Ancient China: The Leadership of Liu Bang

Today during class, the ancient China groups read about the Han Dynasty.

Some historians don't pay as much attention to the Han Dynasty because it's a little less exciting than the Qin Dynasty, but Chinese civilization actually had some of its greatest achievements under the Han.

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An important leader for the Han Dynasty was Liu Bang (sometimes known as Emperor Gao), who argued that the philosophy of Legalism, followed by Qin Shihuangdi, was overly strict.

Liu Bang lowered taxes for Chinese farmers, and he reformed the laws so that punishments were less harsh.

Certain government officials, who believed that Legalism was the correct philosophy, complained loudly about Liu Bang's leadership. However, historians have determined that he did not mind being criticized.

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Most American presidents are criticized harshly by the media and their opponents.

Do you think that our two most recent Presidents (Bush and Obama) feel badly when they are criticized?

What do you think is the best way to criticize a leader with whom you disagree?

Musical Mondays: Today we listened to Autumn, from Vivaldi's Four Seasons.   Here is a video showing the same violinist, Julia Fischer, performing Spring (also from the Four Seasons).

What's your favorite season of the year?