In ancient times, untouchables had no right to register and bought and sold like goods
China has a profound history and culture, but China's traditional historiography is often regarded as elite historiography. The people who write history books are often from the elite class of society, and most of the characters recorded in the history books are also social elites.
Even if there is"Twenty-four History"For the neglected untouchable class, a class that has lived from the pre-Qin period to modern times, it is often ignored by historians and becomes the "aphasia" in history.
They have no one to speak for, and their stories are little known. However, the existence of this class is real and extensive, and knowing their history will undoubtedly lead to a lot of interesting information.
"Untouchables": a class ignored by the world "Untouchables" does not mean high or low, but refers to a class corresponding to good citizens, who have no status, no rights, and are often ignored and looked down upon by society.
The term derives from inequalities that arose in class society and can be traced back to the Xia, Shang and Zhou periods, but due to the lack of historical data, the untouchables of this period are poorly understood.
During the Qin Dynasty, Qin Shi Huang established a unified multi-ethnic state, the class system was further solidified, and the laws of the untouchable class were represented by slaves and maids. Slaves and maids lost their freedom and were enslaved, and they were typical untouchables in the Qin and Han dynasties.
Slaves and maids were initially recognized as slaves because of crimes or wars, but later the scope gradually expanded, and some people even sold themselves into slavery. During the Qin and Han dynasties, slaves and maids did not have a household registration and were recorded in the property book, which could be bought and sold like items.
Although they cannot be arbitrarily killed, their status is still low. In addition to slaves, untouchables also included prostitutes. With the establishment of the class system, so was the system of untouchables.
This kind of system has grown wantonly for two or three thousand years, and it is the dregs of history.
In the Han Dynasty, the identity of slaves and untouchables was very inherited, and even after the change of dynasties, the untouchable identities of slaves and prostitutes in the Qin and Han dynasties were still retained. During the Wei, Jin, Southern and Northern Dynasties, in addition to the original type of untouchables, new military households, music households, and miscellaneous households were added.
Among them, Lehu is engaged in singing and dancing, which can be traced back to the Northern Wei Dynasty at the earliest, and is regarded as a person at the bottom of society. Miscellaneous household is a general term that refers to people who engage in various types of miscellaneous labor.
Despite their humble status, their presence is a manifestation of the pluralism of ancient Chinese society.
The untouchables of the soldiers during the Wei, Jin, Southern and Northern Dynasties are a noteworthy historical phenomenon, which reflects the decline in the social status of the sergeants. In ancient times, being a soldier was considered a despised and extremely undesirable thing to do, and its status was looked down upon, and this phenomenon existed as early as this period.
So, why is being a soldier looked down upon? On the one hand, because those who committed crimes at that time would be confiscated into the army, which reduced the status of soldiers from the legal level; On the other hand, military status is hereditary and cannot be changed, and sergeants have no opportunity to be promoted, and are often oppressed by their superiors and cannot appeal grievances.
This is the shame of being a soldier in ancient China, and it gradually spreads from here.
In the Sui and Tang dynasties, the story of Mulan's enlistment in the army took place in this context. And the system of untouchables has taken on new characteristics. First of all, the ** of untouchables is more extensive, and they are divided into official untouchables and private untouchables.
The former is mainly enslaved by the government and engaged in manual labor, including workers, happy households, miscellaneous households, official households, etc.; The latter includes portables, slaves, tribals, guest girls, etc., which are mainly used for the call of ** and the rich.
Secondly, the untouchables are even lower in rank. In the Tang Laws and Regulations, slaves and maids are equivalent to animal property, and can be bought and sold at will, and they cannot even marry their loved ones, otherwise they will be punished.
If the untouchables break the law, the punishment will also be more severe. On top of that, most of the untouchables are unregistered and they are a group of people that are not recognized by society. The absence of a hukou means that they are not a member of the state, cannot enjoy their rights, and have no hope for the future.
In the Tang Dynasty, the master walked in front, followed by a group of slaves and maids. During the Song and Yuan dynasties, the untouchability system underwent a new development and disappearance. During the Song and Yuan dynasties, the status of slaves and maids increased slightly, which was mainly related to the development of the commodity economy at that time, and many slaves and maids were converted into wage workers.
However, the Yuan Dynasty's "expelling" type of slaves and maids had a unique position, and they often turned the people of the conquered areas into portable slaves and maids for themselves to drive through enclosures and captives, and the status of these slaves and maids was only equivalent to talking tools.
The untouchable system in the Ming and Qing dynasties, with the example of the "out-of-homage brain" Song Yinzhang, reached the peak of history and began to decline gradually. Eventually, in New China, this system went to extinction.
At that time, there were many types of untouchables in society, including slaves, prostitutes, and servants. Among them, the official is a kind of miscellaneous service that serves the government, and is also known as "government servant" and "long follower".
The scenes they appear on television, such as clearing roads, executions, guarding granaries, arresting prisoners, and guarding prisons, are all their duties. Although they look like ancient civil servants, they are actually untouchables.
In Qing law, the status of such untouchables was clearly defined and not as honorable as we think.
Customary untouchables are only one part of it, and there is another class that is not explicitly defined by **, but is tacitly regarded as untouchables. For example, the tenants in the Huizhou area, the Lehu in the Shanxi region, and the Tanhu in the Guangdong region.
These untouchables are unregistered and live miserably, and are de facto untouchables. Untouchables are a great part of our country's history, a remnant of the old system. After the founding of the People's Republic of China, the system of untouchability was resolutely abolished, and this system eventually disappeared from our society.
Wen Shijun said that in today's society, although the untouchability system has been abolished, the concept of hierarchy, high and low, noble and lowly still persists in the hearts of some people. Because the disappearance of a system, especially the complete disappearance from people's minds, is not a momentary thing, but a continuous process.
In the process of eliminating the concept of hierarchy, correct education and guidance are indispensable, but more importantly, it depends on social and economic development.