Block+A+Journal+MeganS

__**2/19**__ Although before Confucianism was applied thoroughly in Korea, there wasn't as much freedom as the author explains. There weren't many rights to women although there was no law against them either. Marriage as it describes was organized the men. The first part can seem a little exaggerated However, I agree with the second part, when Confucianism is applied to the extreme by the Koreans, thus reduction of women's rights in Korea. The influence of it still exists in Korea in the modern day where the women has particular responsibilities.
 * Please take a couple of minutes to respond to the reading. What stood out for you? What do you think of it, is it exaggerated?**

If Rabbit is too smart for his own good, Owl is the Brain, and Piglet... and Pooh...?** In Milne's "Winnie-the-Pooh" Hoff describes Rabbit as the a too smart figure, Owl as the Confucianist brain. The two remaining characters; Piglet and Pooh represent a pondering person and a Taoist. Piglet asks curious questions about the different philosophies each character is in charge of. It seems as though he represents just a human being wondering which religion or philosophy he shall believe in. The questions seem pretty easy to answer but as we read, everybody seems to have different opinions on the same topic. Pooh symbolizes a Taoist because he believes that things should just be itself and does not argue with the flow of nature. He is also alike to Taoists in terms of his identity where he is just Pooh.
 * __2/23__

The Tao says that the ruler should "rule by inaction" How do you make sense of this? Is it at all possible?** The Tao believes that the ruler should rule by inaction because the main belief of Taoism is not interfering with the flow of nature. It applies to the belief that by not going against the flow and not trying everything will just fall into the right places. Being effortless is key in Taoism since it is the flow that is important not the fight or the strength/ knowledge. Therefore a Taoist ruler should do nothing and practice the Wu Wei. By trying to hard, the taoist believes that it will disrupt what was supposed to happen naturally. However, I believe that it is impossible to be a ruler that does nothing. This is because, then there is no need for a ruler if everyone follows the flow. There is no meaning in deliberately choosing a ruler if that is also not the flow of the nature.
 * __2/27__

Explain right mindfulness and right concentration. Do you see how you could apply this to your daily life? Why or why not?** Right concentration, or absorption is the eighth point of the path. Usually we are absorbed in absentmindedness. Our minds are completely captivated by all sorts of entertainment and speculations. Right absorption means that we are completely absorbed in nowness, in things as they are. This can only happen if we have some sort of discipline, such as sitting meditation.The right mindfulness in Buddhism involves precision and clarity. We are mindful of the tiniest details of our experience. We are mindful of the way we talk, the way we perform our jobs, our posture, our attitude toward our friends and family, every detail. Right concentration can be acted through meditation and concentrating the mind.The right mindfulness can be applied in our lives through our actions.
 * __3/11__

__**4/1  **__ Due to the rapid change, I believe that the Britsh Professor felt so old because there was so much development in so little time that he could have kept up to date with all the developments that occurred.
 * In describing Japanese development, a British Professor in 1873 declared that he felt 400 years old by the end of the century. Explain the historical context behind this quote.**

Analyze the quote from the New York Times, April 5, 1872: "The question is not unfrequently asked... is not Japan going ahead too fast? In some respects we fear she is."** The quote is initially indicating the rapid development of Japan. It is true that since Japan had a model to look at when developing, they grew at a much faster speed than the Americans or Westerners had. It says that this fast growth will have a negative consequence some time in the future. I agree to it however, there hasn't been much of a problem until now. The writer must have feared this since Japan has a long tradition that will be destroyed and it might cause revolts.
 * __4/3__

**__4/10 __ What do you find most shocking about what you have read so far? How do you make sense of such cruelty?** One of the most cruel and shocking actions in the Rape of Nanking was when when the Japanese had the Chinese soldiers surrender in front of them by torture. They would give hope to the Chinese by assuring that there was a procedure to go through when surrendering. The Chinese keep on assuring that if they were really going to be okay since they surrendered: they were totally unaware that the Japanese will lead them to a designated area and kill them with all sorts of guns they have. These cruel events can be defined through the ultranationalism in Japan. As a child, they were educated about the bushido and the loyalty to the country being more valued than the lives of individuals.

 **__4/30__ Do countries have an obligation to compensate each other for injustices done in time of war?** When injustice is done, the countries do have the right and obligation to compensate for the injustice. However, it will be very difficult for the authorities to actually track down the injustices in the streets. Take the Korean War as an example, there was so much injustice to the Christians, the families that refused to send their husbands, and ill-treatment towards anyone who looked suspicious. Thus, it would be impossible to compensate for the injustice in the wars but I believe it is mandatory because it is partially their fault for causing such damages.

__**5/7**__ 1) The U.S had to consider that there were troops from Manchuria sent in but it was considered odd that Communist China would intervene in the war. As for the Yalu River march, it was hard to judge the intentions of the Chines. This shows how the U.S couldn't fully act confidently because there were some uncertainties that had to be considered. Moreover the aftermaths of any intervention or conflicts with Communist countries were dangerous at this point.The Americans had to consider if they were going to cross the line and see the reaction of China: if they were going to enter the war. 2) China says that they entered the Korean War because China had an obligation to come to help due to the sacrifices of North Koreans during the Chinese Revolution and the anti-Japanese resistance. The Americans thought that it was to protect its borders of Manchuria and were setting up defesnse in the border lines. Also there was the intervention of the Americans in which the Chinese promised to fully aid the North Koreans in such case. However, the last reason didn't seem to have caused the intervension. 3) There was an attack in the UN front lines, ROKA were disarrayed, and the US troops fully engaged in the Korean War.
 * The Chinese entry into the War reading questions**

 **__5/8__ Explain the meaning of "Shattered Faith" how does it relate to the story?** The title of this section was "Shattered Faith" because there was the characters in the story start loosing faith in many terms. First they are now sure that their lives are not going to get better. Hongyong explains her own child as the children of the war. She realizes that survival is utmost important at the situation. The title also reflects on her religious beliefs and how it was "shattered" by the war. Instead of offering help to others by buying their food, Hongyonw was now more concerned with herself and the family she had to take care of. Thus her religious faith got shattered along with the hope of uniting or returning back to North Korea.

__**6/5**__ 1) When was this document written and by whom? The "CCP wrote it in 1981.It is important because it was writeen after the 4 years the Cultural revolution ended. The tone of the document was condemming the cultural revolution. It included inforamtion such as the Cultural Revolution being the bloodiest.

2) According to the document, who was largely to blame for the excesses and mistakes of the Cultural Revolution? It was to Lin Biau, and Jiang Qing. It was not largly Mao.

3) What errors does the CCP believe Mao was responsible for? One of the error that Mao did was that Mao placed Lin Biau, and Jiang Qing at a higher position. The other mistake that Mao did was that Mao's goal of the Cultural Revolution was unfit for the current situation in China. There was Class relations and political situations in the Party that were just not ready for the revolution yet.

4) Who seems most responsible according to the document? How does this play into the memory of Mao as a leader and his Cult of Personality? The document has more emphasis the fault on Lin Biau and Jiang Qing than Mao. It directly mentions the problems that Lin Biau and Jiang Qing: They were accused of using Mao and taking advantage of it. Mao as a leader during the Cultural Revolution, and creating the great Cult of Personality still seems to have affected the interpretation of the war, even after 4 years of the war. It is still a part of Cult of Personality because the great figure of Mao was never blamed for anything.

5) What does the CCP believe the consequences of the Cultural Revolution are? (4 of them) each person in your group read one, and explain it to others. The first problem was there was no definition of right and wrong. Anyone was presecuted if they liked. In some cases Revisionists were misplaced and wrongly accused. The second problem that the CCP points out is the confusiton of the enemy. The Cultural Revolution had various division in the Party, At one point Lin Biau, and Jian Qing were leaders and then they were seen as traitors of the revolution. The effect was confusion for the people in determining who was an enemy and who was not. Also they pointed out that the ruthless killing of intellectuals were badly muddled up the distintion between the people and the enemy. The third problem that the mass was contributed greatly in the Revolution. When the Party had lost iits power it was the mass that proceeded the presecutiaons. The fourth consequence that the cultural Revolution didn't change anything. It didn't change any of the political power and the power of the military were unchanged even after the reovlution.

6) Why do you think the document mentions achievements made by China during the Cultural Revolution? The achievements explained by the CCP is that alhtough the Revolution was a sabotage of the counterrevolutionaries, the mass was able to crush these counterrevolutionaries by the end. The political Party and the Socialist system was unchanged which proves that Chinses are still strong and full of life.

7) Describe the tone at the end of the document. Why do you think it ends this way? The tone of the document seems to be lighter than what it originally started. The document had started with the blame of the Cultural Revoltuon but ended with a positive affect of the Cultural Revolution. I think that the document written by CCP ended to put in pride of their country. Also it still seems lika propagnada of brightening a terrible event of Chines history to an event with some positive effects.

__**Document analysis**__ Cultural Revolution Document Analysis 7C: • Sixteen Points • Written by Communist Party • Commitment to Communism in 16 ways • They couldn’t revolt • Education reforms- taking part of Cultural Revolution o Will not fall under other beliefs o Military participation • For counterrevolutionary o Any signs of unsupported – be aware • A lot of military power over people o Forcing people; red guards o Loyalty to Mao • Mao strong supporter of Marxist communist – granted equality; but in China Mao was getting all the power • Purpose: Keep one as a unit o An excuse to punish people • Effect on people: o Desire to change o Disagreement restricted by Red Guards 7D: My document 7E: • Red guards smash the four olds • Justifies the destruction of the four olds • A list of 100 ways to destroy old China – Singing communist songs o Trinammen square: Mao’s picture everywhere o Printing quotations by Mao: enforcing Mao’s belief o Everyone must have it and study it: Made them follow o Every news paper must put Mao’s points in the front page • Glorifies Mao’s thought and promoting • Mao wants to change China • Significance: Old belief people • Conservatives were forced to changed

7F: • Burning books • Written by a student who was not able to join the Red Guards due to bad class background • Every book was burned except book with Mao’s face on • Black Gang: people against Red Guards • Red Guards choose the Black Gang • Author was a daughter of the Black Gang • Punished for bringing out books • Getting rid of old beliefs