Because of the strong emphasis on scholarly attainment, scholars occupy
the uppermost social stratum, followed by farmers, artisans, and merchants.
In the Confucian world order, earning a living by one's labor and
one's hands, is respected above profiting from commercial activities.
Since the days of the Shang Dynasty circa 1600 to 1050 BCE,
if not earlier, China has considered its civilization superior to all others.
The Chinese, therefore, developed a complex but flexible set of foreign,
feudal style relations called the Tributary System.
According to this system, which lasted well into the 19th century,
all foreigners were considered vassals, subordinate to China as the lord.
They brought gifts from their native lands as tribute, and
the emperor observing the principle of civilizing man from afar,
Huairou yuanren, endowed them with their own territories.
Gave them official titles, bestowed expensive gifts upon them, and
promised them trading privileges and military support.
The visitors dutifully performed a katow,
prostrating themselves on the ground as a sign of submission to the emperor.
Neighboring states that paid tribute on a regular basis in the heyday of the system
were Korea, the Islands which is modern day Okinawa,
Annam, modern day Vietnam, Siam, modern day Thailand and
the southeast Asian states of Java, Malaya, etc.
The arrangement suited both parties.
The Chinese emperor received ritual affirmation of his position
as the ruler of all under heaven, tianxia, while his vassals were amply
rewarded with expensive gifts and permission to conduct trade.
To be sure the actual details of the tributary exchanges
varied according to the relative power of the respective parties.
And so some historians have questioned whether the term tributary system
is an apt description of the arrangements.
But Chinese primary sources abundantly attest to
the institutionalization of tribute giving in China for well over 2,000 years.
In this chapter,
we have reviewed two basic concepts that undergird traditional Chinese society.
The Confucian teaching that advocated ideals of compassion, filial piety,
and ritual as operating principles, and the tributary system that gave China
a sense of cultural and moral superiority in its foreign relations.
In the next chapter,
we will turn to the activities of the first Americans to reach China.