The Examination System During Tung-song Dynasty (Essay Sample)

THE EXAMINATION SYSTEM DURING TUNG-SONG DYNASTY
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The Tang dynasty ruled from 618 to 906 while the Song dynasty ruled from 960 to 1279 in Medieval China because they coincided in time with the early and high Middle Ages of Western Europe. During these times other empires in Europe faced challenges like the Frankish kingdom of Charlemagne of the English Empire during the Norman invasion. After the rebellion against the Sui imperial family, China had past experience in establishing and maintaining dynasties. After the rebellion, China established the Tang dynasty in 618. Both the Tang and Song dynasties ruled for over 600 years and experienced amazing advance in science, technology, art and philosophy. As these dynasties developed, civilization was introduced through educational systems which helped the people living at the time become literate. Hence, there were examination systems used in the education sector, which will be discussed.
The Tang dynasty was known as the center for foreign exchange in goods and ideas, a mighty military power, an able civil service and system of education and the hub of arts and culture. Despite the fact that the Sui dynasty only lasted for about 36years, it had established a strong foundation which the Tang dynasty would greatly benefit. The rulers reclaimed most lands in the northern and western parts of China. They strengthened their governance by expanding the road and canal networks, which were first established in the previous dynasty. However, in order to establish a highly powerful dynasty, Tang rulers noted that they had to restore China`s vast bureaucracy. In order to do this, they expanded the civil service examination system which was started by the Han dynasty. Government officials who passed the exams automatically became part of the elite group of scholar officials in the Dynasty. The exams were opened to all, irrespective of gender or social status. However, only the rich would afford to pay for the required time for education. In addition, men with high political stature, influence and relations could attain high positions without taking the exams. Even though the examination system in the dynasty suffered minor flaws, it helped create an outstandingly intelligent and capable governing class in China. The examination system helped the Chinese become more literate on issues of governance, domestic and foreign trading philosophies. The system grew in importance making education more valuable than anything else in the dynasty. The emperor considered education as the sole foundation of effective and efficient power than children being born from noble families. Eventually, the exam system helped in the governance of the dynasty which was shared among fairly wealthy Chinese families. The second Tang dynasty emperor, Taizong, revived the practice of electing government officials through intensive written examinations that stressed on Confucian values of loyalty and service. This examination process ensured that emperors selected officials who were loyal and hardworking. The examination system was important, especially when the Tang dynasty expanded its territorial reign across the country. This system helped government officials to remain vigilant because some were forced to operate away from the dynasty`s capital city of Chang`an.[Ebrey, Patricia B. Cambridge Illustrated History of China (2nd ed.). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. 2010.] [Ebrey, Patricia B. Cambridge Illustrated History of China (2nd ed.). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. 2010.]
The Song dynasty was built on the Tang`s accomplishments, but the lives of most Chinese was totally different. This is due to the fact that the Song dynasty was faced with insecurity problems like the constant threat of invasion from its northern and western borders. This caused panic among the Chinese as most of them refrained from trading activities in foreign goods and ideas and turning to philosophies which will improve domestic relations. Despite the fact that China was divided into separate kingdoms, the dynasty lasted for three centuries under a strong powerful and prosperous reign. Unlike the Tang dynasty, Song focused on maintaining and increasing stability and prosperity among its people. They highly valued diplomacy and public control of the government. The examination system was viewed as a means of obtaining official government positions which became was more important in the Song dynasty. However, unlike the Tang dynasty exam system, in the Song dynasty, only ten percent of the tested candidates were allowed to excel at each level. The extremely rich and wealthy families spend huge amounts of money on exam materials and resources like books, excellent schools and tutors. This would eventually help children from such families have a better chance of excelling the civil service examination. The exam included memorizing passages from Confucian classics and composing complex poems on specific themes. It was in this dynasty that the Chinese administration considered the education system as the ladder to success in the society. The aim of the examination was to attract literate men into governance and minimize the dominance of military men. In addition, the examination system was designed to identify literate men who would make excellent government officials.[Ebrey, Patricia B. Cambridge Illustrated History of China (2nd ed.). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. 2010.]
The civil service examinations connected various aspects of pre-modern politics, economy and society in imperial China. The elites and imperial court influenced the dynastic government to re-evaluate and examine the educational curriculum and to adjust the examination system of selecting government officials. The exam was a test of educational merit which bureaucratically united the dynasty with its own literacy culture. It also facilitated China`s entry into the modern world because all its government officials were literate and conversant with all Chinese philosophies on local and international trade. The education was based on non-technical moral and political theory which was the basis of selecting the dynasty`s elite to govern and administer in the imperial Tang and Song dynasty. The examination system was not formulated to provide an opportunity for the vast population of peasants and the poor to improve their social status but to ensure that the elite were incorporated in all government institutions in both dynasties. Despite primary sources emphasizing on the benefits of the civil examination system, there were unprecedented consequences such as the large pool of examination failures who utilized their linguistic and literary talents in a variety of non-official roles. Both dynasties overlooked this aspect because they ignored to consider what happened to millions of people who failed the civil service exams. This resulted in millions of literate men who used their educational talents in other fields such as fiction writers, essay teachers, lineage agents, ritual experts and physicians. Even though women were not allowed to take the exams, they were authorized to follow their individual educational pursuit only to educate their sons or find spouses.[Ebrey, Patricia B., ed. Chinese civilization: a sourcebook (2nd ed.). New York: Free Press, 1993.]
The imperial examination system was the offici...