Week 5: Digital Tools; Han dynasty

Sept. 26 – Oct. 2

This week Tim Clarke will introduce some digital tools to whet your appetite for the next Show and Tell. (I know this feels the wrong way round, having just finished your first Show and Tell. Please direct your questions/ire toward higher authorities who set the calendar for the tenure process that meant I needed to make certain choices in how I organized this class.)

We will also look at how the Han dynasty continues happily on the blue print of the Qin empire, even if it puts a coating of “Confucianism” on top, and we get to meet the historian who made sure we know all we know about Chinese history so far, aka Grand Historian Sima Qian!

Unless otherwise noted, all assignments and tasks are due by 11:59PM. I strongly suggest you keep a healthy life-work balance and make sure to get enough sleep. Check the “best-before dates” policy in the syllabus.

Monday
  • □ Look ahead at the readings and tasks for this week, and plan in when you will do them.
  • – This prevents last minute panic, and means you can make the most of our time together in class
Tuesday
  • □ Feedback on your fellow students’ posts:
  • – Read through and use Hypothes.is (Group HST269)  to comment on your fellow students’ posts: everybody likes some encouragement! Here is a random selection of three posts. If two or more posts are the same, or one is your own, just refresh the page for a different set. It’s all random, it’s all good! 
  • * Post 1:
  • * Post 2:
  • * Post 3:
Wednesday
  • □ Prepare before class:
  • Tim requested you take some time to look through projects from previous editions of this and other courses to see what students have done.
  • You can also look at a random project from our own First Show and Tell and dream up suggestions for a different presentation:
  • * Look at
  • □ Meeting, 9.30AM Ettinger 213 (our usual room)
Thursday
  • □ Make sure to prepare for tomorrow’s class!
Friday
  • □ Prepare before class: Readings:
  • Bring your Qin Empire Bingo card, all filled out. We’ll start class with this.
  • “The Debate of Salt and Iron.” In de Bary, Wm. and Irene Bloom, eds. In Sources of Chinese Tradition, Vol. 1: From Earliest Times to 1600. Second Edition. New York: Columbia Univ. Press, 1999. (PDF)
        • This debate pitted technical administrators against Confucian scholars, over the question how best to rule the state.
        • What differences and similarities do you see with the efficacy of the bureaucratic system the Qin emperor’s state used? Is the Han different? Why (not)? Find your answers in the text!
  • “Sima Qian: The Sacred Duty of the Historian.” In de Bary, Wm. and Irene Bloom, eds. In Sources of Chinese Tradition, Vol. 1: From Earliest Times to 1600. Second Edition. New York: Columbia Univ. Press, 1999. (PDF)
        • Sima Qian, the Grand Historian, wrote one of the most influential texts about the early Han dynasty and almost everything anyone knew about Chinese history until archaeology in the twentieth century began to challenge (and also confirm!) his narrative. Thus it makes good sense for us, as historians, to look at the Chinese “father of history” and understand more of his motivations. He remains an enigmatic figure, but you get a bit more of an insight in how his text (Shiji, or The Grand Historian’s Records) came into existence.
  • Textbook for background: Hansen, Valerie. The Open Empire: A History of China to 1800. Chapter 3- part 2: ” “The Creation of Empire” (pp. 106-137)
        • If you like following along in the optional textbook
  • Textbook for background: Schneewind, Sarah. An Outline History of East Asia to 1200. Third edition. Open Textbook Library. Oakland, California: eScholarship, 2021. Chapters 4 and 5, https://escholarship.org/uc/item/9d699767
  • □ Meeting in Ettinger 213, 9.30AM (Slides)
  • □ First Reflection: Find all the details on the dedicated webpage 
  • Note that the contents/prompts for the remaining reflections this semester will each time be slightly different, so check carefully! Future reflections are on Nov. 4 and Dec. 9.
Saturday
  • □ Rest day
Sunday

Where to get help:

  • Tea Room on Discord:
    • open anytime for you
    • I will be hosting Tue 2PM-3PM; Wed. 11AM-12PM, or at other times by appointment via Google Calendar. You can also find me in my office during Tea Room times.
    • Private room for confidential chat available on request.
  • Discord Channel #hst269 and the (anonymous) Padlet (both also useful for chatting, sharing fun stuff)
  • DLAs: Digital Learning Assistants: schedule coming soon!
  • Writing Center: Sunday-Wednesday: 3:30 – 5:30 pm and 7-11 pm; Thursday: 3:30 – 5:30 pm and 7-9 pm; drop in or make an appointment
  • Trexler Library Course Subject Guide: our own dedicated subject guide for the course 
  • Safety on/around campus: report an incident