W’s
Who
Imperial China and its people. The people that passed the exam were split into 3 groups of degrees:
- Jinshi: highest level possible, candidates got the top bureaucratic positions.
- Juren: second-highest, qualified for lower-level positions.
- Shengyuan: lowest level degree possible. Did not qualify for a spot in the bureaucratic office, but enjoyed great prestige and elite status.
When
Throughout imperial China (and of interest to us the Qing Dynasty) until it was abolished in 1905 under the New Policies. It lasted for over 1000 years.
Where
Administered everywhere throughout China.
What
The system by which the Chinese imperial government selected people for positions. It was open to everybody, and everyone knew what they had to study for; in that manner, it was a very fair and meritocratic system.
- Tested on ancient Chinese literature, prose, and poems, and philosophy, with a heavy focus on Confucian thought
- Used Classical Chinese language and you were expected to write and read it
- Extremely difficult to pass, 1-3% pass rate.
- If you did pass you were set for life
Why
Presumably the Chinese government wanted an effective exam system to test people wanting to join them and devised this exam.
Historical significance
I see the civil service exam through two different lenses: throughout imperial China in its first couple hundred years of existence, and 19th century onwards up until its abolition.
Before: everyone wanted to become part of the gentry/elite class, and in order to do that you needed to pass this exam. Hence the civil service exam and the knowledge it tests formed the backbone of Chinese politics, culture, and society overall.
- Since it was based in meritocracy, theoretically anyone that studied and memorized literature hard enough could pass.
After: because of the ideals that it forced upon the population, China was ill-prepared in many other “technical” subjects like physics and engineering, which made it hard for them to develop more advanced weapons and military tech.
- The gentry/elites that rose up because of the exam kept it propped up into the late 19th century because if this system failed, then their power went away too.
- The continuation of the exam and its direct connection to the elites and their political influence meant China could not “westernize” and reform like Japan did during the Meiji Restoration, who did not have its knowledge system tied to its government and policies