Chasing the Song Dynasty: a Closer Look at the Golden Age of Classical China

The Song Dynasty was the peak period in the evolution of ancient Chinese history and created the splendid Song Dynasty civilization. Politically, in order to correct the mistakes of the late Tang Dynasty and the Five Dynasties, the Song Dynasty strengthened the central government's control over local areas, promoted civil rule, and even formed an enlightened situation in which monarchs and scholar-bureaucrats co-ruled the world; economically, the private market was developed and the commodity economy was highly prosperous, which changed the daily lives of ordinary people. The famous "Qing Dynasty" The prosperity of urban life is depicted in "A Picture of Along the River in the Ming Dynasty"; in addition, the academic culture of the Song Dynasty was free and developed, and private private schools were popular. Cheng-Zhu Neo-Confucianism, which had a profound influence on later generations, was formed at this time. As the master of history Chen Yinke said, "The culture of the Chinese nation has evolved over the years, and it has reached its peak in the Zhao and Song Dynasties." This book mainly elaborates thematically from two dimensions: the design of the country's top-level institutions and the civilizational achievements of the Song Dynasty. The former focuses on the traditional national policies of the Song Dynasty and a series of key institutional designs, including the value orientation of "emphasis on literature over military affairs", the evolution of political systems, and the development of education and imperial examination systems. The establishment, the integrity of the legal system and the economic system, etc.; The latter focuses on the achievements of civilization in the social and cultural fields, such as the formation and evolution of Song Dynasty which has a profound influence on later generations, the brilliance of the literature of the two Song Dynasties, the highly developed science and technology and the historiography of the Song Dynasty, as well as the brilliant and brilliant artistic achievements, etc.