Opinion/Editorial

Is The Great Wall of China really 'Great'?

Some people say 'no' but I say 'yes!'

                   The Great Wall of China is a very long wall in China, it has the word 'great' in its name so it must be great right? I think the Great Wall of China is great! It serves as protection for China and its a memory of the first emperor Qin Shi Huang and his development on China. The Great Wall of China protects China. It crosses deserts, grasslands, mountains and plateaus.  This wall stretches "approximately 8,8510.8 kilometers (5,500 miles) from east to west of China," ("How the Great Wall of China Works"). The wall was originally built by the first emperor of China to keep outsiders out of China. The Great Wall of China keeps people out because it is too tall to climb over and its too strong for people to try to get right through it. The protection is what makes the Great Wall of China 'great'.
                   The Great Wall of China is a memory of the first emperor Qin Shi Huang and his developments on China. The wall is a manmade structure started by the emperor himself. It took a total of 2,000 years to finish building between the Warring States Period. "The emperor sought a way to remove this persistent threat of the Hans rebels. In an attempt to bar their entry into any of China’s lands the emperor employed the construction of a great wall barrier," (Construction of the Great Wall). The emperor had many things to worry about with the development of China. Outsiders who could possibly destroy what he's trying to develop would destroy what he has done so he had to make sure no outsiders got in. The Great Wall of China was build along the border of China to keep those outsiders out. The wall today stands and represents what Qin did for China. The Great Wall of China is truly 'great' for representing the first emperor of China and how China got to where they are today.

Front Page News Story: Standardization By The Qin Dynasty

by Kelly Sheehan, Staff Writer

Nouah'sArk.com

              Emperor Qin Shi Huang standardized many things during his rule. He standardized the language and writing, currency, measurements, and weights. The language and writing of China was different almost everywhere. Emperor Qin wanted there to be one language and writing to make it easier to communicate throughout the country and people had to be able to read and understand what people from other parts of China were saying. He made Qinzhuan the standardized font. Emperor Qin Shi Huang's new writing system has been used for thousands of years and some of the symbols are still used today in China. "Also, currency became standardized as a circular copper coin with a square hole in the middle," (Qin Dynasty). Before, the currency was bronze or gold coins with a hole in the middle. The whole in the middle was there for you to put the coins on a cord around your neck. The old coins weren't all the same shape. Emperor Qin Shi Huang decided to standardize the coins when a trader went out of his region and had trouble trading with the coins he had. Qin made it so everyone would have the same currency and could trade anywhere. The Qin Dynasty standardized all weights and measures for transportation. This led to successful trade and commerce. Standardizing the weights and measures also led to the dynasty developing a taxation system.


My interview with Qin Shi Huang

             I sat down with a very famous person from the Qin Dynasty who was known as "The First Emperor Of China", Qin Shi Huang. I asked him a series of questions and here is some of what he had told me!

 

 

1. How did you start with trying to develop China?

    Well, first I "attempted to get rid of any pre Qin influences of China by ordering the destruction of all books that were not related to the history of the Qin, Astrology or the Practical Sciences," (Qin Shi Huang). If the scholars protested, I threw them into the fire with their books. I, also, constructed the first connection of the Great Wall of China that defended the northern border. Those were only the first few things I did to develop China further.

2. Why did you standardize the  writing, weights, and measures systems throughout your kingdom?
     I had conquered new states and I wanted to have more trade among these states. Each state had their own standardized system of measuring and weighing. I just wanted my kingdom to unite to help strengthen it. The standardization I created was good for the writing, weights, and measurements but did not really work for ideas of philosophy.

3. Why did you decide to build the Great Wall of China?
    I built the Great Wall of China to keep all of my territory together and protect my country from outside forces. I started the wall at "Liaodong Bay in the east" and it makes its way to "Lintao of Gansu Province" in the western area, (Melissa Chang). This project required thousands and thousands of people stretching more than 5,000 kilometers. It was all worth it though because the Great Wall is what I'm well-known for.

4. Do you think you are a cruel leader?
     I am not a cruel leader! Some people who went against my rules were killed or banished, but they deserved that. My rules are set to keep everyone in line and I enforce my rules. Other people would discuss about the past but that is not needed because people are in my dynasty so they shouldn't be discussing the past so I would banish them too. I'm not a cruel leader but I do enforce my rules and if you go against them you will be punished.

5. Who was Mao Zedong?
     Mao Zedong was one of my "greatest admirers." He said that he "considered the emperor as well as most officials to be honest, good and clever men," (Facts and Details). Mao Zedong thinks my rule is very effective and that I am a good leader. He admires what I am doing for China.

Map of China during the Qin Dynasty

www.chinahighlights.com

            This map shows borders of China during the Qin Dynasty rule and also, the current border of China. The most important river in China, the Yangtze River, runs through the center of the Qin Dynasty's land. There are also many other rivers that run through, making trade easier. The Great Wall of China is a border at the top of their land creating protection of this dynasty. They are also along the coast so that they can get out into the ocean to import/export goods. Overall, the geography had a great impact on the Qin Dynasty.