What are the main characteristics of families in ancient China?

men plow and women weave, with clear division of labor;

it is subordinate to agriculture and does not occupy the main position;

In order to support the family, the products are owned by themselves

Most of them are produced and sold, and only a small part of them are sold in the market;

manual, simple production process, small scale and single technology.

At the end of the Spring and Autumn Period (475 BC), China began to enter the feudal society. Due to the collapse of slavery, the emerging landlord class entered the political arena, and the growth of the scholar class and the flourishing of private schools, the educational objects were expanded, which enabled more people to master the knowledge of culture and morality that was monopolized by nobles, and provided the possibility for more families to implement preschool education, so the preschool education for children was further developed.

I. Pre-school family education in feudal society

In feudal society, the family was the basic cell of society, the earliest contact point between children and society, and the place where children received pre-school education in ancient China.

1. The purpose of pre-school family education in feudal society

(1) To serve the cultivation of ruling talents

In feudal society, rulers of past dynasties paid more attention to education and set up schools. Their main purpose was to cultivate ruling talents of "founding the country and governing the people" for feudal society through school education. It was once said in Xue Ji, the earliest pedagogy book in ancient China: "If a gentleman wants to turn people into customs, he must learn.". ..... It is the ancient king who founded the country and the people, and teaching is the first. " (Xue Ji, Selected Works of Ancient Education in China, People's Education Press, 1979), p. 95. ) The establishment of Imperial College in Han Dynasty can also illustrate this point. Imperial College is an important official institution in feudal society. Its initial motivation was that Emperor Wu of the Western Han Dynasty accepted Dong Zhongshu, a famous educator at that time, "The greatest scholar is Imperial College; Too scholars, the sages are also closed, and the source of enlightenment is also "(Ban Gu: Hanshu? Biography of Dong Zhongshu, Volume 56, Zhonghua Book Company, 1962, p. 2512. ), set up to create a bureaucratic reserve army. After the Sui and Tang Dynasties, although the school gradually became a vassal of the imperial examination system, its ultimate goal was still to train ruling talents.

Preschool education is the foundation of school education, and its purpose is naturally consistent with the purpose of school education, and it serves to cultivate the ruling talents needed by feudal society. Therefore, in the process of implementing preschool family education in many families in feudal society, elders often educate children with the idea of "learning to be excellent and becoming an official", so as to enlighten children with the knowledge of seeking official positions in the future. At the same time, the rulers also attached great importance to preschool family education, and regarded it as an important part of feudal education and the beginning of talent education to cultivate bureaucratic reserve forces.

(2) The basis of governing the country by the Qi family

In The Book of Rites. University, it is said: "If the ancient desire is clearly superior to the world, rule the country first; If you want to govern your country, you should first get your family together; If you want to be in harmony with your family, first cultivate your body ... then cultivate your body, cultivate your body, cultivate your family, cultivate your family, govern your country, govern your country, and make the world peaceful. " "His family can't be taught, but those who can teach others have nothing." Confucius also said: "Home management, so governance can be moved to the official." (Gu Yanwu: "Rizhilu? Family Affairs, Selected Materials on the History of Preschool Education in China, People's Education Press, 1989, p. 44. It can be seen that the ancients attached great importance to family education and regarded it as a test of the foundation and management ability of being an official and governing the country in the future. At the same time, because "everything in the world has its beginning." The establishment of the family is at the beginning of the child's life. " (Qiu? : "University Yan Yi Bu" frontispiece, Si Ku Quan Shu Ben. Therefore, the preschool education for young children by the family is the basic content and starting point of family education. In this sense, it is also one of the purposes of preschool family education to lay the foundation for the future rule of the country.

Patriarchal political rule with the logical connection between family education and governing the country as the link, the throne is inherited by the first rank, and the people are close by blood. Patriarchal management is implemented by patriarchy within the family, and the supreme ruler of the country implements the rule of "family and the world" by monarchical power. Patriarchy and monarchical power have the same name. Although the county system was implemented after Qin dynasty, the family was still the intermediary for the state to rule its subjects. In the feudal society of China, the county was generally the lowest administrative unit in the past dynasties. However, the county was vast and had a large population. In order to implement effective rule, it was necessary to rely on local autonomous rural organizations. Due to the characteristics of China rural society living in groups, families have become the foundation of rural organizations. Rural organizations implement the joint rule of clan power and political power to the people, so the rule of the country depends on the power of family organizations in the final analysis. "If the family is restless, the country is hard to be safe." As a result, many politicians and thinkers put forward the view that the foundation of a country is at home, and if we want to govern it, we must first keep the family in order, and give the family triple functions of population production, material production and education, which makes the traditional family in China have special significance.

(3) shining the lintel

If governing the country by the family is the ultimate goal set by politicians for ancient preschool family education, then shining the lintel is the substantive motivation and the most practical purpose for ordinary families to implement preschool education. There is a folk joke: a father asked his beloved son to ride on his neck, and a Taoist saw it and accused him of "riding his father as a horse!" " However, as soon as Mr. Daoism's voice fell, the child shouted, "I hope my son will become a dragon!" " The children's words show the general mentality of being an elder at that time, which is closely related to the hope that the family will prosper.

The connection between individual honor and family honor is rooted in the characteristics of China society. China was a society that paid attention to blood relationship in ancient times. Rulers of past dynasties made laws and punished criminals, which were not limited to individuals, but always implicated the whole family. As the saying goes, "When one person was in disaster, the whole family suffered", one person broke the law, which was light and committed crimes against three families, and in severe cases, it implicated nine families. Similarly, it is not only an honor for a person to get ahead, but also the honor of the whole family. For example, in the imperial examination era, if someone in the family was promoted to a senior high school, the court would report the good news with red, and the whole family would be immersed in jubilation. It is precisely because of the relationship between individuals and families, honor and disgrace and * * *, that preschool family education is particularly important in feudal society. The elders in the family regard their children as private property, and hope that the enterprises can make their children "Jackie Chan" as soon as possible through tutoring, so as to achieve the goal of revitalizing the family business and honoring their ancestors. At the same time, the children and grandchildren also make their own homes, taking glory as their goal and the best way to repay their parents for their kindness.

2. Contents of preschool family education

Looking at preschool family education in feudal society for more than 2, years, its educational contents mainly include ideological and moral education, routine life education, cultural knowledge education, physical health care and so on.

(l) Ideological and moral education

In ancient China, ideological and moral education was the main content. Confucius said, "If you have spare capacity, you should learn literature." ("The Analects? Learning is the first ",The Analects of Confucius (Yang Bojun), Zhonghua Book Company, 198, p. 5. Line refers to conduct and virtue, which means that cultural knowledge can be learned only when there is spare capacity for conduct and virtue cultivation. Putting morality first is not only the theme of school education and social education in feudal society for thousands of years, but also the "program" of pre-school family education. Wang Xiu once taught his son: "You may not study, but learn to be a person." (Wang Xiu: "The Book of Commandments", "All Ancient Three Generations, Qin and Han Dynasties, Three Kingdoms and Six Dynasties? After all Chinese ". Zhu Xi, an educator in the Southern Song Dynasty, also said: "From an early age, we should teach them to be virtuous, and teach them to be virtuous." (Li Jingde: Zhuzi Genre, Volume 7, Zhonghua Book Company, 1986, p. 123. ) Carrying out ideological and moral education for children in the family is mainly to make children form initial moral concepts and develop good behavior habits. This kind of moral education mainly includes the following aspects:

① Filial piety

Lv's Spring and Autumn Annals? Filial piety says: "Filial piety is the basic business of three emperors and five emperors." It can be seen that paying attention to filial piety has a long history in China. After the Western Zhou Dynasty, filial piety became the foundation of ancient morality. Therefore, in feudal society, cultivating children's concept of filial piety has become the primary task of preschool family education.

The education of "filial piety" for young children mainly requires young children to form the habit of not disobeying their parents' will and obeying their absolute authority. For example, Li Yuxiu, a scholar in the Qing Dynasty, once said in his Disciples Rules: "Parents should not slow down when they call; Parents, don't be lazy; Parents teach, you must listen; Parents are responsible and must be obedient. " Sima Guang, a historian of the Northern Song Dynasty, also pointed out in "Household Miscellaneous Instruments": "All the children, no matter how big or small, have nothing to do, they must consult their parents." These requirements are to highlight the absolute authority of parents.

The education of "filial piety" for children also requires children to form the habit of respecting their parents from childhood. "filial piety? Ji Xiaoxing said: "The filial son's affairs are also intimate, and the residence is respectful, and raising is fun." That is to say, the way of filial piety is to be respectful to parents at ordinary times, not to slack off, to serve their parents as much as possible and to make them happy. Book of Rites? Quli also requires the son to be "warm in winter and clear in summer, and calm in the morning and save in the morning" to his parents. That is to say, parents should be kept warm in winter, cool in summer, make a bed for their parents at night, and greet their parents in the morning. Huang Xiang in the Eastern Han Dynasty can be said to be a model of this kind of filial piety. "Xiang is nine years old and can warm up." (Wang Yinglin: San Zi Jing, A Review of Feudal Mongolian Culture in China? Appendix, Shaanxi People's Publishing House, 1989, p. 22. It is said that when Huang Xiang was 9 years old, she was very filial to her father and could warm her bed with her body temperature in winter. Therefore, he was listed as one of the twenty-four filial piety in ancient times and became an example for children in feudal society to learn.

paying attention to cultivating children's moral character of filial piety from childhood is the embodiment of the traditional moral consciousness of respecting the elderly and filial piety in ancient China. At the same time, as the beginning of the formation of children's moral consciousness, it also conforms to the law of children's moral formation. Of course, the "filial piety" in feudal society is essentially "borrowing the theory of father and son," and "dividing it into strict monarch and minister." Highlighting the "filial piety" of patriarchy aims at strengthening the "loyalty" to the imperial power, and this kind of "loyalty" and "filial piety" is "foolish loyalty" and "foolish filial piety" that does not ask right and wrong. It completely stifles children's personality and freedom and becomes the source of slavery and minions, which we should criticize.

if filial piety is used to maintain the vertical family relationship, it is dominant, then it is used to strengthen the horizontal family relationship and occupy the auxiliary position. The education of caring for young children mainly requires children to be brotherly and friendly since childhood, to love their younger brothers for their brothers and to love their older brothers for their younger brothers. It is said that when Kong Rong, a great litterateur in the Eastern Han Dynasty, was 4 years old, he could give his big pears to his brother and take small ones for himself. The story of "Kong Rong Rangli" was widely circulated in feudal society, and was repeatedly cited as a typical example of education in preschool family education.

The purpose of emphasizing the cultivation of virtue in family education is to make brothers live in harmony, family prosper and individuals can stand in society in the future. During the Three Kingdoms period, Xiang Lang warned his son: "Poverty is not a problem, but peace is the most precious." "The nine clans and the peace are moving, and they are quiet." (Xiang Lang: "Last Words and Commandments", "All Ancient Three Generations, Qin and Han Dynasties, Three Kingdoms and Six Dynasties? All three languages ". Yan Zhitui, an educator in the Northern Qi Dynasty, clearly pointed out: "Brothers, people who are fractal and even angry are also ... two relatives are both dead, and brothers care for each other, as if they are like shapes and shadows, sound and sound." (Yan Zhitui: Yan's family precepts? Brothers, Collection of Yan Family Instructions, Shanghai Ancient Books Publishing House, 198, pp. 37 and 4. ) If brothers are afraid of each other, sons and nephews don't love each other. When foreign disasters come, who will help them? Wei Shu? There is also a story in Biography of Tuyuhun: The king of Tuyuhun has 2 sons. When he was critically ill, he called his sons to him and said, "Each of you takes an arrow from me and breaks it on the ground." His sons all broke their arrows. Then he said to his mother and brother, "Take 19 arrows and combine them to break them." His mother and brother can't stop folding. The jackal said, "Do you understand? A single arrow is easy to break, but it is difficult to break multiple arrows together. Only if you work together can the country be consolidated. " This story just means that brothers unite to have strength.

② advocating frugality

China was a country with agricultural civilization in ancient times, and the stability of the countryside determined the safety of the imperial court. Agricultural production is hard, and the harvest is hard to come by. As the Tang poem said, "Who knows that every grain of Chinese food is hard?" Therefore, cherishing food and advocating frugality have become the traditional virtues of the Chinese nation and the important content of family education.

in the feudal society, the family business created by the fathers was enjoyed by the younger generation, and it was difficult to know the hardships. "It's easy to go from frugality to extravagance, and it's difficult to go from extravagance to frugality." (Sima Guang: "Training frugally shows health", "Family heirlooms" Volume 67, "Sikuquanshu? Jibu? Don't collect classes. ) If their children are not made to develop frugal living habits, they may become the sons of the prodigal family, which is also an important reason why many families attach importance to educating their children about thrift.

In order to help young children establish the concept of advocating frugality, some people of insight in feudal society often taught children that frugality is a virtue and luxury is the greatest evil. For example, Lu You, a writer in the Song Dynasty, once warned the younger generation in "Family Instructions for Leaving Weng": "Everything in the world often becomes a trap and is defeated by extravagance." It is believed that poverty and frugality in life often promote people to forge ahead and become talents, while luxury will make people fall into the abyss. In the late Ming and early Qing Dynasties, Zhu Bailu also asked his children in his famous tutor "Zhu Zi Jia Xun": "It is not easy to think about a porridge and a meal; Half a silk and half a wisp, it is difficult to keep thinking about material resources. "

In order to cultivate children's frugal living habits, the ancients advocated that children's diet and clothes should not be too particular, such as Book of Rites? Quli once stipulated: "A boy is not dressed in fur." This is not only because it is too warm for children's development, but also because its luxury is not conducive to children's habit of advocating thrift. Tang Biao in the Qing Dynasty made this very clear. He said: "When a boy is young, Luo Qi, who cannot wear clothes, is afraid of opening his extravagant heart, and he can't change it when he grows up." (Tang Biao: Life Must Read, Selected Materials of Preschool Education History in China, People's Education Press, 1989, p. 68. )

③ Honesty

Honesty means honesty. Li Zhi, a Ming Dynasty scholar, said, "Those who are childlike are sincere." (Li Zhi: "Burning books? The theory of childlike innocence, Selected Materials on the History of Preschool Education in China, People's Education Press, 1989, p. 48. ) Children's nature is pure and beautiful, "absolutely false and innocent". However, due to incorrect influence or children's own boasting or fear, they sometimes lie, which is the bud of the growth of fraud in the future. In the long run, their "childlike innocence" will gradually be lost. "If you lose your childlike innocence, you will lose your sincerity; If you lose your heart, you will lose your real person; People are not true, and there is no beginning. " (Li Zhi: "Burning books? The theory of childlike innocence, Selected Materials on the History of Preschool Education in China, People's Education Press, 1989, pp. 48 and 49. ) To protect this honest "childlike innocence" and make it not lose, the elders should first educate them from the front. Because children are young and ignorant, it is difficult to distinguish right from wrong, and elders should guide children with their own honest behavior. At the ceremony, it was said: "The youngest son is not required to be routine." Seeing and showing together. Yuan Renchen? Interpretation: "I often show that I can't deceive, so I am sincere." (Chen? : Notes on the Book of Rites, Four Books and Five Classics? Notes on the Book of Rites, China Bookstore, 1984, p. 4. Zeng Shen in the Spring and Autumn Period set an example for people in this respect. According to "everything is done wrong? It is recorded in "On the Foreign Reserve": One day, Zeng Shen's wife wanted to go shopping, and the children cried and shouted.