Chapter 2, Confucians and Curiosities Summary and Analysis

To Confucius in the sixth century, China was the entire world. He referred to it as the Middle Kingdom. Although Confucius hoped to tame the wild, marauding tribes threatening China, in the end he felt there was nothing to be gained by contact with foreigners. Confucianism became the basis of Chinese moral code from second century B.C. with the rise of the Han dynasty. One the tenets of Confucianism is the concept that the Chinese Emperor is the link between man and god and that he is able to transform society by his virtue alone.

The Han Empire established academies based on the teachings of Confucius. The great master's intolerance of trade with foreign entities relegated those making their living from the sea to an inferior status. The chaos that followed the collapse of...