Tang/Song Dynasty
Society
The Tang and Song society was crucial to it's survival as a dynasty. First of all, we see that during these dynasties, we see that for the first time in a while in history the citizens are moving towards cities. This was very rare for people to do at this time in history. Also, there were three main classes, the gentry class, the urban class, and the peasants. The gentry were citizens of very high standards in society. They attained this power by being given leadership roles in education and civil service. The urban class was below the gentry class. The urban class consisted of merchants, shopkeepers, skilled artisans, and minor officials. Finally, the bottom of the social classes were the peasants. These peasants lived in the countryside and mainly were involved in agriculture. A fun fact about the Tang and Song society is that women, who were below men in status, sometimes had their feet pulled under each other, eventually crippling them for life. However, this resembled wealth and elegance in society.
Arts
Like many great civilizations, the Song Dynasty had a golden age. During this time they produced great arts, especially poetry. Two great poets that came from this golden age were Li Bo and Tu Fu. They were fantastic poets that revolutionized poetry forever. Also, paintings were very popular and met new heights in art. Mainly, these paintings consisted of black ink, which is due tot the disliking of bright colors in China. Their paintings were mostly reflected by Daoism, as well as nature and it's beauty.
Technology
During the time of the Tang and Song Dynasties, the two most important inventions were movable type and gunpowder. Movable type were pieces of wood and metal that had a character or letter on them that was used to be put together so it would make a page for printing. Gun powder was essential to these dynasties also because it gave them accessibility to weapons like cannons and grenades.
Governmental Systems
In the Tang Dynasty, they created a large bureaucracy that you needed to pass an exam to get into. These positions were given to the people with connections because they were very rich and to the educated. Therefore, this created a very powerful and strong government that was headed by an emperor or empress, which we see in the Tang's history with Wu Zhao. However, the Song Dynasty came about after the downfall of the Tang Dynasty. Taizu proclaimed himself the first emperor of the Song Dynasty. During this time, the army was weak so they had to pay and trade with their enemies so that they do not conquer them. However, when a rival dynasty came about in the north, it caused them to move south and establish their capital called Hangzhou. The southern part of the Song Dynasty was thriving economically. The south Song Dynasty was known as the heartland of China. (2)
(2) Beck, Roger B. World History: Patterns of Interaction. Evanston, IL: McDougal Littel, 2005. Print.
Society
The Tang and Song society was crucial to it's survival as a dynasty. First of all, we see that during these dynasties, we see that for the first time in a while in history the citizens are moving towards cities. This was very rare for people to do at this time in history. Also, there were three main classes, the gentry class, the urban class, and the peasants. The gentry were citizens of very high standards in society. They attained this power by being given leadership roles in education and civil service. The urban class was below the gentry class. The urban class consisted of merchants, shopkeepers, skilled artisans, and minor officials. Finally, the bottom of the social classes were the peasants. These peasants lived in the countryside and mainly were involved in agriculture. A fun fact about the Tang and Song society is that women, who were below men in status, sometimes had their feet pulled under each other, eventually crippling them for life. However, this resembled wealth and elegance in society.
Arts
Like many great civilizations, the Song Dynasty had a golden age. During this time they produced great arts, especially poetry. Two great poets that came from this golden age were Li Bo and Tu Fu. They were fantastic poets that revolutionized poetry forever. Also, paintings were very popular and met new heights in art. Mainly, these paintings consisted of black ink, which is due tot the disliking of bright colors in China. Their paintings were mostly reflected by Daoism, as well as nature and it's beauty.
Technology
During the time of the Tang and Song Dynasties, the two most important inventions were movable type and gunpowder. Movable type were pieces of wood and metal that had a character or letter on them that was used to be put together so it would make a page for printing. Gun powder was essential to these dynasties also because it gave them accessibility to weapons like cannons and grenades.
Governmental Systems
In the Tang Dynasty, they created a large bureaucracy that you needed to pass an exam to get into. These positions were given to the people with connections because they were very rich and to the educated. Therefore, this created a very powerful and strong government that was headed by an emperor or empress, which we see in the Tang's history with Wu Zhao. However, the Song Dynasty came about after the downfall of the Tang Dynasty. Taizu proclaimed himself the first emperor of the Song Dynasty. During this time, the army was weak so they had to pay and trade with their enemies so that they do not conquer them. However, when a rival dynasty came about in the north, it caused them to move south and establish their capital called Hangzhou. The southern part of the Song Dynasty was thriving economically. The south Song Dynasty was known as the heartland of China. (2)
(2) Beck, Roger B. World History: Patterns of Interaction. Evanston, IL: McDougal Littel, 2005. Print.