This thesis examines different aspects of Vergleichungen der Europäischen mit den Asiatischen und andern vermeintlich Barbarischen Regierungen, with special attention to the role that China plays...Show moreThis thesis examines different aspects of Vergleichungen der Europäischen mit den Asiatischen und andern vermeintlich Barbarischen Regierungen, with special attention to the role that China plays in this book and the author's theory. Vergleichungen is written by J.H.G. Justi and published in 1762. Justi was a German political and economic thinker who had a significant influence in this area, especially in Germany and Austria. Many of his books were very important in the economic and political debate of that time, but Vergleichungen did not attract much attention. However, I am of the opinion that Vergleichungen is a very original and interesting book since it is a fundamental critique of Eurocentrism, written at a time when Eurocentrism was on the rise in Europe. In Vergleichungen, Justi gives extensive examples of the state institutions, characteristics, etc. of non-European countries, compares them to the state institutions, characteristics, etc. in Europe, and then concludes that the institutions, characteristics, etc. of non-European countries function better than their counterparts in Europe, and that it would, therefore, be beneficial for European countries if they would introduce these institutions, characteristics, etc. in Europe. Of these non-European countries, Justi was especially interested in China as an example for Europe. This thesis will examine the different aspects that have been important for the creation of Vergleichungen, and will discuss whether Vergleichungen is unique or not. The different aspects will include Justi’s own opinion, the structure of Vergleichungen, from whom and which works Justi obtained his information about China and by whom he was influenced to write Vergleichungen, what Justi wanted to achieve with it and what he achieved, and why his other books attracted more attention.Show less
Research master thesis | Asian Studies (research) (MA)
open access
During the final years of the Yuan dynasty, a group of poets gathered in a district near the northern part of Suzhou’s city walls. This group became later known as the “Ten Friends of the North...Show moreDuring the final years of the Yuan dynasty, a group of poets gathered in a district near the northern part of Suzhou’s city walls. This group became later known as the “Ten Friends of the North City Wall” (Beiguo shi you 北郭十友). This thesis analyzes the friendship and social relationships of four of these friends. It challenges the significance of their literary gatherings in the north city wall district, while it focuses on the variety of other locations – estates, gardens, monasteries, scenic and historical sites - where their relationships were acted out. In the Yuan-Ming transition, when civil war and political instability greatly reduced opportunities for distant travel and social networking, these various places in and around Suzhou allowed them to maintain a social network through time and space.Show less
Research master thesis | Asian Studies (research) (MA)
closed access
This thesis investigates how the cities Yuan Shangdu, Dadu and Jining compare when looking at their locations, layouts, trading positions, and distribution of material objects that were retrieved...Show moreThis thesis investigates how the cities Yuan Shangdu, Dadu and Jining compare when looking at their locations, layouts, trading positions, and distribution of material objects that were retrieved at archaeological excavations. The three case studies on the three cities portray their significance during the Yuan dynasty, on cultural, economic and political level. The thesis compares two capital cities of the Yuan dynasty and one hinterland city. The case studies structurally compare the layouts, which are all three very different from each other. Material objects that were excavated at the archaeological sites of Shangdu and Jining, imply that Shangdu was not so much a trading city but rather served the Yuan court, whereas Jining was a trading city in the hinterlands of the Yuan where many ceramics and other material objects were excavated. Dadu on the other hand, played an important role on both imperial political as trading levels.Show less
The thesis focuses on the textual representation of theaters in Hangzhou during the Southern Song Dynasty. The booming economy during the Song Dynasty stimulated the recreational consumption,...Show moreThe thesis focuses on the textual representation of theaters in Hangzhou during the Southern Song Dynasty. The booming economy during the Song Dynasty stimulated the recreational consumption, especially the development of comedies and dramas. Such trend contributed to the emergence and improvement of theatrical spaces. As the thriving performances boosted the dividing hierarchies of the theatrical spaces, the most talented folk artists and performers presented performances in the central stages and had opportunities to serve the court. The mutual influences between court bureau and folk artists promoted the development of the theatrical spaces, attracting merchants and vendors to do business in the theatrical spaces. In the urban literature, the related recordings were enriched with the descriptions narrating the transformation of theatrical spaces. Repeated in the urban literature with different representations, the images of theatrical spaces were represented as commercial centers or part of urban spaces. Such representations made the theatrical spaces gradually become the symbol of the dynamic urban life and the memory of urban prosperity.Show less
Very few historical figures exerted such long-lasting and significant influence on the idea of tyranny as Jie of Xia dynasty (2207-1766 BCE) and Zhou of Shang Dynasty (1766-1122) did. Since their...Show moreVery few historical figures exerted such long-lasting and significant influence on the idea of tyranny as Jie of Xia dynasty (2207-1766 BCE) and Zhou of Shang Dynasty (1766-1122) did. Since their earliest mentioning in Chinese texts, they are identified as wicked rulers who, because of their lavish lifestyle and their ill-advised political conduct, brought about the demise of their dynasties. In this work, I tried to analyse the idea of tyranny as crafted on these two rulers. To what extent the figures of Jie and Zhou influenced the depiction of later Emperors; in other words, can we speak of a stereotypical representation of tyranny modelled on the two pre-imperial kings? These were my thesis’ main research questions. To investigate possible answers, I addressed the stereotypical depiction of Chinese rulers by analysing, as study cases, the figures of Emperor Qianfei (449–466) of Liu Song dynasty (420–579) within official historiography, and Emperor Yang (569–618) of Sui dynasty (581–618) in fiction. It turned out that the two emperors' depictions had clear allusions to and parallels with the two pre-imperial kings. In the cases presented, the aim of the historian, or of the fiction writer, to portray a tyrannical ruler adheres, quite precisely, to the figures of the Xia and Shang wicked rulers.Show less
