HISTORY OF IMPERIAL CHINA

Geographies of the empire: spatial representation, administrative guides, and cartography

The seminar offers an introduction to the uses of geographical knowledge in imperial historiography and as a practical tool for the administration; it also introduces topics in the field of human and historical geography, as well as representations of the environment. The seminar provides the students with the keys to access to be addressed in the analysis of primary sources, as well as the tools to conduct autonomous research in different fields of historical geography and traditional historiography and to produce written works.

Knowledge and understanding
At the end of the course the student will be able to contextualize the main sources, their structure, textual history, authors as well as the problems of textual attribution; will have acquired the tools for evaluation and critical analysis of primary sources; will be able to critically analyze secondary sources; will also be able to conduct autonomous research on topics related to the history of imperial historiography and historical geography.

Ability to apply knowledge and communication skills
The student will be able to elaborate (in the form of short written essays and oral presentations) the available secondary literature, will have learned to formulate hypotheses and arguments and to assess different solutions and critical alternatives on the basis of objective textual evidence; will have acquired the ability to cite sources adequately and to take care of the formal aspects of textual production.

Basic knowledge of classical Chinese and of the history of imperial China is desirable.

The seminar is structured in thematic blocks:
1) spatial representation in the pre-imperial and early imperial period
2) geographical and hydrological treatises in the dynastic histories
3) regionalism and geography of locality in the early medieval period
4) territorial management and administration in the Tang-Song period
5) cartography (talk by Elke Papelitzky, KU Leuven)
6) human geography and resources management (water systems, talk by Ruth Mostern, Un. Pittsburgh)

A list of readings is available on Moodle.

A final written exam (90 minutes) with open questions (70%).
An essay/book review (approx. 1500 words, bibliography and notes excluded, 30%) to be handed in by the end of the course.

Each partial grade will be expressed in 30ths and the overall grade will be the average of the parts.

Non-attending students are kindly requested to contact the teacher at the beginning of the semester. The essay will be replaced by a longer paper (approx. 3000 words, bibliography and footnotes excluded).

The seminar includes 10 lessons in class and 5 online lessons.

During the online lessons, the following will be proposed:
- production of short book reviews;
- meetings with external experts;
- introduction to GIS tools

Italian

Classes can be held in English if required by international students

written

This subject deals with topics related to the macro-area "Natural capital and environmental quality" and contributes to the achievement of one or more goals of U. N. Agenda for Sustainable Development