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Compare And Contrast Han China And Rome

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During the classical era, the Han Dynasty and Roman empire had a monumental impact on the western world. Both societies rapidly rose by using a government that consisted of a worthy emperor who was accompanied by officials that were specifically selected according to talent and merit. However, the Romans contrasted from the Han in that they did not believe that their emperor was divinely chosen. Though both empires seemed to to have everlasting success over a course of a couple centuries, the two faced obstacles that eventually led to there downfall. The Han’s disregard for the peasant classes led to a series of uprisings, whereas the Roman citizens granted social mobility which kept them at ease. In addition, both suffered from a series of outside invasions that caused their already declining governments to collapse. Both the Han Dynasty and Roman Empire used a bureaucracy that did used merit to elect officials. As a result of Confucian influence, the Han developed and administered civil service exams that most males could take. These exams guaranteed that officials were properly chosen based on education rather than wealth or birthright.Similarly, the Romans used the Plebeian Council, or People's Assembly, which allowed for common people to elect their own officials. This …show more content…

Roman peasants and merchants enjoyed much more freedom and regard by the government. This due to the economy’s reliance on imports and exports. In contrast, Chinese peasants were basically told how to live by the government. China relied on homegrown goods and did not have much use for merchants as a result.This difference due to the fact that Rome’s economy operated on lower class labor whereas the Han’s government was more concerned with limiting mobility which led to severe taxation which left the peasants tied to the land like

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