The utility of Confucianism & civil service examinations: from Han to Qing

Type :

Presentation

Pages :

6 pages

Format :

.doc

Published date :

09/04/2008

Category :

History & geography

Sub category :

Medieval history

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Summary :

Introduction.
The civil service examinations in the Tang Dynasty.
The 12th century introduction of examinee anonymity during grading.
The time-consuming and expensive examination lifestyle.
A threat to the talent renewal.
Who the Confucian educational agenda served.
The civil service examination - not an instrument to social mobility.
Conclusion.

Abstract

It was during the han Dynasty under Confucian scholar Dong Zhong Shu's persuasion that Emperor Wu (r. 140-68 BC) canonized the five Confucian classics as teachings of the state, created an imperial academy and instituted the civil service examinations as a nascent tool of talent recruitment. The examination system was theoretically posited as the means by which "scholastic achievement and dedication to public service, and not noble birth, [would be cemented] as the requisites for entrance into officialdom." (Hansen 127) But this single piece of rhetoric on impartiality and egalitarian Confucian ideals actually betrays a lack of commitment towards meritocracy and even hidden political agenda. For is "scholastic achievement" even an egalitarian measure of the right to officialdom? Might there not be a paradox in the concept of an "exam-based meritocracy," given the inherent advantages that wealth and family background can confer on a candidate? The examinations were clearly targeted against those of "noble birth."