Lehre

The nature of “Late Antiquity” has been contested. Scholars of Roman history have used a series of dichotomous metaphors to portray the contradictory components prevalent in society during this period: “secular” and “spiritual,” “imperial” and “provincial,” “public” and “private,” “unification” and “division,” “isolation” and “interaction,” and so forth. Historians who focus on other parts of the world have largely accepted these binary narratives. One problem inherent in such models is that, by distinguishing between two seemingly incompatible status, researchers imply that individuals in Late Antiquity always faced severe splits in their real lives and were constantly troubled by paradoxical elements, without having any healthy daily routines. Another issue with these distinctions is their treatment of new social phenomena as completely subversive, thoroughly opposing existing norms and conventions. Studies on traditional China could help us transcend this binary model of interpretation. Though facing chaos, many people survived crises by sustaining a certain order, putting their desires and ambitions into words, and enjoying pleasures from the deepest part of their minds. This course explores how to locate the territory that we call “China” within the historical context of Global Late Antiquity (ca. 100s–500s), and how to redefine “Late Antiquity” from the perspective of China studies. We focus in particular on two activities that shaped the image of Late Antique China by influencing people’s conception of basic human relations: the expression of thoughts and feelings, and the exchange of ideas or things. The flourishing of both activities contributed to the making of a new society that was largely founded upon techniques and ethics of public communication.