The Ladder to the Clouds

An Overview of the Civil Examination System

“Ming rulers put together a late imperial examination model that (1) tested the Four Books and Five Classics in light of Ch’eng-Chu moral philosophy, (2) expected candidates to write administrative documents in ancient forms and to master the dynasty’s legal code, and (3) required policy essays based on contemporary affairs….Emphasis on poetry in the examinations finally ended.”

Benjamin Elman, A Cultural History of Civil Examinations in Late Imperial China

The Mother’s Preparation

• Copper Mirror– Five Sons Pass the Examinations

• Prenatal Care– Sit erect– Sleep without pillowing head on arms– Abstain from strange foods– Avoid unpleasant colors– Listen to poetry and the classics read aloud

Preparing for the Examinations

• The Three Character Classic ( 三字經Sānzìjīng)

• The Thousand Character Classic ( 千字文Qiānzìwén)– Poem of 250 lines with no character repeated

• Meng Ch’iu (Beginner’s Search)

• The Four Books

• The Five Classics

The Four Books

• The Four Books ( 四書 Sì shū): – The Great Learning, ( 大學 Dà Xué), the name of a

chapter in the Classic of Rites.– The Doctrine of the Golden Mean ( 中庸 Zhōng Yóng),

the name of another chapter in the Classic of Rites.– The Analects of Confucius ( 論語 Lùn Yǔ), a book of

pithy sayings attributed to Confucius and recorded by his disciples.

– The Mencius ( 孟子 Mèng Zǐ), a book of conversations between Mencius and some kings of his time.

The Five Classics

• The I Ching ( 易經 Yì Jīng; Classic of Changes or Book of Changes) is a manual of divination based on the eight trigrams attributed to the mythical emperor Fu Xi. (By Confucius' time these eight trigrams had been multiplied to sixty-four hexagrams.) The I Ching is still used.

• The Classic of Poetry or The Book of Odes ( 詩經 Shī Jīng), made up of 305 poems divided into 160 folk songs; seventy-four minor festal songs, traditionally sung at court festivities; 31 major festal songs, sung at more solemn court ceremonies; and forty hymns and eulogies, sung at sacrifices to gods and ancestral spirits of the royal house. This book is traditionally credited as a compilation from Confucius.

The Five Classics

• The Classic of Rites ( 禮記 Lǐ Jì), social forms and ceremonies (also spelled Liki), a restoration of the original Lijing, lost in the 3rd Century BCE, describes ancient rites and court ceremonies.

• The Classic of History ( 書經 Shū Jīng) is a collection of documents and speeches alleged to have been written by rulers and officials of the early Zhou period and before. It contains examples of early Chinese prose.

• The Zuo Zhuan (左傳 ) is a commentary on the Spring and Autumn Annals.

Basic Memorization

• Analects 11,705 Graphs• Mencius 34,685 Graphs• I Ching 24,107 Graphs• Classic of Poetry 39,234 Graphs• Classic of History 25,700 Graphs• Classic of Rites 99,010 Graphs• Zuo Zhuan 196,845 Graphs• TOTAL: 431,286 Graphs

Eight-Legged Essay

1. Opening (破題 ): Two sentences of prose whose function is to broach the topic.

2. Amplification (承題 ): Five sentences of prose, elaborating upon and clarifying the theme.

3. Preliminary exposition (起講 ): Prosaic writing.4. Initial argument (起股 ): A specified number (4, 5, 8 or

9) of sentence pairs written in parallel, developing the initial argument. The parallel sentences address the topic and convey similar meanings, with similar structure but different words.

5. Central argument (中股 ): Sentences written in parallel, with no limit as to their number, in which the central points of the essay are expounded freely.

Eight-Legged Essay

6. Latter argument (後股 ): Sentences written in parallel, with no limit as to their number. Here, points not addressed in the previous section are discussed; otherwise, the writer may continue padding the ideas in the central argument. It is to be written in a serious tone rooted in realism.

7. Final argument (束股 ): Parallel sentence groups, each one consisting of either two to three, or else four to five, lines. Here, the main theme is revisited and loose ends are tied up.

8. Conclusion (大結 ): Prosaic writing where free expression and creativity are allowed. The concluding remarks are made here.

Prefectural Examination• 府州試 (Fŭ-zhōu Shì)

• After passing called Tóngshēng ( 童生 ), but still a commoner.

District Examination• 州縣試 (Zhōu-xiàn Shì)

The Qualifying Examination

• Shēngyuán (生員 ), also called xiùcái (秀才 ), licentiate; examinations held in the county level each year. – Anshou, (案首 )a shēngyuán who ranked #1 – Gongsheng (貢生 ), or "tribute student," a

senior licentiate

The Provincial Examination

• Administered in the years of the rat, rabbit, horse, and rooster

• The first session began on the 9th day of the 8th (lunar) month, or September

• The second session began on the 12th day

• The third session began on the 15th day

• The examination ended on the 16th day

The Provincial Examination

• Jǔrén (舉人 ) or "recommended man,” a provincial graduate– Jieyuan (解元 ) jǔrén who ranked #1. – Huiyuan (會元 ), jǔrén who ranked #1 in

prequalification – Gongshi (貢士 ), jǔrén who passed

prequalification

The Metropolitan Examination

• Held in the Northern Capital (Beijing) in the years of the ox, dragon, sheep, and dog

• The first session began on the 9th day of the 3rd (lunar) month, or May

• The second session began on the 12th day

• The third session began on the 15th day

The Metropolitan Examination

• Jìnshì (進士 ) or "presented scholar," a metropolitan graduate– Jinshi jidi (進士及第 ) Jinshi who were ranked

first class in Jinshi examination. – Zhuangyuan (狀元 ), lit. exemplar of the state,

jìnshì who ranked #1 first class (in Jinshi examination) .

The Metropolitan Examination

– Bangyan (榜眼 ), lit. eyes positioned alongside (the top-ranked scholar), jìnshì who ranked #2 first class.

– Tanhua (探花 ), lit. selective talent (in reference to the eponymous banquet), jìnshì who ranked #3 first class.

– Jinshi Chushen (進士出身 ) jìnshì who were ranked second class in Jinshi examination.

– Tong Jinshi Chushen (同進士出身 ) jìnshì who were ranked third class in Jinshi examination.

The Palace Examination

• Originated in the Song Dynasty, making the emperor the “master” of each degree holder

• Took place on the 21st day of the 4th (lunar) month following the Metropolitan Examination

• Questions and answers were highly formalized

Prefectural Examination Hall, Suzhou

Xu Yang, Prosperous Suzhou, scroll painting (1759)

Guangdong Examination Hall, 1873

Examination Hall and Cells

Examination Cells

Examination Cells• The examination

cell had two boards in it that the candidate could use to form a bench and desk, or a bed. They spent from one to three days per examination section in these cells.

Format of Examinations

• Session One– 3 quotations from the Four Books

• an eight-legged essay of 300 graphs

– 4 quotations each from the Five Classics• an eight-legged essay of 500 graphs

• Session Two– 1 quotation from “Classic of Filial Piety”

• a discourse of 300 graphs

Format of Examinations

• Session Two (continued)– 3 documents written in the correct style– 5 judicial terms identified and explained in

brief essays

• Session Three– 5 essays on policy questions, the candidate to

choose one essay and write an answer of 1,000 graphs

Examination Questions

“Red” Copy

• The candidates’ exams were copied in red ink so that the officials grading the examinations could not identify anyone by calligraphic style.

The Golden Scroll

• After the Palace Examination, the results were written on a golden scroll.

Other Examinations

• Military Examinations– Reading and writing not required

• Special Examinations– Held by imperial decree at irregular intervals