So far, when people talk about the imperial examination system, they always think that the Tang Dynasty inherited the system of selecting scholars formed by the Sui Dynasty, which made the imperial examination system perfect day by day, and played an important role in the political rule of successive dynasties in the long history from the Tang Dynasty to the Qing Dynasty 1300 years. This is also a basic fact. However, the imperial examination system in the early years of Sui Dynasty was not like this later. The actual situation is that the imperial examination system in the Tang Dynasty has undergone substantial changes in content and form, except for the selection of talents through examinations, the intention of employing people and the name of the imperial examination system. The selection criteria of "Ten Subjects" in Sui Dynasty were seriously tampered with, and most important subjects were abandoned. The values of employing people have undergone fundamental changes. Undoubtedly, the imperial examination system was one of the basic systems to realize centralization in the Tang Dynasty, which played an important role in the prosperity of the Tang Dynasty. It is generally said that in 690 AD, Wu Zetian personally presided over Gong Sheng's examination in the Temple of Los Angeles, thus creating the imperial examination system in the history of China. According to records, before this, in 659 (three years), 365,438+0 years, "in February of spring, a family of 900 people was raised on trial, but Guo first wrote, and Zhang Jiuling lived in the fifth, so the pavilion was sacrificed with the war" [30]. It can be seen that the emperor who started the "Palace Entrance Examination" recorded in the history books should be Tang Gaozong Li Zhi. The imperial examination system was originally a political measure to select officials and scholars. There is nothing wrong with the supreme ruler attending the court examination and openly selecting talents for governing the country. But at this time, compared with the Sui Dynasty, the content of the imperial examination changed qualitatively. In the process of its evolution to the Tang Dynasty, the Sui Dynasty only borrowed the name, method and organizational form of the imperial examination system. According to the will of the supreme ruler, the examination subjects were chosen, and the core values of filial piety, morality, courtesy and righteousness were abandoned, which greatly increased the examination subjects and contents of literary talents. The imperial examination system quickly replaced the previous system of selecting scholars based on recommendation. There are generally two kinds of imperial examinations in the Tang Dynasty, one is a regular subject, which is held regularly every year, and the other is a system subject, which is held by the emperor according to needs. The permanent themes are Scholar, Ming Jing, Scholar, Scholar, Faming, Zi Ming, Shu Ming, One History, Three History, Kai Ethan, Tao Ju and Boy Scouts. Among them, Scholar, Mingjing, Jinshi, Faming, Ziming and Shu Ming are permanent subjects "[3 1]. Compared with the ten subjects set up in the imperial examination system in Sui Dynasty, the six subjects in Tang Dynasty only correspond to and are related to the two subjects of "the beauty of literary talent" and "the sensitivity of academic excellence". These important subjects, such as "filial piety", "moral integrity", "moral integrity", "being strong and honest" and "abiding by the Constitution", have all been abandoned, or as an understated investigation subject, they are not listed as formal procedures and are not taken seriously. Paying more attention to literature than wisdom, neglecting filial piety and morality, which was clearly reflected in the imperial examination system in the Tang Dynasty. There are five kinds of examination methods: post-examination, oral examination, policy-making and poetry. The whole thing is about "literary words" As for candidates, the Tang Dynasty stipulated that candidates mainly came from two aspects: one was students, and the other was rural tribute. Those who have passed the academic examinations prescribed by the central and local official schools and are sent to Shangshu Province for examinations are called students. Scholars who have not learned from the library are those who apply to the county, are selected by the county and state examinations, and are reported to the Shangshu provincial examination, which is called township tribute. Since 736 AD (the 24th year of Emperor Xuanzong of the Tang Dynasty), the requirements for examination qualifications have become more and more strict. In 807 AD (the second year of Yuanhe in Tang Xianzong), the imperial edict said, "Juren worked as a small official in various counties because of lawsuits. Although he has resigned, he is not allowed to give him a ride, and the offender is suspended and the examiner is downgraded. " [32] At this time, the fairness and openness are also greatly reduced. "The society needs talents in all aspects. It is impossible to select real talents through several exams. This is a simple logical question. Isn't it absurd to choose administrative officials by the quality of poems and songs in ancient times? Why should an expert and scholar who studies ancient Chinese know a foreign language today? A' good official' in a general sense is first and foremost a virtue, which is definitely not determined by an exam. At the same time, fixed examination content can easily make people lose creativity and lack comprehensive ability. How do the selected talents cope with the complicated and changeable real society? "[33] Theoretically, it is not worthy of the name that" the Tang Dynasty inherited the imperial examination system of the Sui Dynasty ". This variation weakened the foundation of the imperial examination system in Sui Dynasty, with the people as the main body, the excellent Confucian cultural traditions compatible with hundreds of schools as the core carrier, and the rulers' intentions and hobbies as the highest standard for selecting and employing people, and gradually evolved into an official-based political employment system dominated by imperial power, and the imperial examination scholars became a duel between literati. The formation of this system not only effectively promoted the centralized feudal rule and the standardization, legalization, fixation and paranoia of the employment system, but also accelerated the highly centralized and unified centralization time and time again, greatly promoted the peak of Tang, Song, Yuan, Ming and Qing dynasties, and pushed these feudal dynasties to the end again and again. Finally, the imperial examination system itself died out. Variation characteristics of imperial examination system in Tang Dynasty and its negative influence on later society. (a) the main characteristics of variation. One of the characteristics: the theme is partial to waste, emphasizing literature and neglecting morality. The subjects offered in the early Tang Dynasty, such as Faming, Ming Su 'an and Zi Ming, are all practical and can be used to select talents. After that, only the Ming Classics were emphasized, and they were admitted to the second division of Jinshi, and the Ming Law Division was abolished, which was fraught with abuses. This is because the Ming Classics Department attaches importance to classics, and scholars recite them as much as possible. For a long time, "scholars take the words of classics as their general purpose, not righteousness as their priority"; Jinshi emphasized the creation of poetry and fu, and for a long time,' the examiner took the sound disease as right and wrong and only chose glitz'. Both the Ming Classics and the Jinshi branch went to extremes in the later stage of evolution. [34] As far as the content of the examination is concerned, Ming Jing and Jinshi belong to literary subjects, and they are not the complete imperial examination system of "filial piety, morality, righteousness, courtesy, faith, fairness, wisdom, literature, talent and courage" in the Sui Dynasty. The second feature: take the exam as an example and talk about "trying" on "trying". In the Sui Dynasty, "scientific research" and "investigation" were two important procedures of the imperial examination system. "Observing residence" is a comprehensive procedure to observe, understand and know people through long-term social practice, and it is also an effective measure proved by history. "Scientific research" is a procedure to judge candidates' intelligent knowledge by answering questions. They can't replace each other, and the best way to promote scholars is to combine them organically. In the Tang Dynasty, "in the whole official selection system, the choice was mainly determined by the examination results", which indicated that the examination system had been transformed into the imperial examination system [35]. The changes in subject setting, examination contents and examination methods clearly reflect the changes in the value orientation of employing people in the Tang Dynasty. The third characteristic: Confucians are frivolous, fresh and shameless. The imperial examination in the Tang Dynasty emphasized individual literary talent and neglected moral cultivation, showing an obvious tendency of "meritocracy is the promotion". Due to the lack of comprehensive investigation, the literati who only cite the standard of "excellent literary talent" are even more humble, lack of family discipline and frivolous behavior; Once you succeed, you are wild. Today, people can still feel the meaning of frivolous depravity from the poems of this period. "The emerging literati in the Tang Dynasty ... are particularly unruly, so there is a close relationship between the literati in the Tang Dynasty and the literature of prostitutes (that is, the literary creation is mostly based on prostitutes)" [36]. There is a story in Li Zhao's Supplement to Tang Shi in the middle Tang Dynasty: "In the twelfth year of Zhenyuan, Shiping rebelled against Princess Yiyang, and Cai Na and Uncle Dugu listened to the history for fun, and the topic of Yiyang was scattered in Yun Ge. When Dezong heard this, he was furious and wanted to abolish the imperial examination, and then he stopped by expelling heather and Shen Shu. " [37] Cai He and his uncle Du Gushen are both romantic literati, so they think that there are some flashy and frivolous styles among literati, so the imperial examination should be abolished. On the surface, the recommendation before the imperial examination in Tang Dynasty looks a bit like "recommendation", but it is actually a threshold set around language. Because of the importance of recommendation before the exam, scholars are scrambling to find celebrities to judge their articles. First, in order to visit celebrities, I offered a large sum of money to ask for interviews, and then I submitted my own manuscript, called "Finding a bosom friend". If celebrities don't read and comment, they will vote again. This is the so-called "Wen Juan". If Wen Juan doesn't get a comment, it will stand in the way and ask for an interview. So groveling, it is obvious that the literati are thirsty and shameless [38]. The fourth feature: learning is for being an official, not for use. In the middle and late Tang Dynasty, the imperial examination system was seriously divorced from reality, and learning had nothing to do with use. Study is for exams, and exams are for being an official. "* * * expensive, the main criticism, is poetry. Therefore, the theory of fresh national customs in The Scholars has a shortcoming ... It is useless to learn and useless to use, so there are fewer capable officials. " [39] In the early Tang Dynasty, the subjects of Jinshi, Mingjing, Mingsuan and Faming were still in parallel. Later, only Jinshi and Mingjing were the main subjects, and practical subjects were ignored. With the improvement of the consciousness of official standard, people are proud of being an official, and practical science and technology cannot be a condition for entering the imperial examination. (B) the negative impact of variation on the social value orientation of later generations. Since the Tang Dynasty, year after year, the imperial examination has become a barometer of feudal rulers' political value orientation and a through train for candidates to move from "Jianghu" to "Temple". Driven by imperial power, the people-oriented consciousness was diluted, ignored and lost day by day behind the imperial examination year after year; However, the official standard consciousness is developing, expanding and expanding day by day, which is the institutional root of bureaucratic thought and style in later generations. Social ideology is the sum total of national social concepts such as politics, law, morality, philosophy, art and religion. The transformation of social ideology in Tang Dynasty from people-oriented to official-oriented reflected the need of the rulers to realize centralization. In the process of realizing this transformation, the imperial examination system devoted itself to practical results and did its best. The variation of the imperial examination system in the Tang Dynasty, especially the establishment of the imperial examination system led by the royal family, has influenced China society 1400 years, and has become the mainstream social ideology that has dominated the value orientation of intellectuals since this historical period. The people-oriented consciousness advocated and persisted by ancient sages began to shrink and disappear day by day, and the negative effects of the imperial examination system were increasingly exposed. "The son of heaven is a hero, and the article teaches two Cao; Nothing, but reading is high. If you are young, you must study hard so that the article can stand; Zhu Zigui is full of scholars. Learning hard, firefly window thousands of books; Today, three winters are enough, and whoever laughs is empty. "[40] is a true portrayal of the imperial examination system from Sui Dynasty to Tang Dynasty. Under the dazzling aura of imperial power, Jinshi became the highest goal of intellectuals' life and the only pursuit to reflect the value of life. At this time, "official career" and "learning Tao" are combined into one. After the Tang Dynasty, the concepts and essential differences between "teaching" and "imperial examination" were gradually confused, which was an important historical reason for the prevalence of "learning to be an excellent official" and "reading to be an official". This democratic system, which was brewed by the voice and demand of democracy, went to the opposite of democracy at the peak of centralization and became a royal tool of loyalty and filial piety under the protection of imperial power. The alienation process of imperial examination system reflects the popularity of imperial power thought and the systematic development track of imperial power from top to bottom from the perspective of official system after Tang Dynasty. Since then, government officials of all dynasties and generations have more or less realized the identity of the royal family and the shadow of the supremacy of imperial power. It seriously distorts social values. For the sake of imperial examination and its subsequent prosperity, many scholars have been studying hard all their lives. Since childhood, they have worked hard for exams for ten years, killing precious time in their lives as officials. After winning the imperial examination, officials became bureaucrats in the ruling class, vassals and tools of ruling imperial power. Since there is the joy of victory, there is of course the pain of landing. Many people, like old boys Zhou Jin in The Scholars, are still scholars and devote their lives to the imperial examinations. There is a saying that "carrying a basket on a negative stool is like beggar's mud, and singing a trumpet in class is as straight as a prison", and "three candles are exhausted, and the heart of a child is burned". The imperial examination system in the Tang Dynasty "not only inhibited the development of natural science and technology, but also distorted the minds and bodies of many scholars, thus creating a lot of unnecessary internal friction for China". [4 1] seriously misled the development direction of education. The imperial examination system is a political system for selecting officials and talents in the history of China. Although the imperial examination system played a certain role in promoting education in different historical periods in China and was inextricably linked with education, it was never a formal education system. Linking the education system with the imperial examination system makes education fall into a misunderstanding. The establishment of the scientific examination system for selecting political talents naturally changed the development track of school education, and the ancient school education in China embarked on an ill-fated road of no return. After the Tang Dynasty, the importance between school education and imperial examination system still existed or was abolished, and always followed the general law of emphasizing schools over subjects-both imperial examinations and schools-emphasizing subjects over schools. [42] In the barrier of the variation of the imperial examination system, the school became the base of examination and training, and education became a vassal of the imperial examination scholars. With the variation of the imperial examination system intensified, the independence of school education gradually lost, education and teaching revolved around the imperial examination, and society gradually developed an atmosphere of attaching importance to the imperial examination and neglecting schools. The content of the exam is mainly classical chapters and sentences, pursuing gorgeous poetry and fu, adopting mechanical methods and relying on rote memorization. It is not conducive to the selection and training of talents with real talents and practical learning, and it also develops an empty and sparse style of study. The purpose of reading is not to seek knowledge and truth, but to gain fame and fortune. This educational view with strong utilitarian color has long dominated school education in China. The imperial examination system in Ming and Qing Dynasties is an intensified inheritance of the imperial examination system in Tang Dynasty. It seriously hindered the development of science and culture, and was one of the important reasons for the backwardness of natural science in modern China. Some people consciously or unconsciously associate the imperial examination system with education, which is actually a misunderstanding of the imperial examination system and an ignorance of education. It has been 100 years since the abolition of the imperial examination system. Today, the great vitality of the imperial examination system still exerts a subtle influence on our education. Take the college entrance examination as an example. "From 1905, China abolished the imperial examination system for a whole century. However, the imperial examination resumed in another form and existed in the educational field of China. Theoretically speaking, the resumption of college entrance examination is only the external organizational form of the higher education system. However, the abolition of the college entrance examination system several times has never shaken off the shadow of the imperial examination system. The college entrance examination follows the imperial examination in China's history, implements a political selection system for education, and endows it with the function of selection. Therefore, some people think that the unified college entrance examination system is the evolution of the imperial examination system for selecting officials in the history of China in the field of education.