As a class, reading their amazing works and learning about the influence and success they were able to bring to China, we have properly acknowledged artisans as exceptional craftsmen. However, the same cannot be said about their status in Ancient China. In fact, artisans did not hold a high role in society at all. These individuals, who decided to dedicate the rest of their lives to building and crafting, and who helped pave way for the success of their empire, were not given the respect they deserved.
During the Qin and Han dynasty, the emperor and imperial family occupied the highest class. Nobles, government officials, and scholars followed right after. And, at the bottom, were commoners, convicts, and slaves. The commoner population was then divided up into four other groups, the Simin, based on their occupation: scholars, farmers, merchants, and artisans. While artisans were praised for their work, the public had already formed an idea of what a perfect artisan should be. Artisans had to face such societal expectations and could not climb the social ladder, being looked down upon, instead, as they struggled to become the “perfect artisan”. This can be mostly blamed on aristocrats, philosophers, and politicians who felt the need to speak poorly about other classes to further boost their own egos. While artisans were basically at the bottom of the social ladder, those in the higher classes still appreciated “the qualities of an artisan who perfectly fulfilled the potential of his or her role” (44). There was one quality that a perfect artisan was thought to have: Qiao. While it indicated the skillfulness of the artisan and helped give artisans some recognition, the word could also mean “the ability and the inclination to use skill for deceit and trickery” (45) which tarnished their title even more.
Bibliography
Barbieri-Low, Anthony J. Artisans in Early Imperial China. Seattle: University of Washington Press, 2007.
