User:Caleb Torres

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

The culture of China is the result of 5,000 years of artistic, philosophical, and political advancement. Though regional differences provide a sense of diversity, commonalities in language and religion connect a culture distinguished by such contributions as Confucianism and Taoism. Confucianism was the official philosophy throughout most of Imperial China's history, and traditional Chinese culture is heavily influenced by it.

With the rise of Western economic and military power over China beginning in the mid-19th century, however, non-Chinese systems of social and political organization gained adherents in China. Some of these would-be reformers totally rejected China's cultural legacy, while others sought to combine the strengths of Chinese and Western cultures. In essence, the history of 20th century China is one of experimentation to find a new system of social, political, and economic organization that would allow for the reintegration of the nation in the wake of dynastic collapse.