| | | Benchmark 2. | Understands religious, social, and political aspects of the Song Dynasty (e.g., the importance of women of gentry families in preserving and transmitting Chinese cultural values; Chinese advancements in alchemy, astronomy, and medicine; the values of Confucianism, Taoism, and Buddhism as reflected in Song art; changes in the social and moral status of women as reflected in the practice of foot binding; the attitudes of typical Chinese gentlemen toward women, family, servants, tenants, and social inferiors; the debate during the Song Dynasty about how the government should respond to rapid social and economic change) |