session #9 reading 10/21 morning (dube)

[Carlos Oyarbide]

After today's lecture, I was left wondering about the transitional government that bridged the gap between the Xing dynasty and the communist revolution. Most of the information regarding the Chinese Republic’s government centered around the events and forces that led to the revolution. Much of the attention was spend discussing the Boxer Rebellion and some of the major actors behind the revolution that ended the Xing dynasty. In particular, much of the attention was paid to efforts of Sun Yatzen and his efforts to fund and support the war from the U.S. But once he becomes the president of the republic, not much was discussed about the relative failures or successes of the government. I couldn’t help wondering what, if any, events catalyzed the communist revolution. What was this new government’s philosophy? After years of struggling to overthrow the Manchus, what was accomplished and how did this effect the life of the average Chinese person? It’s hard for me to think of China in the twentieth century without thinking about communism. It seems like communism was inevitable. But I can’t help but wonder if this was actually the case. If people were more satisfied with their government, was communism truly inevitable?

[clay dube]

Hi Kimberly -- close, but not quite. Here's a hint: http://countrystudies.us/albania/39.htm

[Amir Osterweil]

Where can I find more information on his short rule? I am curious to know more specifically about the transition between Sun Yatsen and Yuan Shikai. My understanding based on the limited coverage in my school's textbook is that Sun Yatsen "lacked military support to secure national unity". Is there more to it than this? Why then does he get the credit of being "the father of modern China"? He seems pretty ineffectual. The rule of YUan Shikai, is an excellent example of Crane Briton's anatomy of a revolution. Time and time again democratic ideals are forgotten and handed over to a repressive regime. My understanding is that Shikai's repression sparked local revolts and he lacked the support of his generals.

[Erin Tanguay]

My political cartoon has what appears to be a woman riding a motorcycle with a red military band on her arm and a rifle on her back. There is a train and there are beams and metal structures that would be used to build sky rises in the background. The caption on the card reads, "Perform military sport activity, defend the socialistic country." I found a copy of this propaganda photo on the website, JBFotoblogMao.org unfortunately it doesn't tell you what the cartoon means. I believe this political cartoon is addressing the section on Nationalism and Socialism that Professor Dube discussed in our lecture. The Nationalists view was that you must mobilize in order to keep the Imperialist out. This included women in the rebuilding of China too. The military sport activity is the riding on the motorcycle while patrolling the city streets with your weapon present and visible to show that you are always ready (A lesson learned by Sun Yatsen) and that you are proud to be a part of your nation. The buildings in the background that are being built and the train is showing the economic progress of China under this Socialist Era.   

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[Cristina Hernandez]

During the lecture Dr. Dube mentioned the fact that we can't change history, but many times we are able to change the perspective of how events happened using new data and manipulating the facts according to whomever is retelling the story.  I think that this is the best way to explain to students many different topics such as historical revisionism, the view of the conquerors and the fact that history is mostly written by the ones who win the war.  The Japanese attacking and invading China may have two different perspectives according to what country tells the story.  However, it is also important to understand that it is always better to seek an objective view of history to have an unbias perspective. Cheers!

[Christine Xu]

My card displays workers, peasants, and solders, they carry Little Red Books, and they are together praising chairman Mao during the Culture Revolution. This cards also reads “ Long live Chairman Mao”

Mao was the person initiated the Chinese Cultural Revolution.
And over 1.7 million people died as a result of the Cultural Revolution, according to the country’s official figures.

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[Michelle Levy]

This reminds me of my own experience in middle school (portals Middle School- go Conquistadors!), in which we had to dissect political cartoons of all different eras, and controversy. Although I don’t remember everything, I think that including powerful images and discussing them can really engage students in a way that textbooks can’t. I don’t teach middle or high school, but I can picture integrating cartoons into my lessons to further illicit understanding of heavy material. The unit on government comes to mind right now. As for this class on East Asia, I think these political cartoons describe a tension that many didn’t know how to approach. Having the Japanese hate Americans and everything we stood for was a catalyst for their involvement in World War 2. (I think).

[Lin ZhaoDavison]

My card is labled "插队落户干革命“ (in Chinese) － ”Insert the manufacturing troop and register the permanent residence to perform revolution."  This slogan was a propaganda during the Chinese cultural revolution from 1968 to 1980.  During this period, Chinese youths were called out of classrooms and into the rural lands to to farm work.  Chaiman Mao said that youths need to be re-educated by the peasants in the farms, and he mobilized city parents to send their high school chidren to the farms.  It was indeed a traumatic experience for the Chinese teenagers.  Many of the farm lands were poor.  The local peasants were starving.  The teenagers had no food to eat and no farming knowledge and experience to grow food for themselves.  They suffered malnutrition.  But they were registered as permanent residents in the farm lands.  Additionally, they were deprived educational opportunities and could not go to colleges.  They were a lost generation!  Many of them had to obey the order or follow blindly to do "revolution" that they did not even care for and had no knowledge of.  It was a sad lesson to be learned.  I'm happy for the young people in China today because they have an abundance of educational opportunities not only in China but abroad.  

[Jacqueline Mercado]

During the course of the lecture, Professor Dube pointed out that we cannot change past events but that the story that is told about those events can change depending on who tells the story and if new information or data dictates revisions.  I thought about this idea of revising history as I read "China's Great Famine: the true story."   I was touched by Yang Jisheng's quest and courage to do just that, to go back to a difficult event in China's history and basically rewrite the narrative as his understanding of that event has evolved.  I thought about the power of propaganda and how the Communist party adeptly used propaganda to shape and control people's ideology to believe that the party and its goal was successful when the truth was that many Chinese were starved to death during the time of the great famine.  Because there are people like Yang who are willing to dig and unearth the truth behind the cheery facade of propaganda, this part of Chinese history  can be retold and the truth made known.  This truth has the power to not only reshape China's history but also form its future.   This is a good lesson to share with students, to encourage them to dig for the truth even when it is hidden and elusive and that history can be revisited and rewritten.

[Sonia Arrayales]

My card shows a peasant farming couple and a little girl, which I assume is their daughter. The couple are holding what looks like farming tools and the little girl is holding a book. I could not read the title because it is in Chinese. 🙂 The caption of the playing card reads, "Perform late marry and family planning for doing(?) for the revolution". This playing card is pushing two of thier policie, the late marriage and the family planning. Upon looking at who is on the playing card, the issues are targeted to the peasant farmers to practice late marriage and family planning.

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[Nira Sun]

The title that was printed on the book holding by the girl is read as "yu wen" which was "Chinese language" text book. I think the little girl holding a text book was only a representation of having a child which was part of the family planning. Unfortunately, the promotion of late marriage was pushed to all Chinese civilians including the ones who lived in the cities.

[Amir Osterweil]

This is an interesting reading. I used a an excerpt from it last year with my world history class. Here Mao establishes that peasants are a driving force behind the revolution. He compares peasants to the a tornado or tempest which can overthrow the ruliing class. I use this to compare to Marx and Lenin's view of Communism which advocates that the revolution must be generated from the proletariat or working class. Here Mao claims that power can come from the peasants. I point out to students that Mao changed the emphasis from a prolatiatriat to the peasant class to beter suit his needs. I also found in interesting after having read this longer version that Mao tied his movement back to Sun Yatsen, and claims that the latter also wanted to overthrow the fuedal order which would tie back to the people's livlihood principal.

[Jacqueline Mercado]

Interesting interpretation of the cartoons from 1941.  It is clear that the focal point of these cartoons is America and that it is depicted in not so flattering a way.  The obvious exaggeration of America is meant to portray an Anti-American sentiment and to move people to take action against it to control its power and greed.  At first glance, I thought these cartoons were funny, but to a more trained eye and mind, as those of a history teacher, there is much meaning and depth underneath the exaggeration, hyperbole and distortion.  As I think about these cartoons and their technique, I also think about what an effective teaching tool these cartoons are.  Not only might these grab students' attention and engagement, but the humor also can facilitate learning for struggling learners and can be a great way for these students to access content and develop critical thinking skills as they learn to go beyond the surface and analyze the message, the power of imagery, symbols, irony, analogies and stereotypes. Through the use of cartoons students can learn how to look at detail and nuance and go deeper and explore how all of these elements interact to persuade, motivate and move to action.  This strategy would be particularly good for struggling and visual learners and for those students who are more artistically inclined.  Students can be placed in groups to uncover meaning by looking at all the elements mentioned above and have them create their own political cartoons.

[Eric Hoh]

"Mao changed the emphasis froma  proletariat to the peasant class to better suit his needs..." really reminds me of Donald Trump's campaign and his ability to appeal to the pathos of working class peoples. I would love for my students to engage in an analysis of how Mao and Trump's manipulation of peoples has been, and continues to be, a tool used by politicians of every level. I would ask my students to identify certain patterns and warning signs for a populist movement, and then have students consider how they might teach these warning signs to people who are swept up in the rhetoric and false promises of immoral politicians. 

[Jacqueline Mercado]

As I read excerpts from Mao's fiery essay, I was fascinated by the tone of his appeal for the peasant movement, its revolution and by the social turbelence that he is advocating for.  I found it interesting how he uses fiery and loaded language to advocate for a violent revolution by the peasants and which according to him, is a necessity if traditional social structures are to be overthrown and democracy established.  His populist message is clear as he is both trying to mobilize the peasantry and relinquish any dissent of the movement.  He is advocating for a revolution like no other seen or achieved in a thousand years.  His speech is ladened with hyperbole, which matches the kind of revolution he is calling for.  He is in effect, creating a counter extremism to that which he is trying to overthrow by stating that it is the repressive actions of the "local tyrants," "evil gentry," and "lawless landords" that justify such violence.   Through his arguments he is lifting the peasantry to a moral mission of undoing the injustice that the greed of the gentry have caused.  But I wonder if by advocating this kind of uprising in such terms, he is advocating for a lawlessness that might undermine that mission.  This text lends itself to careful analysis of the language used and the kind of propaganda Mao is advocating for.   

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