Confucianism influence in Tang Dynasty. History Research Paper

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Confucianism
China boasts of four great inventions that are the paper, printing press, the compass, and the gunpowder. These four inventions are praised as the civilization hallmark of the region. However, these factors of Chinese ingenuity are in several ways peripheral to the historical development of the Chinese society and Chinese civilization. Research, however, observes that the most unique and marvelous aspect of Chinese culture is the Confucian examination system. The examination system holds so much legacy as it was utilized to staff the son of Heaven's empire with civil servants for more than two millennia. Thus, Chinese history has been influenced by so many factors but Confucianism and Tang dynasty are a major source of and have enriched Chinese history. One of the ideas of Confucianism is by way of the examination system to select individuals who will become government officials. The main idea of Confucianism which is the education system is still widely used today as it is a fair way to select government officials. This study will examine the history of Confucianism and how it impacted the examination and court system. In addition, the Great Tang families were the significant components of Tang dynasty and this study will also examine their influence and impact.
Examination system and Tang Dynasty
The Tang Dynasty is one of the hailed Dynasties as it held long periods of stability and progress, which was characterized by a civil system of choosing government officials through standard exams and recommendations. These scholars were also referred to as literati and were entrusted to perform day-to-day government functions from the Han reign to the end of the Qing reign, however, this system came into prominence in the Tang period. The examination system origins can be traced back to the Han era, however, the initial scholarly examinations were utilized first during the Sui era, but the system took full effect under the Tang Dynasty. The system gained popularity during the Tang era but between the Tang Dynasty and the late Qing the civil service examinations system did fall out for a short period as it was experiencing reforms that affected the whole system. The system consisted of five classics and four books that were all works credited to Confucius and some of his high-rank disciples and some of the approved commentaries.
Until the 1898 Guanxu reforms the mainstay of the exam, system was the popular eight-legged essay. It was vital to get the rote learning of the Confucian classic to succeed in the exam. Traditionally the scholar scoring the highest marks was picked and the Jinshi would have his memory taught to an incredible degree. If the selected candidate had any hope of being selected at the civil service post he/she had to memorize a text of over 400000 characters and get a pass rate of 1 or 2% (Elman 8). The Keju or the system of the Imperial Examination became a popular method through which talented individuals were selected and considered for civil service positions. The imperial examination was divided into two areas that is the Washu exam and the art exam. Art included the study of books, poetry, paintings, calligraphy, laws, compositions, and others. Washu was pure...