Myth of Xia and Shang - China History Lecture Hall

Author: Meng Shikai
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2007-01-01
Features: The social nature of the Xia and Shang dynasties is currently a topic of debate in academia, as there is no consensus. This issue is closely related to the question of when China's civilization began. In other words, when was the state centered around the Huaxia people established in Chinese history, and when did class society emerge? Currently, there are several viewpoints: (1) China's history of civilization is approximately 6,000 years old, with slavery emerging as early as the periods of Taihao, Yandi, Huangdi, and Shaohao. (2) The state and class society were established as early as the periods of Yandi and Huangdi 5,000 years ago. (3) The state was officially established and slavery emerged only in the periods of Yao and Shun 4,000 years ago. (4) The Xia Dynasty was officially established and slavery emerged only after the establishment of the son-inheritance system by Xia Yu. (5) The Xia and Shang dynasties were still tribal societies, and it was only in the late Shang Dynasty that slavery emerged. In the past 50 years, the most popular view in historical academia has been that the state established during the Xia Dynasty was China's first slave-owning dynasty, and the Shang Dynasty was China's second slave-owning dynasty. In this book, the same view is adopted: the state established during the Xia Dynasty marks the beginning of China's slave-owning society, and the Shang Dynasty was the second slave-owning dynasty. As for which type of slavery the Xia and Shang dynasties belonged to, there is also significant debate in academia. This involves both theoretical issues and material issues, which fall within the scope of specialized research. In this book, excessive elaboration is avoided, and only a general introduction is provided based on the available evidence.