Qin Shi Huangdi
Uploaded by anumalefic on Jan 17, 2006
Qin Shi Huangdi was a complete curse for China because his way of ruling was too rough, and it made people realize that they shouldn’t be treaded any way like this. His way of keeping order in society was through legalism. He would punish and reward to keep the society in check. He also wanted taxes to be paid, and this was too high a burden to the population. Also, the nobility disliked him because they were deprived of all their power and transplanted. Finally, he banned all books that advocated forms of government other than the current one. "Huang" and "Di" were titles once reserved for the eight legendary kings, so by employing the term "Huangdi", he indicated that he was even greater than the eight legendary kings combined. He even banned scholarly discussions of the past. The writings of the great philosophers of the One Hundred Schools time were burned and more than 400 opponents were executed.
He burned all the books that were from the past because he wanted to create something new, he considered himself as being the first emperor in China. He didn’t want other people thinking that there were other kings, and that he didn’t want the people to think that the past may somehow be related to the present.
They standardized the language and writing of China, which had varied greatly from area to area during the Warring States Period. . A Great Wall was built in the north, to protect against invasions. Roads and irrigation canals were built throughout the country. Outside of China he is probably viewed as a typical cruel tyrant but many Chinese consider him progressive. This is because his way or governing allowed his society to evolve more and this made him strong on these points. The science, measuring, dates, and other things were evolving by his teachings, or his way of ruling. It may have been bad due to the way he acted against his people, but he did it because he wanted to make them progress very quickly.