History Chapter 5 : Society: April 2010

Hi! This is the group Napoleon and our group members are Arthur (group leader), Edwin, Luo Ying, Xin Yee and Cherie

Firstly, lets start with a few Questions and Answers!

1) What is a society?
A society is a group of people who live under the same government and share the same common needs.

2) What is a hierarchy?
A hierarchy is the ranking of classes in a social system.

3) What is a caste system?
A caste system is the strict division of Indian society into classes based on one and more specific occupations.

4) What is a social class?
A social class is a level in a social system consisting of a group of people who share similar occupations.

5)What is a social system?
It is the way in which members of a society organise themselves into groups and specialise in different jobs in order to produce what they need.

6) What is social mobility?
Social Mobility is a term to describe the ease with which people can move out of the social classes they are born in.

7) What is meritocracy?
Meritocracy is the system in which people are given positions and rewards based on their abilities.

8) What is a tribe?
A tribe is small and closely related groups staying together in a small area, such as a village.

India

Aryans came up with a system of grouping people.
At that time, the system was flexible. There were three classes.

The highest ranked class was the kshatriyas (warriors and rulers).
Followed by the brahmins (priests, scholars and teachers).
The lowest ranked class was the vaishyas (traders, farmers and landowners)

Soon, the kshatriyas were replaced with brahmins as the highest ranked class.
This was so as the brahmins were the only ones who could read holy books as well as conduct religious ceremonies.

During c. 500 BCE, varnas were divided into smaller groups which are called castes. Soon, a new group called the 'untouchables' were formed. They were highly discriminated and were the lowest - ranked class. This was because, they had occupations such as skinning animals and carrying dead bodies.

The social system in ancient India after 500BCE

Key Features Of Ancient India's Social System

Varna system in ancient India

Kshatriyas - warriors and rulers
Brahmins - priests, scholars and teachers
Vaishyas - traders, farmers and landowners
Shudras - 'impure' non-Aryans

Caste System (c.500 BCE - 1000 BCE)

Brahmin varna replaces kshatriya varna at top of hierarchy
Shudra varna was reserved for labourers and craftsmen
division of varnas into several thousands of castes (jatis), each following a specific occupation (e.g. carpenter)
addition of class of "untouchables" - slaves and performers of impure work

Strengths of the caste system

brought order to society by giving everybody a distinct role.
gave members of each caste a sense of belonging to a 'little community' .

Limitations of the caste system

prevented social mobility by members of lower caste even if they were talented.
maintained idea of 'impurity' of lower castes

China

There were 2 classes during the Shang Dynasty:

Ruling class - king, priests, feudal shi

Shi were given land and authority in exchange for loyalty and tributes.
Land contained extended families and thousands of soldiers, farmers, priests, traders, craftsmen and scholars.

Working class (commoners) - farmers, soldiers, craftsmen

There were 5 classes during the Zhou Dynasty:

Ruling class
The population explosion led to an expansion of the working class into 4 smaller classes:

Scholars - well respected for their knowledge
Farmers
Craftsmen
Traders - did not produce anything, living off others' hard work

Change and continuity in ancient China during the Shang dynasty (1523-1027 BCE) and Zhou dynasty (1523-221 BCE)

During the Qin Dynasty, the power of the shi was removed:

land divided into imperial provinces
ruling powers removed, replaced by officials who did not own the land
armies taken away

During the Han Dynasty, the Imperial Civil Service Examinations was introduced, and becoming a shi no longer depended on family connections but on intelligence and ability. This allowed capable men from lower castes to become scholar-officials and advance in society.

Strengths of examination-based entry into scholar class

promoted meritocracy (social mobility according to ability)

Limitations of examination-based entry into the scholar class:

usually only sons of wealthy families could prepare for the examinations
women were not eligible to sit for the examinations

Key Features of Ancient China's Social System
Shang Dynasty (1523-1027 BCE)
2 broad social classes:

Ruling class (king, priests and feudal shi)
Working class

Zhou Dynasty (1027-221 BCE)
Working classes divided into 4 distinct and ranked sub-classes:

Scholars
Farmers
Craftsmen
Traders

Han Dynasty (202 BCE-220 CE)
Entry into shi class depended on success in Imperial Civil Service Examinations

Southeast Asia

In heavily forested Southeast Asia, the tribe became the basic social grouping, led by the tribal chief.

Each tribe was made of closely related people who had a common ancestor.
They were mostly hunters, rice farmers and sailors, and had a strong sense of belonging to a common culture.

By 200 CE, the tribal villagers had become port cities, and a new social system based on 3 classes was devised to organise the new jobs that were created :