the Great Wall

The Great Wall

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No discussion about Chinese culture is complete without mention of the Great Wall.Through more than 2,000 years from the seventh century BC to the 16th century AD, 19 dynasties built parts of the Great Wall, adding up to over 100,000 kilometers.Three major renovations (修复) of the Great Wall took place in the Qin (221-206 BC),Han (206 BC-AD 220), and Ming dynasties. The Great Wall of today is mainly the legacy of the Ming-dynasty renovations. It meanders (蜿蜒) for 6,700 kilometers from Jiayu Pass in the western desert to Shanhai Pass on the eastern seashore. With many gaps along the Wall, the 600-kilometer-long section in the northern outskirts (市郊)Beijing is the best preserved.

Aspiration for Peace 2

The Great Wall is unparalleled in the world in its scale and span of construction, as well as for the great quantities of labor and the degree of difficulty involved. During the First Emperor of Qin, one out of every 20 people took part in the project.Why did Chinese build the Great Wall? There must be a reason for this ancient nation to build such a wall over a time span of more than 2,000 years. 3

The earliest parts of the Great Wall were built amid incessant (持续不断的) wars.Suffering from the devastating (毁灭性的) damage of wars, people realized that building a wall to protect lives was better than burying the dead in trenches (深沟).Building walls was extremely hard labor, sometimes even at the cost of life itself. Compared with bloody wars, however, people would rather choose the former. Thus the Great Wall was built with the basic goal of safeguarding peace. It represented people's longing for a peaceful life. 4

The Great Wall played a significant role in history. It certainly served the purposes of military defense in the age of cold steel, especially in preventing northern peoples on horseback from attacking people in the south who were mostly engaged in farming. It provided the cultivators with a sense of security as well as actual protection, so they could till their lands and harvest their crops in peace.

Separation and Integration 5

The geographic structure and climatic patterns of China has led to the developmentof two distinct cultures from ancient times. The south, with arable (可耕的) land and a warm climate, was suited for agriculture. The north, with pastoral (畜牧的) land and a cold climate, was suited for animal husbandry (饲养业). The south had a relatively developed agricultural civilization, while the north was in a relatively less developed state. Stability was important for an agricultural population. The northern peoples, on the other hand, were highly mobile due to the nature of pastoral life. The limited and unstable output of animal husbandry made it necessary for the northern peoples to

depend on the agricultural goods of the southern peoples. Historically, invasions of the south by nomadic (游牧的) peoples of the north were often more out of necessity than the desire for expansion. 6

From the Qin of more than 2,000 years ago to the later dynasties, the northern peoples who often invaded the south included the Xianyun, the Hun, the Tujue, the Huihe, the Qidan, the Nvzhen, and the Mongolian. Southern troops were often at a disadvantage in the face of the mobile northern cavalry (骑兵). Under such circumstances, the Great Wall provided an effective, though not perfect, defense line. 7

In this way, the Great Wall separated the peoples of the south and the north, while posing a barrier to communication. However, it did serve to minimize conflicts between the two,making it possible for each to develop on their own. The Wall protected the agricultural economy and advanced the mode of production in the south. At the same time, it forced

the northern peoples to give up plundering ( 掠夺) the south and to develop their own civilization.This laid the foundation for later exchange and communication between the southern and northern cultures. 8

Chinese history would have been another story without the Great Wall. Dr. Sun Yat-sen (1866-1925), who led the Revolution of 1911 that overthrew the Qing Dynasty said, \from today, if it had not been for the protection of the Great Wall,Chinese civilization would have been interrupted by the northern peoples in the late Qin or early Han dynasties,long before the Song and Ming dynasties. In that case, there would not be the prosperity of the Han and Tang dynasties, or the integration of southern and northern peoples.\9

In time, economic zones came into being along the Great Wall, especially at its several dozen passes, where people from both sides carried out economic and culture exchanges. For a long time in history, the agricultural economy in the south and the pastoral economy in the north complemented and depended on each other through such exchange.In this way, the Great Wall played a role in bringing in a new economic structure to both sides.

Spirit of the Great Wall 10

The hardships involved in building the Great Wall are beyond imagination Numerous people had to leave their homes and families to go north, where they toiled （辛苦劳动）for years. Many lost their lives on the worksites, over a period of more than 2,000 years.A Chinese idiom vividly expresses the Great Wall as the achievement of many, \11

Of the many legends about the Great Wall, the story of Lady Mengjiang is the most moving.Lady Mengjiang lived during the reign of the First Emperor of Qin. After her

husband was recruited to build the Great Wall, she missed him so much that she traveled many miles to see him. When she finally arrived at the construction site, a fellow countryman told her that her husband had died and was buried under the Wall. The heartbroken Lady Mengjiang cried for three days and nights until, legend has it, the Great Wall collapsed one section after another. 12

People paid an enormous price for the building of the Great Wall. The legend of Lady Mengjiang represents the sufferings of the people. It also expressed their hatred for the tyrannical (暴君的) First Emperor of Qin. It was not a condemnation of the Great Wall itself, because the people had no reason to resent this defensive work that protected them. The builders of the Wall were no \who chose to close themselves up\全体一致的) will and unparalleled strength. 13

Over the centuries, the Great Wall has become a symbol of consolidation and strength for the Chinese people. It symbolizes that great achievement can be made with a common will and concerted（一致的）effort. For example, the national anthem, composed during the War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression (1937-1945), called on the people to \

Wonder of the Great Wall 14

The wonder of the Great Wall lies in its magnificent and varied structure work, As a defense,the Great Wall is by no means a monotonous long stretch of wall. Instead, it consists of different parts with different defensive purposes. These include blockhouses, garrison（驻地的) towns and passes built at strategic points,as well as beacon (烽火台) towers along the wall. 15

The Simatai section' built near Beijing in the Ming Dynasty best represents the undulating (起伏的) and rhythmic flow of the Great Wall. As a popular saying has it, Simatai epitomizes(代表) the wonder of the Great Wall for being the most precipitous (陡峭的) part of it. 16

Winding along a steep ridge of a range of mountains, the Simatai section rises to the crests (顶峰) of mountains at some points and falls into deep valleys at others. The most breathtaking parts of the Simatai section are called Cloud Ladder and Heavenly Bridge.The Cloud Ladder is much narrower than the normal width of the Wall (three-to-five meters on average), the narrowest part being only half a meter wide. With perilous (危险的) cliffs on either side, it indeed resembles a ladder along which one can climb up in the clouds.Up at the top of the Cloud Ladder, one comes to the Heavenly Bridge, the 100-meter-long narrow belt of wall on the mountain ridge, with deep valleys on either side. 17

The highest point of the Simatai section is Wangiing (Overlooking the Capital) Tower, at an altitude of 986 meters. From here, one can capture a panoramic (全景的) overview of the Great Wall stretching and winding into the east and west. One can also look into the far distance to the south, for an indistinct view of the capital Beijing. Hence, the name of the tower. This is one of the best places to appreciate the magnificence and near-surreal (犹如梦幻的) beauty of the Great Wall.

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