A Study On The Yang Family In Hongnong During The Han Dynasty

This thesis study the political activities of Yang Zhen, the representative figure of the Yang Family in Hongnong which was one of the top families during the Han Dynasty, and the evolution of the Yang Family in the period of the Han Dynasty.Through the analysis, we can know that the combination of the Yang and Hongnong start from Yang Chang and his son Yang Yun during the period of Emperor Han Xuan.For the Hongnong Family, Yang Zhen was the critical figure during the Eastern Han Dynasty. He mastered the Confucianism, and start his official career during the social crisis in the period of Emperor Han He. He underwent the ups and downs of his official career, and ended up his political activities by suicide, which won respect from the scholars later and made the Yang Family become the top one in the Eastern Han Dynasty.Through the study, we can conclude that the mastery of the Confucianism was the key factor for the Yang Family. Upright and reputation ensured that the Yang Family developed successively. On the other hand, the family and marriage, which were the key factors for the great ones to keep their political and social status in the middle ancient times, were not the essential factors to become the top ones in the Eastern Han Dynasty.Meanwhile, the Yang Family couldn't conform to the historical trend of the times when the Eastern Han Dynasty perished. They conflicted with the new political power of Cao Cao, which made them become the prey of the Eastern Han Dynasty and lose the opportunity of the family's development. After the Western Jin Dynasty replaced the Cao Wei Dynasty, Yang Jun, the relative of the emperor, intervened the politics of the Western Jin Dynasty, but it was only a sudden spurt of activity prior to decline for the Yang Family.