Great Lecture on Chinese History -- A Brief History of the Xia and Shang Dynasties

Author: Meng Shikai
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2007-01-31
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 the class-based society begin? Currently, there are several viewpoints:
(1) China's history of civilization is approximately 6,000 years old. The slave-owning society began as early as the periods of Tai Hao, Yan Di, Huang Di, and Sha Hao.
(2) The state and class-based society were established as early as the periods of Yan Di and Huang Di 5,000 years ago.
(3) The state was officially established and the slave-owning society began only in the periods of Yao and Shun 4,000 years ago.
(4) The Xia Dynasty was officially established and the slave-owning society began only after the establishment of the son-succession system by Xia Yu.
(5) The Xia and Shang dynasties were still clan societies, and the slave-owning society began only in the late Shang Dynasty.
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 marked the beginning of China's slave-owning society, and the Shang Dynasty was the second slave-owning dynasty.
As for which type of slave-owning system 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. This book does not elaborate on them in detail but provides a general introduction based on the available evidence.