Chinese Literature
were raising the silkworms on a large scale
 Ancient beginnings
 Oldest written language still used by man
 Chinese language is monosyllabic
 Tonal language
 Chinese writing does not represent the
sound of words
 The child learning to write Chinese has to
write (draw) 214 signs instead of 26 letters
in English.
Chinese Five Books
 The book of changes – contains magic
formulas which are believed to have
mysterious powers
The book of history – as its name implies, records
events from the earliest history of China which is
said to begin about 2000 B.C
 The book of rites- is really the book of right
etiquette or conduct
 The spring and autumn – relates historical
facts
The book of odes -
Confucious
 He was born in 551 B.C.
 He reach a very high position in the
government as prime minister, but he gave
up this position and travelled extensively
over China preaching justice and virtue
wherever he went
 His teachings have exerted a powerful
influence on his countrymen. It would seem
that he did not intend to found a religion:
but after his death in 479B.C., he was
revered as a saint and his moral ideas
became the foundation of religion
Confucianism
 The superior man loves his soul; the inferior
man loves his property
 Do not worry about people not knowing
you, but strive to be worth knowing
Chinese contribution to Civilization
 4000 years ago they were already expert
farmers
 2000 years before Christ was born, they
 China invented the paper the brush, the
quill, the pen and ink
 The ancient Chinese introduced the civil
service examination which is universally
adapted, at present among all nations
 China discovered gunpowder but used it for
fun and merry making
 China gave the world a fan, the parasol, the
kite for outdoor sport and the pagoda type
architecture
Chinese painting
Chinese painter is not concern with realism, or
painting things as they appear to our senses. he tries
to communicate to us what he feels or his
impression of a view, not what it looks like to the
camera lens.
Most Chinese paintings are drawn on fine silk cloth
or fine paper. The paintings are mounted on scrolls
which can be rolled.
Vocabulary words in the story The Chinese Cinderella
1. ragged – in a bad condition especially
because of being torn
ex. a boy in a ragged jeans
2. maltreated – to treat (someone) in a rough
or cruel way
ex. If you maltreat the puppy, we will take it
away immediately
3. li- a Chinese measure of distance about half
a kilometer
4. ruse – a trick or act that is used to fool
someone
ex. His act was a clever ruse to get me to go
out with him
5. dunghill – a pile of solid waste from animal
6. couriers – a person whose job is to carry
messages, packages, etc., from one person
or place to another
ex. Police recently arrested a drug courier
in our neighbourhood
7. array- to place (a group of things) in a
particular position so that they are in order
or so that they look attractive
- a group of 8 of numbers,
symbols, that are arranged in
rows and columns.
8. dishevel- to throw into disorder or disarray
9. lodestar- one that serves as an inspiration,
model or guide