Historical Events In China Essay
explanatory Essay
1544 words
Yihan Huang
CHIN3162
Term Paper
Prof. Zhang
The Impact of Historical Events on Society and Individuals in China
Throughout the entire Chinese history, we can clearly see that there are a number of historical events that had huge impact on the Chinese society and generations in China. Some of those historical events had already ended couple generations ago; some of them are still being unceasingly reformed and still exerting until now; yet, fair enough to say that each one of them had tremendous influence on Chinese society regardless the influence is positive or negative.
Ranking the most influencing historical events throughout the Chinese history, there are two prime events that seem unforgettable- they are the Cultural Revolution and the Chinese Economic Reform. It is certain that people hardly can give them an order in which differentiates them in terms of how much impact each event had to the Chinese society and individuals; because each one of them were and still are influencing not just one single aspect of Chinese society in either a positive way or a negative way.
Speaking of the Cultural Revolution, to the generation who has experienced it, it is a nightmare. 10-year Cultural Revolution has gradually been a blur in Chinese people’s mind, especially to the younger generation such as my generation. However, the consequences of Cultural Revolution are profoundly devastating to the Chinese society; as Chinese people said, history is like a mirror in which can reflect many problems that are occurring contemporarily. The same mistake in which we have made can still be made in the future if we do not learn from our past. Unquestionably, the Culture Revolution was, as many people believed, the “darkest 10 years” in the moder...
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...tudents. Because of Cultural Revolution, the younger generation are more and more westernized and materialism and losing their interests in traditional cultures. It is hard to judge whether or not those changes are right; only time can reveal.
Reference
Chow, Gregory C. "CHINA’S ECONOMY: REFORM AND PERSPECTIVES." Princeton University. N.p., 15 Apr. 1999. Web. 23 Apr. 2014.
Croucher, Martin. "Sacking the British Embassy During the Cultural Revolution." The Epoch Times. N.p., 26 Aug. 2006. Web. 23 Apr. 2014. http://www.theepochtimes.com/news/6-8-26/45348.html
Ianchovichina, Elena, and Will Martin. "Trade Liberalization in China's Accession to the World Trade Organization." Google Books. World Bank Publications, June 2001. Web. 23 Apr. 2014.
In this essay, the author
- Analyzes the impact of historical events on society and individuals in china. some of them had already ended couple generations ago; others are still being unceasingly reformed.
- Explains that the cultural revolution and the chinese economic reform are the most influencing historical events in china's history.
- Opines that the 10-year cultural revolution is a nightmare to the generation who has experienced it. the consequences are profoundly devastating for the chinese society.
- Explains that chairman mao launched the cultural revolution because he believed that the privileged class would hurt the newly established communist china.
- Explains that the cultural revolution had not forwarded the chinese national economy as many people believed or expected. the red guards were encouraged to "criticize and strike down" their teachers, professors, doctors, and high-ranking military generals.
- Explains that the cultural revolution was led to a completely different direction. people used it as excuse for things they wanted to do as well as things that they did not want to. red guards started to separate into many different groups.
- Explains that during the cultural revolution, more than 1 million people were killed or humiliated to death; others were suffering in endless mental and physical torture and imprisonment.
- Explains the chinese economic reform, a program of reforming china's national economy. the reformation was started in 1978, 2 years after the cultural revolution.
- Explains how the chinese government realized that the national economy needed to be reformed in 1978, but no one had ever blueprinted an economic reformation. foreign direct investments helped the country rocket up year by year.
- Explains how china changed from collective farming to private farming and market reform for the agricultural sector was essentially completed.
- Explains that before the economic reformation, the industry sector was largely controlled by the central government through a socialist system in which provided no stimulation on growth of revenue and productivity.
- Explains that china has been shifting from a capital absorbing country to an investing capital outputting country since joining the world trading organization.
- Explains that the chinese globalization led by the reformation would jeopardize the domestic firms. however, more companies in the private sector substitute those low productivity and low efficient state owned business and seize a bigger portion of the market share.
- Opines that social changes caused by historical events are happening everyday in our lives. economic reform, foreign universities and high schools are filled with chinese students, and the cultural revolution, the younger generation are more and more westernized.
- Cites chow, gregory c., roucher, martin, and ianchovichina, elena. "trade liberalization in china's accession to the world trade organization."
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- Analyzes how the cultural revolution and mao zedong's rule failed to improve the lives of the peasants and caused greater suffering for virtually all citizens through their policies.
- Analyzes how zhenzhen's pain is alleviated by her nationalism while in later works, communist ideals are a small comfort in the face of oppression.
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- Analyzes how lu xun uses the metaphor of people eating people to show that in the feudalistic era, people were both the oppressors and the victims.
- Analyzes how lu xun's a madman’s diary encapsulates the ironic struggle of the cultural revolution.
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- Explains that mao zedong motivated millions of chinese youths to challenge authority in order to depart from socialism. the "red guards" humiliated non-believers in an attempt to advance china's economic and political status.
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- Explains that the red guards enforced communist principles and rid the nation of the "four olds". the youths were forced to join because of social pressure.
- Explains that chinese youths joined the cultural revolution because they were pressured by friends and wanted to have dominance over their elders.
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- Explains that mao knew that the revolution was spinning out of control and implemented his "down to the countryside" movement. lin biao believes that there were many struggles for power within the communist party.
- Explains that schools were closed and not managed during the cultural revolution, leaving an entire generation with no education. terrible mistakes and brutal violence weakened the history of communist china.
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- Explains that the northern invasions shifted the power, but the change among society remained small. in liao, the government was not concerned with scholars or their literature.
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- Opines that the west regarded the arts of the sung almost all the way through the ch'ing as great advances.
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- Analyzes how anchee was forced to speak in a conference by her party against her favorite teacher, autumn leaves.
- Analyzes how anchee min indicts herself for rape and apprehension and mistreatment of women who lived in china during the cultural revolution.
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- Analyzes how liang heng's life takes a turn when he has three children, two older sisters, and the youngest. the book looks deep into mao’s cultural revolution.
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- Analyzes how liang's life was filled with disillusionment, social rejection, and consistent uphill battles, but he survived the cultural revolution and was able to produce this book.
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- Explains that all of the actions we take, and as a result, the benefits and consequences which occur, are rooted from our own beliefs. china has many belief systems/ideologies which have developed over its long history.
- Explains confucianism, one of the most renowned chinese ideologies, was begun by a chinese scholar born in 551 b.c.
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- Analyzes how the reformed immigration bill was helpful, but it created racial issues that the multi-ethnicity country, america never solved.
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In this essay, the author
- Explains that china's supreme power was shattered by new forces from the west and suffered from government disintegration, financial chaos, corruption, natural disasters, and peasant revolts.
- Explains that the attitudes of people can be divided into three periods: the tongzhi restoration and self-strengthening period, the hundred days' reform movement, and the late-qing period.
- Explains how the tongzhi restoration and the self-strengthening movement played a vital role in qing history. china saw the urgency to strengthen herself in order to maintain her international status.
- Explains that there were far-reaching scholars who proposed a comprehensive reform to save china, such as lin zexu (1785-1850), wei yuan (1794-1856), prince gong and wenxiang.
- Explains that the self-strengthening movement is characterized by its imitation on the west. the ruling class depended on its emphasis on loyalty and obedience to maintain their ruling supremacy.
- Explains that the unpopularity of reform leaders led to more opposition to the reform.
- Explains that the movement was too military oriented, focusing on firearms, ships, machine, communications, mining, and light industries. they did not undertake any social reforms to improve the livelihood of the peasants.
- Explains that reform leaders emerged in society to lead a reform to save the dynasty, but they received little support from all levels and changes were confined to treaty ports cities only.
- Explains that china's self-strengthening led to the hundred days' reform (1898).
- Explains that the hundred days' reform gained wider support from all classes, and was partly a result of missionary influence.
- Analyzes how the reform movement faced opposition from different classes, including empress cixi, who was surprised to know the drastic nature of reform and determined to stop it immediately. the military reform jeopardized the privileges of manzhu bannermen
- Explains that the radical nature of the reform was too radical that most people found it difficult to follow. the former moderate reformer, weng tungho, resorted to conservatism.
- Explains that in the second period, the force of continuity was still important but it could be notice that change became more popular. conservatism in society still influence the mind of many chinese.
- Explains that the force of change played the most important role in late qing history. cixi realized the policy of blind resistance to foreigners was futile.
- Explains that revolutionary activities became so threatening that institutional reform could no longer be delayed. the failure of the boxers and the previous reforms disappointed many chinese who turned into sun yixian's revolutionary movement.
- Explains that the russo-japanese war inspired the chinese to carry out intuitional reform. constitutional japan defeated russia after the meiji modernization.
- Explains that the force of continuity exerted little pressure in the mind of chinese. the qing government delayed the setting up of a constitution until 1917.
- Explains that the third period was significant to show the change of chinese mental after several humiliations. they became disillusioned and were willing to accept fundamental changes.
- Concludes that the force of continuity played a more influential role in the post-opium period because the chinese were strict followers of confucianism.
2228 wordsRead More