History Beginning Of Chinese Civilization - MyAssignmenthelp.com

Question: Discuss about the History Beginning OfChineseCivilization. Answer: Comparing Roman and Chinese civilization Roman and Chinese civilization have many differences and similarities in the manner in which the two ancient groups civilized. However, when closely looked at and analyzed Roman civilization appear to have been more advanced than the Chinese civilization as demonstrated by the following similarities and difference between these two distinct groups of civilization. Politically, the Roman Empire from 31 B.C.E to 476 C.E had a more democratic government compared to the Chineses Han Dynasty which existed between the years of 206B.C.E to 220 C.E. During the stated period of time the Roman government derived its power from the people but in contrast the Chinese rule had one person at the top that controlled all the decisions that needed to be made. Thus if you compare the two forms of government you will realize that Roman Empire during the stated period was more advanced or mature than the Chineses Han Dynasty. A mature democracy is one which gives all the subjects equal opportunity to be heard and respected rather than one or a few people controlling all the decisions which affects everyone in the society or country. (Hirth, 2008) The Imperial Rome had two categories or classes of citizens in the empire, the Patricians and Plebeians. The Patricians were initially the only people who had a say in the government while the Plebeians were only there to be seen and not to be heard. The Patricians exercised the control of government through the senate and consults proceedings that made decision and the head of government would listen to the opinion of the senate. However, after a long time the Plebeians too were given an opportunity to express themselves to the government through Tribunes which the head of the government or the empire paid keen attention to what they say or opine. The Chinese Han Dynasty on the other hand the ruler or the head of the government made decisions as per the mandate from heaven which no one else knew how it came about apart from the head of the government himself. In view of the aforementioned therefore, it is safe to postulate or opine that the Roman Empire was more civilized than the C hinese Han Dynasty. (Lean?o, Bautista Dela Vega, 2009) The change of governments or rulers is also another indication of the difference in the level of civilization between these two groups under the study. The Chinese had many Coup dtat and the new ruler will insist that the previous one had lost mandate of heaven therefore deserve to be removed from power. There is no way anyone can confirm indeed that the mandate from even existed let alone confirming that the incumbent had lost this mandate and therefore deserve to be removed from the government as the head of the empire. The ancient Rome though had a formal way of changing the government through the structure that was in place such as the senate and the consults. This shows some consistency and understandable way of how one can obtain or lose power which implies maturity in civilization and/or democracy. (Hirth, 2008) The two empires exhibited similar way of expanding their territories by both using wars and forceful takeover of the small states within their empires. The Ancient Rome would annex or forcefully capture neighboring nations but for the nations which were willing to join Rome were peacefully incorporated into the Roman empire and given a slowly be provided with a seat in the senate so that they can also express their ideas in the government. The Chinese would also use similar method of expansion but would not provide an opportunity to the acquired nations or states to participate in the government. In terms of War culture both the Roman and the Chinese empire placed a lot of premium on the martial skills because this would mean that such skills have the potential to defend the country or even expand its territory. The war culture was therefore prominent in both empires and none showed signs of using dialogue as exhibited by mature democracies of today. Thus on this front the level of civilization was same for both the Roman and the Chinese civilization before 1500 CE. (Gernet, 2008) During this period of the building techniques of the two groups of showed variance in the way they are civilized. While the Romans built primarily with concrete the Chinese built primarily with wood. However the Chinese were more proficient in casting of bronze and ceramics than the Romans. This variance indicates that the Roman were more advanced in the manner in which they built their structures compared to the Chinese based on the fact that the latter used concrete which is a mixture of cement and ballasts as well as the sand. This further shows that the Romans were able to manufacture cement which means the country was advanced technologically compared to the Chinese who depended more on the natural or the traditional materials as the main building materials for their structures. (Chi, 2013) Both empires gave men bigger say in the issues than women. There is no evidence that any of the ancient Roman or Chinese leadership gave women equal opportunity to men in the running of the day to day activities of the governments or domestic units. The place of women in the society was therefore secondary to those of men who were considered the bona fide leaders. In the entire history of the two groups under the study there is no or less evidence of women having a say in the important matters that concerned the nation. (Auguet, 2012) In conclusion, although there are a lot of similarities and difference between the Roman and Chinese Civilization there is considerable amount of evidence that shows that Roman civilization was more advanced compared to the Chinese civilization. References Auguet, R. (2012).Cruelty and Civilization. Hoboken: Taylor and Francis. Chi, L. (2013).Beginnings of chinese civilization. [Place of publication not identified]: Atf Press. Eliot, G. (2016).The mill on the Floss. New York: Open Road Integrated Media. Gernet, J. (2008).A history of Chinese civilization. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Hirth, F. (2008).China and the Roman Orient(1st ed.). Chicago: Ares. Lean?o, R., Bautista, A., Dela Vega, M. (2009).Asian civilization. Manila: Mindshapers.