The Tiananmen Square Protests of 1989 in Beijing, China
On June 3rd, 1989 in Tiananmen Square in Communist China’s capital of Beijing, protestors were silenced by military violence. Tiananmen, ironically, translates into “gate of heavenly peace”. Chinese troops arrested and killed thousands of civilians who were protesting for more governmental transparency and democracy. Protests had been gaining momentum since 1985, and grew to as much as 1.2 million protestors, led by students, in Beijing in May of 1989. The Chinese government, after asking the protestors to stop, imposed martial law and opened fire on the protestors. These protests angered many people from other countries, such as the United States, and are often characterized by the famous image of a lone protestor standing in front of a line of tanks.
China is one of the oldest civilizations in the world. It was traditionally ruled by imperial dynasties that usually lasted hundreds of years. In 1911, the Qing dynasty was overthrown and a republican state was established that lasted until 1949, when the Communists, led by Mao Zedong, established the People’s Republic of China, which is still in place today.
China has no official religion and many of its people are not religious, but Chinese society has been shaped by religion. Many Chinese people follow Confucianism or Daoism. Daoism emphasizes the ideas of compassion, moderation, and humility. Much of Chinese culture is based off the teachings of Confucius, which are centered on benevolence and guide to human action.
Rather than a single language in China, there are more than seven languages, though Mandarin is the official language. Tea drinking is also very popular in China. Chinese art is often influenced by Buddhism...
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When most American people think of Germany, they think of sports cars made for the autobahn, sauerkraut, Adolf Hitler, and the Holocaust. Compared to Germany, when most American people think of Japan they think of sushi, Godzilla movies, Japan’s attack on Pearl Harbor, and the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. World War II was such a significant event in history that almost 70 years after it came to an end, today’s younger generations often associate former Axis controlled countries with the war. People around the world are filled with disgust and immense hate when they hear the name Hitler, mainly because of his leadership under the Holocaust; which was the discriminatory mass genocide of 11-17 million people, the vast majority of which were European Jews. Hirohito, former Emperor of Japan, should strike a similar bell with people when they hear his name because Japan carried out genocide on Chinese civilians and soldiers in World War II. Japan’s attack on the Chinese city of Nanking, was one of the most atrocious events in history. This event has been named both the Nanking Massacre and the Rape of Nanking. The torturous, violent techniques used by the Japanese army upon Chinese civilians and soldiers including dehumanizing them, addicting them to drugs, and other perverse and violent acts, are some of the most grosteque methods ever recorded that could only be thought of by sadistic Japanese soldiers. The events committed by the Japanese army in Nanking, are equally as disgusting as the acts that Nazi Germany committed and should become a major topic involved with World War II in the future, despite the lack of light shed on it in the past for various reasons.
Some of the earliest settlers in China was around 1500 BC (History of China). With a vast population there are numerous religions followed such as: Buddhism, Christian, Muslim, Folk Religion, Hinduism, Judaism as well as others and those who do not practice a religious faith (CIA). Beijing is the capital of China and was named Peking prior to 1949 (Peking). Chinese or Mandarin is the official language there are several dialects to the language (CIA). In addition, the time zone in China is Coordinated Universal Time or UTC plus 8 hours (CIA). China exports the following: electrical and other machinery, clothing, furnishings, textiles and integrated circuits according to the CIA. According to Wikipedia there are 3,589 museums some of them included Shangyuan Art Museum, Chongquing Science and Technology Museum, Nanjing Museum and Zhenjiang Museum (List of Museums in
Throughout, 1900- 1950 there were a number of changes and continuities in China. From the fall of the dynasties to the rise of the Communist Party, these changes shaped China’s government and society. Although, many political changes were made multiple continuities were held constant such as, consistent rebellions and the lack of democracy.
Linder, Doug. “An Introduction to the My Lai Courts Martial.” Famous American Trails: The My Lai Courts Martial, 1970. 15 Nov. 1999 <http://www.law.umkc.edu/
While years pass by and the times change, history, nevertheless unimportant, is continually being made. The more important events are recovered and documented, and artifacts from the time span are conserved. These kinds of incidents, deserving of occupying space in textbooks and in valuable time throughout history courses around the globe, are reviewed time and time again, with the purpose that these kinds of occurrences should never be ignored as well as decades to come, may have a window into the past. However, it appears as though a few incidents are outlined and glorified, forcing some others under the rug, to be long forgotten, while the periods of time change. The Rape of Nanking is certainly one such type of situation. Even though discussed in books and courses, the Rape of Nanking is briefly reviewed as well as ignored, making those curious, with an imperfect understanding on the forgotten Holocaust of World War I. Iris Chang’s raid into China in December of 1937, reveals a ruthless massacre which years afterwards has developed high essential questions not just concerning imperial Japanese militarism but yet the psychology of killers, torturers, and rapists.
Neal, Mary. Battle of Singapore. The Globe and Mail [Toronto, Ont] 13 Nov 1990: A.16.
Memories of World War II play a very important role in the world today, especially in East Asia. These memories are not simple but complicated factors that created many of the controversial issues that exist today. Two of the main issues that revolve around East Asia are the Nanjing Massacre and the comfort women issue. People have debated over the truth of the Nanjing Massacre and the comfort women issue, and people on different sides have not come to an agreement on the historical facts. Daqing Yang’s “The Malleable and the Contested, Joshua Fogel’s “Nanjing Atrocity and Chinese Historical Memory ” discusses the issues in detail, and Chungmoo Choi’s “The Politics of War Memories toward Healing”.
Regarding religion, Chinese culture saw the emergence of Confucianism and Buddhism as the major influence. Confucianism stressed filial piety which meant respecting elders and superiors, ruling righteously, and obeying commands and orders. Confucianism was introduced by the Chinese thinker Confucius. Buddhism was brought to China, but originated in India and was founded by Siddhartha Gautama. Followers of Buddhism worshipped Buddh...
“We were not fighting so that we could die, but so that we could live (S.1),¨ a statement made by a protester at Tiananmen Square, shows the dire situation at the time. All people are enabled human rights, though the acts committed at Tiananmen Square violate numerous articles of the Declaration of Human Rights. Human rights include the entitlements to liberty and security of person, to the right of free opinion and expression, as well as peaceful assembly. They are against the acts of persecution and exile, or inhumane and degrading punishment (S.4). At Tiananmen Square the attack on the public from the army ordered by the government, violated multiple rights including that of wrongful punishment. These actions lead to numerous disadvantageous
In Japan, they were really pleased with Buddhism, but with China, they liked Confucianism. There were those people throughout both of them who were Christian. Confucianism was big in Ming China. Wang Yang-Ming got a lot of followers for his new teachings, but he got heavily criticized for basically changing th...
Kelman, Herbert C., Hamilton, V. Lee. “The My Lai Massacre: A Military Crime of Obedience”. Writing & Reading for ACP Composition. Ed. Thomas E. Leahey and Christine R. Farris. New York: Pearson Custom Publishing, 2009. 266-277. Print.
Taoism, known as “The Way,” can be categorized as both a Chinese philosophy and a religion. Taoists believe in accepting and yielding to the ways of life, complementing nature and being by internalizing their goals rather than worshipping a god externally. Taoism, in its metaphysical and philosophical nature, is much like Confucianism, but the ideal interests of the two religions are contrasting. Confucianism was formulated during a time of war and relies heavily upon a moral and political system that fashioned society and the Chinese empire, while Taoism correlates to a time of peace and honors spiritual and metaphysical preoccupation (Taoism 2).
Confucianism, Taoism and Buddhism constitute the essence of the traditional Chinese culture. The relationship among the three has been marked by both competition and complementation in history, with Confucianism playing a more dominant role. Confucianism emphasized a reiteration of current moral values and Taoism developed a system of based upon a harmonization of man with the natural order. These two popular philosophies, however, developed into popular religions eventually. Besides the major religions, ancestor worship and animism also have strong support in China. Chinese people are very pragmatic, worshipping gods that might answer their prayers.
Karl, Rebecca E. (2010) Mao Zedong and China in the Twentieth Century World: A Concise History. Durham and London: Duke University Press
In the Chinese culture there are several major religions, two of these include Confucianism and Taoism, which have dated back for thousands of years. According to. Experiencing the World 's Religions and The World’s Wisdom: Sacred Texts of the World’s Religions, both Confucianism and Taoism originated in ancient China through the religions’ teachers: Confucius and Lao Tzu. “Taoism and Confucianism grew up together, entering Chinese history around the sixth century B.C.E.; Taoism’s beginnings are linked to the legendary figure of Lao Tzu, senior to Confucius by about fifty years. Even though Taoism and many other folk religions have shaped the Chinese mind, Confucianism remains, by any historical measure, its chief mentor” (Novak 113).