – The Shang and Zhou Dynasties
Readings:
CIHC, chapter 1 (pp. 1-37); HR, 1, 5, 6.
Week Three
9/13 – Confucianism and Warring States Philosophy
9/15 – Mohism, Daoism, and Legalism
Readings:
CIHC, chapter 2 (pp. 38-59); HR, 7, 8, 12, 21.
Week Four
9/20 – The Bureaucratic Empire: The Qin and Han Dynasties
9/22 – Han Thought: Body, Empire, and Cosmos
Readings:
CIHC, chapter 3 (pp. 60-85); HR, 23, 24; CC, 13, 18.
Week Five
9/27 – Some Chinese Myths (Guest Lecture by Paul R. Goldin)
9/29 – Between North and South: The Age of Division
Readings:
CIHC, chapter 4 (pp. 86-107); HR, 35, 37, 38; CC, 24; “Peach Blossom Spring”
Week Six
10/4 – The Sui and Tang Dynasties
10/6 – Tang Culture and Cosmopolitanism
Readings:
CIHC, chapter 5 (pp. 108-135); HR, 50, 54; CC, 26.
FIRST PAPER DUE IN FRIDAY RECITATION, 10/8
Week Seven
10/11 –Demon Soldiers and Body Gods: The Religion of Daoism
10/13 – Buddhism in China: Challenges and Adaptations
Readings:
HR, 43, 52; CC, 22, 33.
NO RECITATION THIS WEEK (Fall Break)
Week Eight
10/18 – Turning Inward: The Song Dynasty
10/20 – Song Literati Culture and Urban Life
Readings:
CIHC, chapter 6 (pp. 136-163); HR, 62; CC, 38, 40, 41; “The Spring Festival Along the River”
Week Nine
10/25 – Barbarians at the Gate: The Liao, Jin, and Yuan Dynasties
10/27 – China in World History
Readings:
CIHC, chapter 7 (pp. 164-185); CC, 44; “Marco Polo” and “Ibn Battua”
Week Ten
11/1 – The Ming and early Qing Dynasties
11/3 – Late Imperial Literature and Popular Culture
Readings:
CIHC, chapters 8 and first part of 9 (pp. 190-234); HR, 73, 77; CC, 53.
SECOND PAPER DUE IN FRIDAY RECITATION, 11/5
Week Eleven
11/8 – The Qing and Inner Asia (Guest Lecture by Cristopher Atwood)
11/10 – The Fall of the Qing: Colonialism, Civil War, and the End of Empire
Readings:
CIHC, second part of chapter 9 (pp. 234-258); CC, 68, 69, 70; “Letter to Queen Victoria” and “Letter to
George III”
Week Twelve
11/15 – Political Reforms and the Making of the Modern Chinese Nation-State
11/17 – Between East and West: Society and Culture in Republican China
Readings:
CIHC, chapter 10 (pp. 262-291); CC, 73, 74, 77; “Medicine”
Week Thirteen
11/22 – The Chinese Diaspora
11/24 – NO CLASS (Thanksgiving Break)
NO RECITATION THIS WEEK
Week Fourteen
11/29 – Mao Zedong and the Foundation of the People’s Republic
12/1 – The Great Leap Forward and the Cultural Revolution
Readings:
CIHC, first part of chapter 11 (pp. 294-321); CC, 89, 90, 93; The Blue Kite (蓝风筝, dir. Tian
Zhuangzhuang, 1993)
THIRD PAPER DUE IN FRIDAY RECITATION, 12/3
Week Fifteen
12/6 – Chinese Society in the Post-Mao Era
12/8 – Course Conclusion: China in the 21st Century
Readings:
CIHC, second part of chapter 11 (pp. 321-332)