CHINESE CULTURE
Read the passage and answer the following questions:-
Walls and wall building have played a very important role in Chinese culture. These people, from the dim mists of prehistory, have been wall-conscious; from the Neolithic period when ramparts of pounded earth were used – to the Communist Revolution, walls were an essential part of any village. Not only towns and villages; the houses and the temples within them were somehow walled, and the houses also had no windows overlooking the street, thus giving the feeling of wandering around a huge maze. The name for “city” in Chinese (Ch’ing) means wail, and over these walled cities, villages, houses and temples preside the god of walls and mounts, whose duties were, and still are, to protect and be responsible for the welfare of the inhabitants. Thus a great and extremely laborious task such as constructing a wall, which was supposed to run throughout the country, must not have seemed such an absurdity.
However, it is indeed a common mistake to perceive the Great Wall as a single architectural structure, and it would also be erroneous to assume that it was built during a single dynasty. For the building of the wall spanning the various dynasties, and each of these dynasties somehow contributed to the refurbishing and the construction of a wall, whose foundations had been laid many centuries ago. It was during the fourth and third century B.C. that each warring state started building walls to protect their kingdoms, both against one another and against the northern nomads.
The role that the Great Wall played in the growth of the Chinese economy was an important one. Throughout the centuries many settlements were established along the new border. The garrison troops were instructed to reclaim wasteland and to plant crops on it, roads and canals were built, to mention just a few of the works carried out. All these undertakings greatly helped to increase the country’s trade and cultural exchanges with many remote areas and also with the southern, central and western parts of Asia- the formation of the Silk Route. Builders, garrisons, artisans, farmers and peasants left behind a trail of objects, including inscribed tablets, household articles, and written work, which have become extremely valuable archaeological evidence to the study of defence institutions of the Great Wall and the everyday life of these people who lived and died along the wall.
(a) What example is given to show that walls were an essential part of Chinese culture?
(b) What interesting historical facts are mentioned in the first paragraph?
(c) Describe the role played by the Great wall in the growth of the Chinese economy.
(d) Why is the archaeological evidence left behind by the people valuable?
(e) What is meant by the word ‘wandering’? (Para 1)
(!) searching (ii) going (iii) running (iv) roaming
(f) What is meant by the word ‘presides’? (Para 1)
(i) rules (ii) administers (iii) supports (iv) advises
(g) What is meant by the word ‘perceive’? (Para 2)
(!) judge (ii) regard (iii) see (iv) think
(h) What is meant by the word ‘reclaim’? (Para 2)
(i) recover (ii) detect (iii) reset (iv) recall
Answers :
(a) The building of the Great Wall is cited as an example to show that walls were an essential part of Chinese culture.
(b) Over the walled cities of China – in villages, houses and temples preside the god of walls and mounts, whose duties were, and still are, to protect and be responsible for the welfare of the inhabitants. Thus a great and extremely laborious task such as constructing a wall, which was supposed to run throughout the country, must not have seen such an absurdity.
(c) The role that the Great Wall played in the growth of the Chinese economy was an important one. The garrison troops were instructed to reclaim wasteland and to plant crops on it, roads and canals were built, to mention just a few of the works carried out. All these undertakings greatly helped to increase the country’s trade and cultural exchanges with many remote areas and also with the southern, central and western parts of Asia-the formation of the Silk Route.
(d) The archaeological evidence left behind by the people is valuable as it is important for the study of defence institutions of the Great Wall and the everyday life of these people who lived and died along the wall.
(e) (iv) roaming (f) (ii) well-being (g) (ii) find (h) (iv) distant
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