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Notes:

1. Chinese civilization first developed in the Yellow River basin.
2. The Classic of Poetry is a lyric poetry collection that stands at the beginning of the Chinese literary tradition.
3. The fusion of ethical thought and idealized Chou traditions associated with Confucius were recorded in the Analects by Confucius's disciples following his death.
4. The Chuang Tzu offers philosophical meditations in a multitude of forms, ranging from jokes and parables to intricate philosophical arguments.
5. During the period of the Warring States, Ssu-ma Ch'ien produced the popular Historical Records chronicling the lives of ruling families and dynasties in a comprehensive history of China up to the time of Emperor Wu's reign.
6. The end of ancient China is often linked with the rise of the draconian ruler Ch'in Shih-huang.

Text:
* blue words within the text indicate important notes to remember

1. Chinese civilization first developed in the Yellow River basin. The first dynasty, the Shang, was a loose confederation of city-states ruled by princes with a common ancestry. Chinese writing based on characters developed during the Shang era. By the end of the second millennium B.C., the Chou people migrated from the west and conquered the Shang. Tracing their origins from Hou-Chi (Lord Millet), the Chou put forth the argument that the last rulers of the Shang had been guilty of misrule and had caused hardship to the people, which led Heaven to transfer power to the Chou. Over the centuries, the idea of heaven changed: sometimes it was an anthropomorphic deity, a natural and moral force, or a collection of ancestral spirits.
2. Because those in power were expected to rule virtuously, rulers typically adhered to the statutes and models put in place by former kings. These ideas were recorded in three important texts: The Book of Documents, a collection of statements and proclamations from the early Chou period; the Classic of Poetry; and the Book of Changes. The Classic of Poetry is a lyric poetry collection that stands at the beginning of the Chinese literary tradition. Although it circulated among the Chou aristocracy, it is a heterogeneous text that includes many types of songs, ranging from hymns, temple songs, and hunting songs to love and marriage songs. Serving as a the basic educational text of upper class Chou, it eventually became part of the canon of Confucian classics, along with the Book of Changes and the Book of Documents.
3. By 770 B.C., the Chou dynasty had lost much of its power, and the bordering new kingdoms—the Ch'u, Wu and Y¸eh—grew stronger. Culturally, they absorbed many of the Chou ways. The Lu province also saw itself as the preserver of Chou traditions. It was also the home of Confucius. The fusion of ethical thought and idealized Chou traditions associated with Confucius were recorded in the Analects by Confucius's disciples following his death. Many of the philosophers that followed Confucius were influential, but Confucianism's emphasis on the connection between idealized history and social history proved to be stronger.
4. With new technological advances, the nature of warfare changed, resulting in increasingly destructive wars between domains. In the period known as the Spring and Autumn Annals, regions were ruled by aristocratic families with officials chosen from lesser clans. Because the domains were gradually evolving into centralized states during a period of upheaval, this era is known as the Warring States. In addition to the massive political upheaval, there was also significant intellectual upheaval. Schools of thought concerned with the individual rather than the polity began to emerge. Independent thinkers such as Chuang Chou without patronage or school were also important. The Chuang Tzu offers philosophical meditations in a multitude of forms, ranging from jokes and parables to intricate philosophical arguments. Along with the Lao Tzu, it is considered one of the foundational texts of philosophical Taoism and explores how Tao (way) represents the natural course of things. Confucians define it in a moral sense as it operates within society; in the Chuang Tzu, the way is often immoral.
5. During the period of the Warring States, Ssu-ma Ch'ien produced the popular Historical Records, chronicling the lives of ruling families and dynasties in a comprehensive history of China up to the time of Emperor Wu's reign. Often interested in the question of injustices, Ssu-ma Ch'ien's work reflected on the causes and effects of injustice on individuals.
6. The end of ancient China is often linked with the rise of the draconian ruler Ch'in Shih-huang. While he is known for making important advances such as unifying the currency and the script, he is equally known for burning books that he deemed objectionable. The Legalists, who believed that subjects of the state should adhere completely to the laws and policies, were excepted from Ch'in's book burning. Within twenty years, the Han empire came to power and retained it for over 400 years. Although the Westernized name China alludes to the Ch'in, the Chinese people in actuality refer to themselves as the "people of Han."