Chapter 3 Section 2 The Hierarchy of Family Education

At the end of primitive society, due to the development of production, the increase of wealth, and the formation of private ownership, the patrilineal system finally replaced the matrilineal system.The so-called patrilineal patrilineal system means that the husband is responsible for supporting the children in the family, property is inherited according to the patrilineal line, and lineage is calculated according to the patrilineal line.With the proliferation of population and the improvement of productivity, the production capacity of individual family members has also been enhanced, so the patrilineal clan gradually split into several large patrilineal families composed of male descendants, which is the so-called patrilineal family commune in history.

The patriarchal family is patriarchal.This patriarch is actually the patriarch of the clan.Parents are responsible for managing all affairs of the entire clan commune, organizing and leading production activities, mastering financial power, being responsible for imparting knowledge and skills in production and life to clan family members, and consolidating their rule by training family members in traditional customs.This kind of clan big family education in primitive society can only be regarded as the embryonic state of family education in ancient my country. After the disintegration of the primitive clan commune in our country and entering the class society, it went through a fairly long stage of clan system, and then gradually transitioned to the family system.The clan still largely maintains the legacy of the clan. "Book of Rites Da Zhuan" says: "The same surname belongs to the clan, and the family belongs together." The so-called "same surname" means the father's clan; the so-called "congzong" means that clansmen with the same male ancestor form a living community together.During the clan system period, individual families began to appear, but they did not dissociate from the clan system, but attached and belonged to the clan.As a community of blood, the clan not only has a common ancestral temple, clan, and cemetery, but also has common property.The head of the clan is the patriarch, who has the absolute power to command, manage and educate the members of the clan, and is the centralized representative of the patrilineal patriarchy of the whole clan.The eldest son of the clan is called the eldest son, and the eldest son inherits the title of the ancestor.The head of an individual family under the eldest son, attached to the eldest son, has gradually formed a complete set of patriarchal clan system in the long historical process.

In the period of clan system, members of a clan always lived together, and had a common way of life and a common cultural tradition.The clan's family education is mainly in the charge of the eldest son, and the education content includes production, life, military affairs, sacrifice and so on.Among them, sacrificing the common ancestor is the main content of education in the clan extended family. "Book of Rites · Jitong" says: "There are five scriptures in ritual, and nothing is more important than sacrifice." Why is sacrifice so important?Because ancestor worship activities can strengthen the blood relationship ethics among members of the same clan, so as to form a social group psychology and concept of the same surname, same morals, same heart, and same heart, and maintain the clan system and jointly defend the overall interests of the clan.In the period of patriarchal patriarchy, although there were individual families, the education given by the heads of these individual families to the family members was consistent with the education carried out by the patriarchs of the entire clan. Implement it to each individual family member so that they become members of a qualified clan family.

The clan system began to take shape in the early days of slave society in my country, and developed through the Xia and Shang dynasties.According to legend, Xia Yu's transmission to his son Qi was the beginning of patriarchal politics of succession to the throne of the patriarchal ruling class.In the Shang Dynasty, the clan system was quite strict. The head of the clan commanded several clans, and there were several "classes" and "ugly" under the clans.The so-called "class" is the branch of the blood lineage, while "ugly" includes the clans and the slaves captured in the war.In the Shang Dynasty, the patriarchal system was implemented, and there were major clans and small clans. Therefore, the clan family education at this time began to have a relatively obvious level difference.