Examkin

Question

Difficulty: EasyGovernance and Culture in Song China

To enrich your family, there is no need to buy fertile land;
Books contain a thousand bushels of grain.
To find peace, there is no need to build a grand mansion;
Books hold houses of pure gold.
When you travel, do not complain of having no followers;
In books, carriages and horses crowd like clouds.
If you wish to marry a beautiful wife;
In books, you will find a face like jade.
A man who wishes to achieve his life's ambition
Must study the classics diligently by the window.

— Emperor Zhenzong of Song, "Poem on Encouragement to Study," early eleventh century

The ideas expressed in the passage best reflect which of the following developments in Song China?

  1. A
    The fragmentation of political power among decentralized local lords and vassals.
  2. The state's use of a civil service examination system to recruit government officials.Answer
  3. C
    The abandonment of classical Confucian ethical texts in favor of purely Buddhist teachings in government affairs.
  4. D
    The creation of a military draft system modeled on the Ottoman devshirme system to staff the imperial palace.

Answer

The state's use of a civil service examination system to recruit government officials.
The correct answer is correct because the poem by Emperor Zhenzong directly encourages the study of Confucian classics as the path to state employment, prestige, and wealth. This reflects the expansion and central importance of the civil service examination system under the Song dynasty to recruit scholar-bureaucrats.

Step-by-Step Solution

1
Analyze the source and author context.
The source is a poem written by Emperor Zhenzong of the Song Dynasty encouraging scholars to study the classics.
Understanding the source helps identify the imperial government's goals and values.
2
Connect the poem's content to Song society.
The poem promises wealth, prestige, and political success to those who study the classical texts.
This establishes that academic achievement in classical studies was the primary path to social mobility and government positions.
3
Match the behavior to Song governance structures.
The civil service examination system selected government bureaucrats based on their performance on exams testing Confucian classics.
This links the educational focus of the poem directly to the state's bureaucratic recruitment methods.

Key Concept

Governance and Culture in Song China
Estimated Time:1m 0s
Rate this question

Topics

Governance and Culture in Song China

More questions from this topic