Han China And India Essay
1. Compare the main features of the social structure of the Classical Civilizations in the Mediterranean, China, & India: The social structures in all three of these classical civilizations differ in various ways. In classical India, the social hierarchy was founded upon the very strict caste system. The caste system assigned occupations and regulated marriages. The hierarchy of this civilization was also based off of having husbands being the dominant ones in the family. One Indian code even recommended for wives to worship their husbands. The bottom of the caste system however, was extremely harsh. Low caste system individuals had few legal rights. There was also less personal contact between high and low groups due to their separation.
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In classical India merchants were living the high life. Compared to China and the Mediterranean, India was very big on trading.
In China the social structure was more loose compared to what India had.
In China you could be the ruler of what you wanted to do in life. You could go from being on the low end of the caste system to being on the high end of it, if you were to work hard enough. The social hierarchy was still based on men being the head of the household, and in China merchants were not as much worshipped as they were in India. The Mediterranean also had a loose caste system, and they were very similar to China. In Greece, the Athenians developed the equality for all people by creating city states.
Why did the results of Han China’s decline differ from those of the Roman Empire’s decline?:
The Han dynasty’s collapse and the Roman Empire’s collapse differ and are similar in various ways. To point out the main causes for both
Empires collapse is due to the big factor of corruption. Political leaders had too much power, and they didn’t know what to do with all of it. The Han dynasty also had many more problems, such as the difference in religious beliefs. Due to having different beliefs, different groups did not agree on certain subjects, leading to conflict. Another factor of why the Han dynasty fell is to look back on how the bureaucratic leaders became so corrupt. They controlled too much land, and they taxed too heavily just to make more money. They had so much land that they gave it to local landlords. The last reason for the Han dynasty falling was their lack of resources to hold back nomadic
invasions. The Roman Empire started to show signs of decline at around 180 C.E. The population started to decline, and the army became less effective. An economic low also came into effect when tax collection was upped and residents could not pay for it.
In classical India merchants were living the high life. Compared to China and the Mediterranean, India was very big on trading.
In China the social structure was more loose compared to what India had.
In China you could be the ruler of what you wanted to do in life. You could go from being on the low end of the caste system to being on the high end of it, if you were to work hard enough. The social hierarchy was still based on men being the head of the household, and in China merchants were not as much worshipped as they were in India. The Mediterranean also had a loose caste system, and they were very similar to China. In Greece, the Athenians developed the equality for all people by creating city states.
Why did the results of Han China’s decline differ from those of the Roman Empire’s decline?:
The Han dynasty’s collapse and the Roman Empire’s collapse differ and are similar in various ways. To point out the main causes for both
Empires collapse is due to the big factor of corruption. Political leaders had too much power, and they didn’t know what to do with all of it. The Han dynasty also had many more problems, such as the difference in religious beliefs. Due to having different beliefs, different groups did not agree on certain subjects, leading to conflict. Another factor of why the Han dynasty fell is to look back on how the bureaucratic leaders became so corrupt. They controlled too much land, and they taxed too heavily just to make more money. They had so much land that they gave it to local landlords. The last reason for the Han dynasty falling was their lack of resources to hold back nomadic
invasions. The Roman Empire started to show signs of decline at around 180 C.E. The population started to decline, and the army became less effective. An economic low also came into effect when tax collection was upped and residents could not pay for it.