Reflection 3

China is one of the oldest countries in the entire world besides its many discoveries Silk is the most well known of its origin. What an amazing discovery! Who would have thought or researched to turn the worm’s spit or poop into fabric. The Chinese totally deserved the well known empowerment. I have heard that the Chinese kept the silk making secret to themselves for more than two thousand years. According to Strayer; silk became a symbol of high status and it was a highly desired commodity across Eurasia; In Central Asia, silk was used as currency and as a mean of accumulating wealth. For that reason silk became to the most precious item in the trade route across the globe. Some say that it was offensive to the husband when his wife wears revealing silk dress outside. During this postclassical era silk clothing was restricted to member of the elite by law, and later it was associated with religions of Buddhism and Christianity as mentioned by Strayer. As the globe was concentrating on silk (for their high status symbol) and other goods trading they also got devastating disease which dramatically decreased the population. This answers my long wondering question; why immigrants had to prove that they are medically healthy and free of diseases before immigrating to the United States.

“The foundation of renewed unity, the ‘Golden age’ was when standards were set for the excellence of poetry, landscape painting, and ceramic.” I think China was advance at the time; however, the discrimination of women had slowed down the country. As mention on my previous blog what on earth made men think that women could not do what they could? Confucius supposedly a pioneer Chinese thinker, but to put women down as they are good for nothing was not as smart of him.  What a torture to women to have to go through a food binding pretty much a handicap state for the rest of her life! As of the Chinese tribute system sounded to me as bribery, a tribute like goods does not benefit the people it only stays within the emperor. That “tribute system” I call it bribery is still widely practiced today in China. Their government system is very much corrupted by bribing.

It’s interesting how religion exploded with civilization and to see how each religion cannot tolerate one another. How Confucius and Daoist thinkers were offensive of the foreigner Buddha, criticized Buddhism and later the criticism became more sharply focused that imperial commanded monks and nuns to return to normal life. And I feel sorry for all the Buddhist monasteries, Shrines and temples got destroyed.

I was not aware that the Roman was once collapsed. I have never taken World history before, however, I have heard about the decreased of population due to disease and warfare.  I think when an Empire collapse the people would not care about their public properties, roads and other places. To those who might have been  governed strictly once before they might think that it was an exhale to be finally free of government until they miss it.