[Johnny Walker]

Patriarchy is a recurring theme across global socieities, and religion and belief systems certainly reinforce the patriarchy. In terms of Chinese patriarchy, I introduce the concept of "foot binding" early in the year and we discuss its relationship to Confucian patriarchal values and how it pesisted into the 20th century. Then, as demonstrated in the Russian Revolution as well as China, communist feminism engaged in a top-down approach to bring greater equality, rights, and responsibilities to Russian and Chinese women. However, strong patriarchal customs and cultural forces in both Russian and Chinese society tended to erode, limit, and undermine the gains women made following a Communist Revolution (in terms of right to divorce and working roles). 

In the AP European history curriculum, there is a focus on the Protestant Reformation and how it served to both liberate and undermine women's roles in the community. Martin Luther's writings, while critical of papal authority, also place women in subservience to men. And, while Catholicism represents an extreme patriarchy, the abolition of nunneries under Protestantism often took away one of the refuges of Catholic women where a nunnery could offer opportunities for safety, learning, and sisterhood. 

To hear from Dr Ma that despite the overwhelming majority of current Chinese Christians are women, the leadership is exclusively male, was disheartening. I was further dismayed to learn that the fastest growing and most popular form of Christianity in China are American fundamentalist operations. To see that Americans are exporting such right wing beliefs that align with the Promise Keepers or Focus on the Family who reject secular feminism, LGBTQ community, religiouis tolerance, and support strong male leadership as solutions to the marriage problem, is absolutely embarrassing, frightening, and ultimately undermining of the democratic values and soft diplomacy that run counter to the American mission throughout the world. I wonder how the State Department views the work of these religious fundamentalists and how they present a risk to American interests worldwide.

[Johnny Walker]

I really enjoyed the Kim article, “Creative Women of Korea”, and as a learner, I am reminded of the value of how presenting new material through the lens of what is already familiar to a student is immensely helpful. I’m also reminded of my privilege as a white American Anglo man who has a background in Shakespeare and therefore, has a greater opportunity to access this material. I constantly think of my students, 100% Latino in a high poverty neighborhood, and how to access their funds of knowledge in order to illuminate and bridge new unfamiliar content. Furthermore, engaging in comparative literature and historical context also reinforces the value of interdisciplinary collaboration especially between ELA and Social Sciences teachers. In addition, in reading the article, I’m also inspired to use content to raise awareness about the patriarchy, feminism, and find as many opportunities to bridge ethnic, cultural, or racial divides. The more that our students are able to connect different peoples of the world to common/shared experiences, struggles, and hopes, the greater opportunities we have to instill tolerance, curiosity, values of social justice, and commit to an Anti Racist ideology as teachers. 

 

I had a misconception that the Korean vernacular did not have an alphabet and that this writing was brought to Korea as recently as the late 19th century by Christian missionaries. Sheesh! Kim mentions that Korean women wrote in both Classical Chinese as well as the Korean vernacular. How similar was the development of a Korean writing system to the Japanese one of kana from the Chinese kanji? Is Korean grammar more similar to Chinese or Japanese? How common is it for Koreans, Chinese, or Japanese to be fluent in one another’s language. In the modern era, is English the dominant second language? 

While I was imagining how a comparative analysis between Korea and Japan would have been interesting, especially since we just learned about “The Tale of Genji” and contributions of Heian women authors despite an extremely patriarchal Japanese society, I also enjoy the simultaneous study of Shakespeare and Elizabethan England to 16th century Korea. As examined through the writing/criticism of Virginia Woolf is an especially complex, nuanced, and effective way to teach and learn about 16th century world history in addition to appreciating early 20th century feminism. 

I enjoyed the poetic correspondence between Ho Pong and Ho Nansorhon. I think students will appreciate these poems and feel a greater emotional connection in understanding the intense patriarchal nature of the society and ways in which art and poetry can process that trauma for people. I know that many of my students are fans of K-Pop (although I am totally ignorant), and that many of the BTS songs relate to social issues. This may also serve as a hook to connect a continuity in Korean art. 

[Johnny Walker]

I really enjoyed the video #1 lecture. I have such a little background in Korean history, and I'm finding that through the videos and text, that using comparative analysis allows me to have a more stable structure for understanding and conceptualizing Korean history. For example, the shamanistic belief system of the neolithic Korean people corresponds to shamanistic beliefs common in African and American societies. Likewise the founding myths that blend into the historical or material record remind me of Chinese myths that further blend into history of the earliest dynasties. I also really enjoyed the images of dolmen worldwide, and appreciate how these spiritual beliefs and material culture blended to connect people around the world through space and time. Likewise, the slide in which Professor Jung-Kim traced the Marxist historical materialism of Korean society illustrates the common lineage of human political and economic organization. I really enjoy the idea of Big History and how Marxist dialectics serve to make students think about periodization, historiography, conflict, and societal transformation.

I also really appreciate how Professor Jung-Kim noted where the California state standards overlapped in her lecture. Sadly, it seems largely reserved for 7th grade which is already an overwhelmingly broad swath of historic content. I am currently brainstorming ways in which to connect this content to my 10th grade World History class especially related to how the ideas and spread of Confucianism, Buddhism, and Classical Chinese served as a parrallel model for learning as the spread of Greek and Roman ideas and language affected Middle Eastern and European scholarship, politics, social structure. 

I was also struck by how the Mongols' lack of seafaring skill prevented them from pursuing the royal family to an island, yet also caused them to enlist Korean sailors to aid in their failed invasion of Japan. In our last class we saw how the Mongol invasion of Japan was split into two different attempts- the first coming from the Korean peninsula, while the second began in China. The Mongol's administration of Korea is also an excellent case study in order for students to learn how the Mongols administered their Empire through brutality and conquest, marriage to solidify loyalty, hostages, tribute, favors, and employing the skills of the conquered to serve the rest of the Empire. 

[Johnny Walker]

I've been reading a survey history, "Japan in World History" by James Huffman who also characterizes Ashikaga Yoshimitsu's rule not only as a unifying force within Japan, but also establishing formal diplomatic and trading relationships with China. Huffman notes that Yoshimitsu was granted the title of "King of Japan" by the Emperor of China (Ming Dynasty), but only after accepting a "vassal status" and an exchange of tribute which angered daimyo. However, due to this relationship (even if subservient), the Japanese enjoyed trade with China for the next 150 years. 

It's interesting to notice how the changes in successive Chinese Dynasties affect its relationship with Japan. Obviously, the Yuan (Mongol) Dynasty had an antagonistic relationship. However, during the early Ming Dynasty, I think of the famous explorer Zeng He, and the diplomacy and naval strength demonstrated by the Chinese state from the voyages across the Indian Ocean trade networks from China to East Africa. Did China also make any voyages to Japan at this point? It seems as if their naval might would have been able to significantly affect their relationship with Japan. Because they already had a trading relationship, did they not want to antagonize the Japanese? Unlike the Mongols, who did not have a strong navy, why would the Ming choose not to engage Japan more forcefully? I realize that the Ming, shortly after Zeng He's voyages, chose to close off voyages of exploration and shore up their borders. However, I wonder how suceptible Japan was to Chinese invasion during this time period and what kept the Chinese from asserting their dominance.

[Johnny Walker]

Sean, I was thinking the same thing! I first broached Japanese history in AP Modern World this year with the attempted Mongol Invasion.

However, I was not aware that the typhoon or "Divine Wind" was more myth than fact. In fact, it would be interesting to examine the role that myth plays in justifying rule. It reminds me of the Confucian idea of "Mandate of Heaven" where oftentimes a natural event such as flood or famine (or in this case, typhoon) will either justify or undermine a ruler's legitimate claim to power. And, perhaps that myth, would be more valuable to a ruler than to recognize the skill and effectiveness of an army.

In terms of sources, the first source I would use would be the secondary source of the map that shows two distinct Mongol invasions. What I enjoyed about the reasoning for the failure of these invasions also plays into our students' understanding of the Mongols. While they were an excellent land army, the Mongols' naval power was lacking in technology and tactics. (I actually use the same description to explain Napoleon's strength and weaknesses). Furthermore, because we see two separate invasions that were conducted years apart and from different vantage points, this also undermines the story that a divine intervention caused the Mongols' failed invasion.

In terms of primary sources, there was one painting I screen grabbed from the lecture of Japanese samurai attacking Mongols on their ships. As the primary source indicates, the Mongols in this depiction were not destroyed by a typhoon, but by the bravery and skill of the samurai.

Another interesting consequence of this repelled invasion was not just a Mongol failure to expand their empire, but the failure of the Japanese Emperor to be able to compensate the army. Traditionally, the military was rewarded with booty looted from the conquered. Yet, in this instance, the traditional rewards of battle did not encourage or reward naval defense. Rather, traditional rewards of looted spoils of war would rather reward civil war, war between states, or later, the invasion and holding of outside territory. I find it fascinating that the defensive structure that would have been most useful to the Japanese to repel either Mongol or later, European and American invasion, was not made into a profitable or beneficial system for the army to participate in.

[Johnny Walker]

I was fascinated to learn about the development of written language and the modification of Chinese symbols into a phonics-based Japanese system. Then, once people had the system with which to express themselves, the flowering of literature was a result of authors who were women.

In the Contemporary China course, we looked at how rising education levels among women in the 1970s and 80s led to a lower infant mortality rates, less poverty and rising overall health and economic well-being. How depressing and sad it was to hear the descriptions of the diary entries as well as The Tale of Genji as eloquent cries for help from an extremely patriarchal society. And, I laughed out loud at the "Depressing Things" list which could find itself on a blog or instagram account of a young woman today from the mundane "dog howling in the daytime" to the bitingly satirical "a scholar whose wife has one girl child after another." 

Hearing that aristocratic women were stuck in guilded palatial cages and even were restricted in their speech to male relatives while partitioned behind a screen is such a tragic state-of-affairs. It's a dystopian almost Handmaid's Tale environment. I find it little surprise that a warrior-based samurai culture develops on the heels of this oppressively patriarchal Heian era. 

As a history teacher, I always enjoy working with English teachers to collaborate on interdisciplinary units. The academic value of fiction analysis and historical context simultaneously is enormous when exposing students to both literature and history. I also appreciate how Professor Pitelka mentioned the "Me Too" Movement when discussing the millenium-old Tale of Genji and connecting the writing of Murasaki Shikibu to the "outing" of men, whose monstrous behavior and abuse of women echos through the ages. So, in addition to incorporating fiction in order to illuminate history class, more importantly, both history and fiction can place our students' analysis of current events into a similarly more complex and nuanced context with both the historical and literary argumentation to advocate for justice.  

[Johnny Walker]

I was fascinated to hear that the influence of Chinese Confucianism (distilled and filtered through Korea) to Japan caused it to become a more patriarchal society. To learn that Japan had a strong matriarchal tradition as embodied by the reign of Empress Suiko, was interesting. It seems as if Japan's culture already had a well-defined relationship between subject and ruler before Confucianism arrived. Why would it adopt a Confucian model? There was a mention that some rulers may have been ethnically Korean. Would that be a reason for importing those Confucian patriarchal values? Has Empress Suiko been "rediscovered" and celebrated more in Japan as a symbol of feminism and women's empowerment in the modern era?

I'm curious if the Confucian influence also inspired greater centralization and hierarchical political structures in addition to subordinating women. Do the massive tombs of the Kofun period reflect a Confucian influence (similar to the terracotta wariors and large tombs within dynastic China) or did that hierarchical and monumental society develop independently? In the lecture, there was mention of intercultural or economic exchange between Japan and Korea in the Kofun period. How long had that been occurring? These monumental structures are quite fascinating developments in human history whether in Egypt, Mesopotamia, Britain, Meso America or South America. And, while there were regional cheifdoms that seemed to later coalesce around a strong ruler, I'm curious how historians are able to suss out the uniquely Japanese culture before China's influence. I'm also interested in the role of "indigenous people" in Japan and how and why they developed separately from the majority population.

I'm also fascinated by the role that politics played in establishing the large religious center at Nara in order to pacify and unify the population under their rule as well as to "buttress their imperial authority" or be a "soverign blessed by Buddha". Religion being imported and used to consolidate power seemed to go hand in hand with importing Confucian values in order to calcify social mobility.

But, the growth in power of the Buddhist priests and abbots and their meddling in the politics of state was one of the causes to move the capitol to Kyoto. That's pretty amazing. It reminds me European attempts to weaken religious power after using it for their own gain, whether the Great Schism where Avignon became the center of French Catholicism, Henry VIII's establishment of the Anglican Church, or Peter the Great's dissolution of the patriarch into the Holy Synod. The harnessing, control, and conflict of religion and state is a central theme throughout history, and it is very interesting to see it being played out here. 

But, I think the coolest thing may have been the dogu clay figurine of a sunglasses wearing character. It made me wonder if the Pokemon and anime figures are modern continuities of these artifacts, and to consider the talismanic or shamanistic nature of the modern toys and collectibles people currently use. Finally, because the glasses were likely a response to blinding snow, I wonder about the environmental history of Japan and how people have adapted over time to drastic climate change.

[Johnny Walker]

The seminar was an incredible experience to hear such generous, informed, and dedicated academics share their understandings related to the BRI with us. I wanted to comment about their discussion at the end of the conference about the role of the Chinese and Muslim diasporas, and their relationship to China's foreign and domestic policies. In my 10th grade World History classes, we often speak about push and pull factors that encourage migrations as well as assimilation, marginalization, and nativism within the host nations to which they immigrate.

 

I was struck by the vulnerability that Chinese immigrant communities have experienced throughout the world throughout time, and how their identification as an "other" even after generations of working and living within other countries and holding citizenship still does not protect them from "anti-Chinese" violence. Until this discussion, I had not thought about the potential role that China has in protecting "Chinese" people in other countries who may not be Chinese nationals, but whose Chinese ethnicity makes them targets and increases their vulnerability. Should the Chinese government and military have a role in protecting those communities?

 

For example, one of the speakers mentioned that over 500,000 Chinese were killed in 1965 in Indonesia. That is a shocking statistic. While many may not have been Chinese citizens, but Indonesian citizens of Chinese ancestry, their self-identification as "Chinese" as well as nativist xenophobes within the host country who violently targeted them because of this identity, doomed them to slaughter. Did China have a right or duty to militarily intervene? In thinking of government action against immigrant populations, I also think of the American government's persecution of Japanese Americans during World War 2 when they were targeted, their property was seized and they were placed in internment camps. How widely was this policy known in Japan at the time, and how did it affect wartime Japan's perceptions of the United States?

 

One of the speakers explained that "China worries about protecting its people overseas and while they are powerful economic leverage, the Chinese populations in other nations reflect a small percentage of the local population." The speaker continued that, "The overseas Chinese are usually not loved by their nations where they live. They operate through different organizations, and many of China’s companies use the overseas Chinese as intermediaries and can cause problems that those minority populations have in their host countries."

 

What a difficult bind to be a person of Chinese descent in other nations who not only feels alienated and resented by the local population, but may also expected by the Chinese government and corporations to act as an intermediary in a potentially dangerous or volatile local situation.

 

However, it is also confounding to look at the Muslim diaspora from over a millenium ago, that has in the past, allowed Muslims to be the intermediaries between Middle East and China. However, they are now targeted by the Chinese government and ignored by Muslim majority nations. As Professor Gladney explained, "Middle Eastern governments have not been critical of Chinese treatment of their own muslim citizens.  Many depend on China for trade and investment." He continued that, "The repressive policies of the re-education camps may hurt their relationships and future generations and opportunities to connect with neighbors." While much of world outrage toward the treatment of Uighers and Muslims in Xianjiang is rightly directed toward the Chinese government, there should be opportunities and greater political courage on the part of Middle Eastern nations to press for an end to this "cultural" genocide.

 

While I usually associate the rise of nationalism as having mostly negative effects on minority rights and the rise of war, perhaps nationalism can be harnessed or leveraged to inspire more connections between diasporic peoples and their ancestral nations in order to advocate for greater humanitarian treatment and increase awareness about our global interconnectedness.

[Johnny Walker]

Todd, your posts are impressive and inspiring. This particular one is especially provocative in our current moment as Biden's "Build Back Better" initiative gains steam in Congress. I just watched an interview with Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg and listened to new EPA Administrator Michael Regan speak yesterday, as they both laid out arguments for massive government spending in infrastructure development. Not only were they pushing for the building and maintenance of roads, highways, bridges, airports, water pipes, reinforcing dams and levees, etc. but were also advocating for major investment in social programs. They have been criticized by many on the right for supporting investments in pre-K education and elder care within this larger infrastructure bill as being examples of railroading (no pun intended) their pet liberal agenda through Congress. However, based upon the different forms of infrastructure enumerated here, these are examples of the “soft” or “political” infrastructure that also serves to build, reinforce, and strengthen economic development are just as vital as the “hard” traditional notions of infrastructure development.

There seems to be a need to educate and update the American people (and politicians) about the value and definition of "infrastructure".  I previously had a limited notion of "infrastructure" as being roads, rail, electricity, sewage, water, and internet, but had not considered that the definition can be expanded beyond literal transportation capabilities to anything that as you wrote "builds links between people and between countries."

When considering "infrastructure" as "building links" between people, it becomes clear that education, child care, elderly care, voting access, criminal justice reform, and other social programs become instrumental pieces of such infrastructure legislation. As the government allows more people to clear hurdles to access their economic potential and also create efficient and effective connections between citizens and government services, these "soft" infrastructure supports braid with the “hard” infrastructure as more people are able to access and contribute meaningfully to the greater economy.

While China’s Belt and Road Initiative can be viewed as intimidating or threatening to American business, I’m actually inspired by it. As you mentioned in a previous post, perhaps this investment through central Asia may spur a pacification of extremism in places like Afghanistan which will become a more connected partner in a harmonious web of economic development. However, I’m also cautious to see how this greater connectivity may serve to undermine the lives of the poor and cause even greater social dislocation even within dominant nations. When I consider agreements such as NAFTA that allowed for a greater flow of commerce, the US corporate interests seemed to benefit while the lives of Mexican farmers, US autoworkers, or other consumers in the global marketplace were pushed aside.

Likewise, in thinking about the United States as building our own infrastructure project, why should we be satisfied at limiting it to within our own borders? In formulating a vision similar to the Belt and Road or the European Union, we have barely realized the potential to connect North America. Given the extreme conditions within Central America that causes hundreds of thousands of migrants to search for refuge in the US, the stability and economic promise of the nations that border us should also be deserving of our investment. Like the Marshall Plan, a rebuilding, collaboration and strengthening of nations like El Salvador, Mexico, Guatemala or Honduras will have major positive repercussions within our own nation and promote a more peaceful and stable future. However, these arguments can be hard political pills to swallow during times of economic uncertainty and extreme nationalism.

[Johnny Walker]

Melina,

Thank you for sharing the CML Framework resource! I've been looking to strengthen my practice when it comes to evaluating sources, and these 6 questions are intriguing and delve more deeply into evaluating and analyzing a source than the AP History rubric that I currently use for all of my students. While I do enjoy the AP History rubric that evaluates a source's reliability based upon the POV of the speaker, historical context surrounding the document, intended audience, and purpose, I enjoy the way that these questions support yet expand upon these categories. For example, in question #1, I'm intrigued by the idea that other than focus upon the writer/speaker/artist of a specific text, students are asked to think about other "possible people who made choices that helped create the text". That's a fascinating thing to ponder which will force students to consider economic considerations, editorial bias, educational or institutional influences upon a writer that the question, "What is the POV (nationality, profession, gender, race, ethnicity, etc) and how does that affect the reliability of a source?" may not inspire as much of a complex discussion. While ultimately, the student should arrive at a similar evaluative statement, I think that the phrasing of the Critical Media Literacy Framework is more accessible and instructive to our students. I think I'll use it to scaffold the AP rubric. Thanks for sharing!

[Johnny Walker]

Todd,

I really appreciate these resources, especially the "Historical Atlas" on the Reconnecting Asia site. Thank you! The summaries and maps that cover the states, trade routes, religious diffusion, hegemony during the Age of Imperialism through the Cold War and then reflect GDP and internet connectivity at present is an entire textbook worth of materials consolidated into one accessible web-page. I've been brainstorming how to cover our final unit on Globalization while simultaneously reviewing and preparing for the exam (1200-present), and this page is the perfect encapsulation of the course content for East Asia. In preparing for the AP Exam in a little over a month, I think I could send students to this page and give them various questions and prompts from past AP Exams concerning continuity and change or periodization with which to write short-answer questions and long-essay questions. 

I also really appreciated the jpegs you attached, especially the ones on high speed rail comparisons between nations, the map of China's rail system, and the planned map of the Belt and Road initiative. I'm planning on using this map of the Belt and Road Initiative to compare with the Indian Ocean Trade Networks of the 1300-1500s as well as the Silk Road networks. In addition, I'm also going to have students compare national railway construction from the late 1800s or early 1900s and compare them with these resources about modern rail and analyze the motivations, purpose, transformational effects, changing technology, social and cultural effects, economic effects, and environmental concerns of railbuilding from both eras. I really enjoy when sources can distill a large amount of information and also provide a jumping off point for complex analysis, and these certainly do that. Thank you! 

 

[Johnny Walker]

Could you please provide the CEU Form? The pdf here is information about the CEU, but does not contain the CEU Form. Thanks!

[Johnny Walker]

My students will really enjoy this article. I really like that it's linked to the China Daily. To be able to read content from the state newspaper is also fascinating, and it will prompt discussions on what the POV, Purpose, and Intended Audience are of the article. Furthermore, I appreciate how these brands expand my students' knowledge as consumers as well as potential economic and professional opportunities in a larger world. They are certainly familiar with tiktok, and I'm curious to know the extent to which the information they are sharing or the platform that Tik Tok is used by the Chinese state. I really like your idea to use the article as a research project to look a the history, standing, reach and give students an opportunity to evaluate the global supply chain that reflects these companies and also assess their competitors. 

[Johnny Walker]

Jonathan, I agree that the Chinese government's social control over the family is a strange seeming contradiction to its relaxation of other economic controls. I've been thinking about how the Communist Party has shifted alliances from the rural peasants to the wealthier urbanites in the last fifty years. Because peasants drove the revolution, the Communist Party's early policies seemed to appeal to the peasant population in terms of promising greater collective security through protection from foreign invasion, but also through programs that allowed for greater dignity such as abolishing feudalism and landlord exploitation. Likewise, the 1978 turning point in a post Mao China, the Communist Party seems to support the power and prestige of those who live in the urban areas to a greater extent than the rural peasantry. In fact, the hukou system places the rural peasantry in a state of subservience and lower status to the city dwellers. These shifts in the Communist Party's priorities and beneficiaries of their programs from rural peasant families to urban bourgeoisie seems like a major contradictory shift in ideology. Or, I guess I could argue that the Communist Party has simply exploited the peasantry since the beginning- first to establish power and now to maintain it. So rather than think about the Chinese people as a monolithic group, I'm curious to examine how the regional and class differences among Chinese people relate to differing social, political, and economic opportunities and exploitations over time.

[Johnny Walker]

Jonathon, Since I'm teaching AP Modern World for the first time this year, I've been feeling quite overwhelmed with the increased breadth of content. I taught AP European History for the past seven years, which went into greater depth. However, I chose not to teach or spend time on the Taiping Rebellion largely because it was not highlighted to a great extent on the standards. But, like you mention, it was the world's deadliest civil war! Even using the word, "rebellion" to describe it seems inappropriate in its descriptive scope. I'm curious about how the Taiping Rebellion fits into the Chinese collective consciousness. Is it taught in the same way that the US Civil War is taught in the scope of our history? Would you say it was one of the first death rattles of the Dynastic system? I'm looking forward to studying this period in greater detail. If you have any resources that have been especially valuable to your understanding, I'd love to hear about them. There are so many strange charismatic characters like Hong Xiuquan. And, the stories of American mercenaries like Frederick Townsend Ward are similarly mindblowing stories. It's a shame there isn't simply an AP Asian History or AP East Asian History course (like AP European History) in order to spend more time with our students to delve deeper into these discussions.

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