The society guarded by the Great Wall: Ming

Author: Editorial Committee of "Illustrated History of China"
Publisher:
Publishing Date: 2006-01-01
Features: This was an era of strict hierarchy. Government surveillance over society reached the most stringent level in history; the torment of eunuchs only added to the woes; scholars were ensnared in the imperial examinations, with few possessing independent thought. Amidst this atmosphere, the people's pursuit of rich secular life was diverse and varied. Unable to achieve literary or martial glory, the literati focused more on refined cultivation of inner character. In landscapes, calligraphy, and painting, they found tranquility; on the stage and in novels, they portrayed their dreams. This was also an introspective empire. Along the long northern border, the Great Wall, long abandoned, was put back into use, both separating nomadic invasions and revealing the lack of martial spirit in the Zhu dynasty; in the southern seas, there was the magnificent feat of seven voyages to the Western Oceans, yet it was only a fleeting moment.