Assignment: Modern East Asia
Paper Question
Answer the following question. Paper should be six, double-spaced pages.
In Jonathan Spence's Treason by the Book, we see the Yongzheng emperor engaged in a battle over the hearts and minds of both the bureaucracy and the ‘rebel' Zeng Jing. What are Yongzheng's motivations and his goals in this battle? What do these say about traditional Chinese notions of the "good ruler" and the manner of "proper rule" and how emperor's interpreted and applied them? Finally, what conclusions can be drawn about the function of ideas or ideology in rulership in traditional China?