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Proquest Dissertations Social organization and the technology of communication: A case study of the association between character transformation and bureaucratic expansion in ancient China Item Type text; Thesis-Reproduction (electronic) Authors Aoyagi, Hiroshi, 1963- Publisher The University of Arizona. Rights Copyright © is held by the author. Digital access to this material is made possible by the University Libraries, University of Arizona. Further transmission, reproduction or presentation (such as public display or performance) of protected items is prohibited except with permission of the author. Download date 02/10/2021 21:47:29 Link to Item http://hdl.handle.net/10150/291505 INFORMATION TO USERS This manuscript has been reproduced from the microfilm master. UMI films the text directly from the original or copy submitted. Thus, some thesis and dissertation copies are in ^ewriter face, while others may be from any type of computer printer. The quality of this reprodactlon is dependent upon the quality of the copy submitted. Broken or indistinct print, colored or poor quality illustrations and photographs, print bleedthrough, substandard margins, and improper alignment can adversely affect reproduction. In the unlikely event that the author did not send UMI a complete manuscript and there are missing pages, these will be noted. Also, if imauthorized copyright material had to be removed, a note will indicate the deletion. Oversize materials (e.g., maps, drawings, charts) are reproduced by sectioning the original, beginning at the upper left-hand corner and continuing from left to right in equal sections with small overlaps. Each original is also photographed in one exposure and is included in reduced form at the back of the book. Photographs included in the original manuscript have been reproduced xerographically in this copy. Higher quality 6" x 9" black and white photographic prints are available for any photographs or illustrations appearing in this copy for an additional charge. Contact UMI directly to order. University Microfilms International A Bell & Howell Information Company 300 North Zeeb Road. Ann Arbor, Ml 48106-1346 USA 313/761-4700 800/521-0600 Order Number 1343799 Social organization and the technology of communication; A case study of the association between character transformation and bureaucratic expansion in ancient China Aoyagi, Hiroshi, M.A. The University of Arizona, 1991 UMI SOON.ZeebRd. Ann Aitwr, MI 48106 1 SOCIAL ORGANIZATION AND THE TECHNOLOGY OF COMMUNICATION: A CASE STUDY OF THE ASSOCIATION BETWEEN CHARACTER TRANSFORMATION AND BUREAUCRATIC EXPANSION IN ANCIENT CHINA by Hiroshi Aoyagi A Thesis Sxibmitted to the Faculty of the DEPARTMENT OF ANTHROPOLOGY In Partial Fulfillment of the Reqpiirements For the Degree of MASTER OF ARTS In the Graduate College THE UNIVERSITY OF ARIZONA 19 9 1 2 STATEMENT BY AUTHOR This thesis has been submitted in partial fulfillment of requirements for an advanced degree at The University of Arizona and is deposited in the University Library to be made available to borrowers under rules of the library. Brief quotations from this thesis are allowable without special permission, provided that accurate acknowledgment of source is made. Requests for permission for extended quotation from or reproduction of this manuscript in whole or in part may be granted by the head of the major department or the Dean of the Graduate College when in his or her judgment the proposed use of the material is in the interests of scholarship. In all other instances, permission must be obtained from the author. APPROVAL BY THESIS DIRECTOR This thesis has been approved on the date shown below: /</" h aft ^Jane H. Hill Date / Professor of Anthropology TO MY GRANDMOTHER who opened my third eye 4 ACKNOWLEDGMENTS The completion of this thesis would not have been possible without the support of Dr. Jane H. Hill (Linguistic Anthropology), the chairperson of my Master's committee, as well as Dr. Michael B. Schiffer (Archeology) and Dr. Hermann K. Bleibtreu (Physical Anthropology), the committee members for my thesis at the University of Arizona. Further appreciation goes to Dr. W. David Kingery (Anthropology and Material Science), Dr. John W. Olsen (Archeology), Dr. Merrill F. Garrett (Cognitive Science), Dr. Mary C. Peterson (Psychology), Mr. Gerardo Bernache (Cultural Anthropology), Mr. Hernan Vasquez-Aubert (Biology), and Mr. Scott Hurley (East Asian Studies) at the University of Arizona. In Japan, I thank Dr. Minoru Aoyagi (Neurosurgery) at the Osaka Medical University, Professor Kiyoshi Aoyagi (Economics and Accounting) at the Nihon University, and Dr. Naoki Tabeta (Economics) at the Nikko Research Institute. In the People's Republic of China, I thank Mr. Huang Bin (Mathematics) and his comrades at the Sichuan Normal University as well as Peking University. These people have provided me with theoretical and methodological assistance. Additional gratitude is given to individuals and agencies who have contributed their precious time and thoughts to experiments that are conducted in this study. 5 TABLE OF CONTENTS LIST OF FIGURES 7 LIST OF TABLES 8 ABSTRACT 10 CHAPTER 1. INTRODUCTION 11 1.1 Social Organization and Writing Technology 11 1.2 The Background of Chinese Characters 13 1.3 The Theory and Method of Analysis 14 1.4 Contents of Analysis., 16 1.5 The Components of Efficiency 20 2. THE DYNAMICS OF BUREAUCRACY 22 2.1 The Functional-Dysfunctional Debate 22 2.2 The Ch'in Bureaucracy 36 3. THE CAUSE AND THE PROCESSES OF MODIFICATION 46 3.1 Alternative Causes 46 3.2 The Processes of Modification 53 4. THE FORMAL PROPERTIES OF CH'IN CHARACTERS 57 4.1 Formal Properties and Transforaation 57 4.2 Performance Characteristics of Ch'in Writing 60 5. THE EFFICIENCIES OF CH'IN CHARACTERS 65 5.1 Speed and Accuracy of Acquisition 65 6 5.2 Speed and Accuracy of Reproduction 69 5.3 Speed and Accuracy of Transmission 72 5.4 Siumnaries and Discussions 74 6. CONCLUSIONS 79 APPENDICES 85 Explanation of abbreviations 85 REFERENCES CITED 100 7 LIST OF FIGURES Figure 1 Standardization of the character ma 58 Figure 2 Simplification of characters 58 Figure 3 A sample acquisition test 86 Figure 4 A sample reproduction test 86 Figure 5 A sample transmission test 87 8 LIST OF TABLES Table 1 The speed and accuracy of acquisition for non-experienced participants 88 Table 2 The speed and accuracy of acquisition for experienced participants 89 Table 3 Analysis of variance for the speed of acquisition (non-experienced vs. experienced participants) 90 Table 4 Analysis of variance for the accuracy of acquisition (non-experienced vs. experienced participants) 90 Table 5 Analysis of variance for the speed of acquisition (SS vs. CL) 91 Table 6 Analysis of variance for the accuracy of acquisition (SS vs. CL) 91 Table 7 The speed and accuracy of reproduction for non-experienced participants 92 Table 8 The speed and accuracy of reproduction for experienced participants 93 Table 9 Analysis of variance for the speed of reproduction (non-experienced vs. experienced participants) 94 Table 10 Analysis of variance for the accuracy of reproduction (non-experienced vs. experienced participants) 94 Table 11 Analysis of variance for the speed of reproduction (SS vs. CL) 95 Table 12 Analysis of variance for the accuracy of reproduction (SS vs. CL) 95 Table 13 The speed and accuracy of transmission 96 Table 14 Analysis of variance for the speed of transmission 97 9 Table 15 Difference between two group means for the speed of transmission, using CL 97 Table 16 Difference between two group means for transmission (the speed of SS vs. the speed of CL) 98 Table 17 A summary of apparent efficiency 98 Table 18 Correlations between speeds of transmission 99 10 ABSTRACT Historians have commonly associated the standardization and simplification of Chinese characters that occurred in the Ch'in period (221 B.C.-202 B.C.) with bureaucratic expansion. Their proposition is that the Ch'in empire's need for social uniformity and communicative efficiency has motivated character transformation from more pictographic, symbolic figures to more abstract, logographic patterns. But this view is supported less by rational or detailed research than by simple and intuitive reasoning. The acceptability of this hypothesis is evaluated here through (1) a critical analysis of bureaucracy and its impact on communication, and (2) a detailed examination of the formal properties of Ch'in characters and their effects on perception. In this thesis, I perform these tasks by taking a three-fold appxroach. First, I discuss the merits and demerits of bureaucracy with respect to its functions. Then, I elaborate upon aestheticism and writing materials as possible alternatives to communication for character transformation. Finally, I examine properties of Ch'in characters with regard to their communicative efficiencies. 11 CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION 1.1 Social Organization and Writing Technology Max Weber has proposed that the method for obtaining knowledge of the social sciences involves the following four tasks: (1) determining hypothetical "laws" and "factors" concerning certain social phenomena; (2) analyzing the historically-given individual configuration of those "factors" and their significant concrete interactions, conditioned by the historical context; (3) tracing as far into the past as possible the individual features of these historically evolved configurations which are contemporaneously significant, and finding historical explanations from their antecedents and their individual configurations; and finally, (4) predicting possible future constellations (Weber 1949:75,76). The present study attempts to satisfy these tasks with the use of a multi- disciplinary approach. Governed by the above conditions, I will discuss the association between technology and society. I intend to argue that certain aspects of social organization influence certain areas of technology, and vice versa. To demonstrate this, I use a historical example from ancient China. I then emphasize the association between developments in social complexity (bureaucratization in particular), communicative 12 efficiency (as the product of social complication), and writing technology.
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