Drinking water was not only one of the most important substances that supported the pleasure of tea drinking, but it also carried an extremely significant function of expressing the scholar-officials’ aesthetic principle during the Ming Dynasty. James Watt has pointed out that the selection of water had contributed to scholar-officials’ critical language of “taste,” such as “dan” (tasteless and colorless), which was a highly-regarded form of delectation. The tasteless and colorless of water offered a chance to display the ability to distinguish and appreciate the good water through sharp eyes and sensitive noses and palates, which was the ability concerned by the scholar-official groups. Yuan Hongdao, who was a Hubei native and later
The Tea that reach America from china inspired new addictions, new trade connections and new forms of luxury, new social critiques and simmering provincial inferiority. Many caffeinated drinks had come before the tea however this was a new drink to the English-speaking world. Nevertheless, this drink did not come without its own problems (50).
Tea: Tea began as a luxury drink, and then trickled down to become the beverage of the working man. The story of tea is the story of imperialism, industrialization, and world domination. According to Chinese tradition, the first cup of tea was brewed by the emperor Shen Nung. Before tea was a beverage, it was used for medicinal purposes and foodstuff. Tea became a daily drink in China around the third century A.D. As the Industrial Revolution of 18th and 19th centuries gained steam, tea provided some of the fuel. Factory workers stayed alert during long, monotonous shifts thanks to welcome tea breaks. The beverage also had unintended health benefits for rapidly growing urban areas. Chewing leaves and rubbing them on wounds were ways that tea was used for medicinal purposes.
I am writing to apply for the Max Planck Society pre-doctoral fellowship runs from 1 March 2018 to 30 June 2018. As a PhD candidate at the Department of History, University of Minnesota, I study the connections between the history of the senses, the circulation of commodities, and social class formation in early modern China. I am now working on my dissertation entitled “More than just a Drink: Tea Consumption, Bodily Experiences and Material Culture in Early Modern China (1550-1700),” which explores the role of scholar-official tea connoisseurs in reshaping tea production and consumption in China from the mid-sixteenth century to the early eighteenth century, during which a new trend of consuming loose tea, which has dominated China’s tea
Timothy Brook’s book, The Confusions of Pleasure: Commerce and Culture in Ming China is a detailed account of the three centuries of the Ming Dynasty in China. The book allows an opportunity to view this prominent time period of Chinese history. Confusions of Pleasure not only chronicles the economic development during the Ming dynasty, but also the resulting cultural and social changes that transform the gentry and merchant class. Brook’s insights highlight the divide between the Ming dynasty’s idealized beliefs, and the realities of its economic expansion and its effects. Brook describes this gap through the use of several first hand accounts of individuals with various social statuses.
He particularly focuses on the birth of tea culture itself, explaining the British predilection to tea, which gradually grew from medicinal use to “sweetened bitter tea” (Walvin 13). He also goes into detail regarding the origin of the “British sweet tooth [, which was] developed because of the Atlantic slave system for sugar production” (Walvin 13).
John told us himself ”I became immersed in the culture of the Song Dynasty and fell in love with it’s rich history.” He said that he chose to go back to this Dynasty because of the rapid advancements in economics, agriculture, and government, that were made in this era that lasted from 960 to 1279. When asked about some of the culture he had the chance to experience while he was there Reeves told us “The Song Dynasty held the development of some of China’s oldest traditions such as the practices of foot binding and tea drinking. John went into great detail about these customs saying “Footbinding in China began with the Song Dynasty as a symbol of wealth and beauty.
“This was the routine of the old China trade. These were the commodities traditionally brought to China and traditionally carried away. And at the heart of the trade was tea. It came from no other place. India did not then produce any, nor Ceylon, Java, or Formosa; Japan was inaccessible; the world perforce drank China teas. Above all, the English drank them” (17).
This Ad shows a good image of Conflict and structural a functionalist theory. As a Conflict theorist, is shows a beautiful woman holding or drinking water while wearing a shirt of a baby body that Intel that if you drink this water (or water in general) that you feel young or look young. The way a Structural functionalist theorist would see this, is by drinking water at a young age, might suggest that you grow to look beautiful like the woman in the photo. What also makes this a conflict and a functionalist theory is suggesting that water is the reason for both beauty and youth, targeting beverages brands like coke or sugar drinks. In Conflict theory way, if you drink Soda or Sugar drinks, you will not look or feel young. As a functionalist,
Some scholars have paid attention to the important role that “taste” had played in the late-Ming society. Both Wu Jen-shu and Craig Clunas have noticed that, when facing the “social emulation” from the merchant class, the literati brought up the topic of “taste” in their writing and practiced it in their daily life. The “invention of taste,” as Clunas argues, was the mechanism through which literati were able to retain cultural power, by appreciating manufactured things more important than the mere fact of ownership. These studies have explained the discourse of tasting through analyzing the consumption of a variety of objects, such as antiques, paintings, porcelains, clothing, and transports; however, this discourse of tasting tends to focus
As a member of the gentry, my roles fall in high political offices and the emperor’s court. The duty of a gentry man is to devote his life to Confucian teachings and apply philosophical principles to everyday life and action. A member of the gentry is also expected to engage in the arts in some way, and support the arts by paying artisans to create ceramics, poems, and art for them. Most of the gentry rented their land to peasants to farm. The gentry’s largest contribution to society was libraries, where they gathered ancient texts and attempted to decipher their meaning. If problems arose, they found solutions within history. They also contributed to a revival of sorts of Confucianism.
Li Bai who was also well known as Li Po was a famous Chinese man who lived in the 6th century. His poems are still well known in the current Chinese civilization and all over the world. Given the fact the he existed on a time when the Chinese were going through oppression, his poetry works encouraged people to understand how to articulate their feelings and views (Li. 55). In this perspective, individuals were able to get comfort in their lives and participate in activities that were encouraging and of great significance to the community. This paper scrutinizes the poem “Drinking Alone with the Moon” by Li Bai to capture the cultural image the poet was trying to display.
Lu Xun’s story “Diary of a Madman” serves to demonstrate his discontent with traditional Chinese cultural, not only by the fact that it clearly addresses the incidence of cannibalism that is believed to have occurred but also symbolizes the oppressive nature of Confucian principles.Lu Xun’s madman has the ability to recognize the oppressive elements of Chinese Confucian culture serves to mock established but out-dated traditional scholarship and symbolizes the greater wisdom of cultural reform, especially as it is advanced by modern intellectuals of the period.
When it comes to discussing the manners and customs that dominated in China in the past century, numerous topics appear. Thanks to the numerous written testimonies, we can almost reconstruct the life and experiences of people in ancient China. Of course, many of the practices described are not only interesting, but surprising. In this paper I am going to take a closer look at the status of women in ancient Chinese family.
However, after I began to hear about the importance of water in our lives, I began to choose water whenever I needed something to drink.
9:15. This is the time that I awoke on yet another seemingly average Thursday morning. I groggily force myself to rise from the warm sanctuary of my multiple blankets and pillows in order to start my day. After the hour or so of preparing for the day ahead, I decide that it is time to hydrate myself by drinking water. However, this is not just any ordinary water. It is Dasani, my favorite affordable brand of bottled water. As I reach my refrigerator, I am met with immense dismay as I learn that my supply has been emptied out. Seeing as though I typically go grocery shopping anyway on Thursdays, this disappointment did not ruin my day. I go through my day as usual by going to my classes for the day. When they end, I prepare for my journey out to the store. I must find the one thing I allow to quench my thirst, Dasani. I go through the local Kroger as usual, picking up any food that I find will last me and my roommate for a week or two. Then, I enter the beverage aisle. My entire day has been leading up to this moment. I speed past the numerous sugary options and head straight to the bottled water. My eyes scan through the various options. After a few seconds of intense searching, my eyes lock onto the green and blue packaging of the reliable bottled water, Dasani. As if it was a reflex, my body rushes towards the case and lifts up the slightly heavy twenty-four case of the bottled water. While handing the cashier money in exchange for my groceries, I begin to wonder why I