Aristocratic Free Subjects and Plutocratic Serfs

[lazysunside]

Aristocrat+Free Subjects = England, Germanic kingdoms, Napoleonic France, Korea(!), Italian states, etc
Aristocrat+Serfdom= France, Spain, Ottoman Empire, Russia, Japan, Indian states, China(!!) etc
Plutocratic+Free Subjects= U.S.A, Hansa State, Venice, revolutionaries countries are mostly at this state when they first establish, etc
Plutocratic+Serfdom = Novogrod, Hansa State, Malacca, etc

!: Kingdom of Joseon's people are actually more free than the rest of East Asia. During the 16th century there is a revolutionary advancement of science because poor peasant are allowed to educate and join the ranks of official
!!: Chinese kingdoms do have a form of intellectual once in several years to gain more magistrates, but it is open for only the rich or middle class. Otherwise, Chinese society are based greatly on serfdom.
(I don't need to explain for Japan, Japanese peasant must bow down low on the ground to greet even the lowest ranking samurai. )

 

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Kingdom of Joseon's people are actually more free than the rest of East Asia. During the 16th century there is a revolutionary advancement of science because poor peasant are allowed to educate and join the ranks of official
!!: Chinese kingdoms do have a form of intellectual once in several years to gain more magistrates, but it is open for only the rich or middle class. Otherwise, Chinese society are based greatly on serfdom.

You got it backwards, my friend. Korea's exams were only open to the yangban class, which only composed 10% of the population, and only those yangban from certain provinces really have a chance of getting into political offices once passing the exam. Class structure was rigid, regional discrimination was prevailing and social mobility was basically non-existent.

Chinese dynasties' exams were open to any man (and woman, briefly during the Tang dynasty) from any regions with any social background. Class background was not a factor as anyone who can afford to get themselves an education can pass the exams and became a mandarin and enjoys the wealth and prestige office will bring him. Even without passing the exams, those who managed to educate themselves enough to partake the imperial exams were in high demand in society and often got hired as tutors, accounts, secretaries, etc., which may well be a step up from their family's old social position.

In addition, at the beginning of Ming dynasty a series of land reforms were taken and each farming family got their own plot of land, so by definition the farmers were not serfs as they own the land they tilt. That situation changed during the middle of Ming dynasty due to rampant laissez faire captialism and by late Ming period, many farmers have fallen back into virtual serfdom. But that's 200 years after the start of the Grand Campaign, so the initial slider values are still out of whack if we take these sliders to mean what majority of posters in this thread think they meant.