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PART II:
THE EMPEROR AND THE SYMBOL OF THE DRAGON
Suggested Length of time: Six weeks
Two lessons divided in approximately six 40-minute sessions
Background Information | Lesson
One | Lesson
Two
ORGANIZING IDEA
Since the first legendary rulers, the Emperors of China have taken the dragon as the central image in an elaborate set of images that symbolize the emperor’s authority. The great and beneficial power of the dragon could be brought to the people through the good rule of the emperor who was considered to be the intermediary between heaven and earth, a “Son of Heaven.”
As he occupied a divine position, the ruler enjoyed the Mandate of Heaven. This command from heaven established him as the founder of a dynasty that passed its spiritual powers from one generation to the next. The strength of an emperor’s mandate depended on how well he ruled. Thus, if a king ruled poorly, he lost the mandate and his lineage died out and a new king from a different line received a mandate to begin a new dynasty.
The dragon became the primary symbol of this heavenly mandate frequently decorating the palaces he lived, the chairs he sat in and even the robes he wore. The pearl in the dragon’s grasp is a symbol of wisdom. Like the dragon, the good emperor always sought the wisdom to rule wisely, and the combination of wisdom and divine power assured the well-being of the Chinese people.
ORGANIZING QUESTIONS
1. Who were some of the emperors who used the dragon symbol and where do they fit on the time line of Chinese history?
2. How did they rise to power and rule the Chinese people.
3. Did they earn their position a “son of heaven?” Did they retain the right to hold the “Mandate of Heaven?”
STUDENT OBJECTIVES
1. Students will read Mary Pope Osborne’s Day of the Dragon King and the Calliope Magazine issue devoted to Shi-Huangdi (October, 1997, China's First Emperor: Shi-Huangdi, ISBN 0382408942) examining the former for historical accuracy understanding what occurs when historical information becomes historical fiction.
2. In teams, students will research and assess the rule of a well known emperor and understand where they belong on a timeline of Chinese history.
3. Students will identify the major accomplishments of a emperor by designing a dragon robe. The symbols they use to decorate the robe will reflect the accomplishments and failures of that emperor’s rule.
MATERIALS
1. Copy per student of Mary Pope Osborne’s Day of the Dragon King
2. Assorted library resources, encyclopedia for research of emperors.
4. Calliope Magazines on Ancient China (see the list at the end of Part II for information). Several issues have readable articles on Chinese Emperors from various dynasties.
3. Computer and In-Focus Projector or Slide projector and slides if using the Primary Source unit with slides.
4. Overhead projector and transparencies for use in copy machine
5. Homework sheets
6. Timeliner Software program, Tom Snyder Productions, or some other software timeline program. This could also be done by hand.
5. Butcher paper or other large roll of paper.
BACKGROUND INFORMATION
As noted in Part I, many legends draw connections between the dragon and the emperor. A symbol of masculine vigor and fertility, the dragon was believed to make an appearance in the heavens before the birth of an emperor, therefore, some emperors claimed to have descended from the dragon, while for others, dragons were special protectors. Any sighting of a dragon meant that Heaven was letting the Chinese people know that the emperor was ruling well. Reports of dragons were welcome at court.
The emperor’s most honored title was “the True Dragon” and the adjective dragon was used in the names of all that had to do with his life and office. His throne was the “dragon’s seat” his hands the “dragon’s claws, the pen he used was the “dragon’s brush, the imperial look was known as the “dragons’ eyes, “ and the imperial robes called “dragon’ garments.” So important was this supernatural beast that it come to represent China itself, appearing on the coins of the realm as well as the national flag.
The wearing of court robes with dragon symbols was a practice throughout Chinese history, Dragons first appeared on robes in the Tang dynasty (618-906) and then again in the Song (960-1297. But it was the Mongols, who ruled China during the Yuan dynasty (1297-1368), who established their use. When the Han Chinese renewed their authority by establishing the Ming Dynasty (1368) they were in no hurry to adopt the dragon robe so popular among the Mongols officially, though they were worn for informal occasions. By the sixteenth century they were again considered very fashionable and much sought after at court. Five-clawed dragons called Long were confined to use of the emperor, his sons by the empress and other high-ranking princes, but they could be awarded on merit to important nobles and officials. Four-clawed dragons called Mang were worn by lesser princes and those with senior appointments to the court.
Very few robes survive from the Ming period probably because their owners were buried in them. To demonstrate ones honor and high rank, it was important to arrive in the next world in one’s most important clothes.
The wearing of these court robes became the highest form of official dress at court and within the government after the defeat of the Ming by the Manchus from the north (1644-1911). Considering the old dynasty inefficient and corrupt, the Manchu’s were determined to impose their own culture and customs on the Chinese, though they did adopt the pattern of the dragon robes, if not the shape of them. An 18-chapter book of precedents was published (1766) establishing rules for ritual vessels, astronomical instruments, musical instruments, state dress and military uniforms, During the Qing Dynasty, everyone(Manchu or Chinese) who attended or served at court wore symbolic robes. Rank and status within the court were indicated by cut, color and symbolic decoration of one’s robe. The Official Gazette in Beijing stated the month, day and hour that the emperor would change his clothing from winter to summer and vice versa. At that time, all wearing official dress were required to do the same or penalties were imposed. All males, young and old, adopted the queue(pigtail) hairstyle of the Manchus.
The wearing of dragon robes declined with the fall of the Qing dynasty in 1911. The symbolism of the dragon still survives today in image robes for temple gods and in wedding dress for brides in Hong Kong and Taiwan. Ironically, today, most dragon robes are found in the West having been removed from China during times of upheaval such as the sacking of the Summer Palace in 1860 and the overthrow of the Qing when Western residents of Beijing were able to buy court dress from nobility needing cash. Most are now carefully preserved in museums.
| Background Information | | | Lesson One | | | Lesson Two |