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Journal 1:

I was very surprised to see that women were so oppressed in the past. In today’s present day world, I notice women to be considered very high and almost as equal as men. Other than the orthodox role of taking care of children and the household, many women today have all the chances and equal opportunities as the men do. I’m very aware that especially in today’s present day world I can sense that women’s position in society is becoming more dominant. Some women even neglect taking care of their children and have start to work more instead.

If Rabbit too smart for his own good, Owl is far the Brain, and Piglet...Pooh...? 2/23/09

Piglet and Pooh represent the Confucianists in the book. They rely on experience and find themselves to be rather "chilled out." Based on the homework about the assigned pages, Owl proves to represent the Confucian side of the human intellect. This means that Owl emphasizes the importance of knowledge and finds knowing information to be more enduring and harmonious important than any man made construct. actual experience. He shows this by spelling out the days of the week, thus making him the brain. On the other hand, Piglet and Pooh reply without the same knowledge but instead they rely their answers on experience. This makes them kind of like "wise men," who use their past experiences to improve their lives and avoid similar mistakes in the near future. As a result, I would like to conclude the statement "If Rabbit is too smart for his own good, Owl is the Brain, and Piglet and Pooh are the old men." The Tao says that the ruler should "rule by inaction" How do you make sense of this? Is it at all possible?

I believe that this is a unrealistic belief. If it could be really used, then I would say that this belief is a very useful and efficient one. But in the world that we live in today, rulers simply have to display their authority through some type of action. It is human nature to start craving for their desires, so ruling by inaction would eventually set these people free to crave for their desires, good and evil. As a result, the empire would become unstable, and the people corrupt. Ruling by inaction should not be taken literally because honestly it is an impossible way to rule.

3/11 Expain right mindfullness and right concentration. Do you see how you could apply this to your daily life? Why or why not?

Both right mindfullness and right concentration focus on making the right choices and choosing a higher and more correct path as life unfolds. These two help you discover the best way to live life. I find this particularly easy to apply to life because I am constantly fighting myself to make the right choices and staying focused instead of being distracted by the obstacles in the world

4/1 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.

The British Professor said this with the intent of expressing the gradual development of Japan through the 19th century. This period of time was a big moment for Japan; it faced many reforms and changes especially with the arrival of the Western Europeans. To one of these Europeans, the Japanese would've been very inferior in terms of technology and western ideals. Since Western Europe was the driving force of the world, the Japanese had no option but to adopt their ways. Looking at it this way, the gradual westernization of Japan was what the British Professor intended to describe with the words "400 years."

4/3 Page 67 quote

I believe that Japan were a very dominant force during this time period. During the Meiji restoration, Japan went through a series of reforms that changed the image of Japan completely. Japan saw vast improvements in almost every aspect of their country, including technology, economy and politics. But Japan were most notable for their ambitious quality. The Japanese wanted to be on top of the world, crush all opposition that stood in their way. I believe that being extremely ambitious is not a bad thing, in fact it is a good cause for action. Japan achieved this feat with such little time, that people simply started to question their dominance and rise to power in such a short period of time. The Japanese were not expanding too quickly at all.

**4/10, 4/13 What do you find most shocking about what you have read so far? How do make sense of such cruelty?**

The Rape of Nanking has truly devastated me. I never knew about the Rape of Nanking before reading the actual book, and to be honest I feel guilty that I haven't. What the Japanese did to the Chinese civilians was cruel and unjust, I could only imagine what kinds of horrible things the Japanese could've done to them. In particular, I find the use of women for rape, and in particular, pleasure for the soldiers to be disgustingly unbearable.


 * 4/30 Do countries have an obligation to compensate each other for injustices done in time of war?**

I believe that countries should notify each other for injustices done in war because I feel that all the countries should unify as one force in order to prevent further evil and wrong decisions. All countries should discourage and do whatever they can in their power, in order to halt injustices in war and not add any further evil to the war. War is bad enough, so there should be some type of motivation to stop injustices during what already is a tough period of time for anybody to go through. Why would making life any worse, help at all?

What did the U.S. have to consider in regards to China and the Yalu River?

- The U.S. needed to consider the fact that the Chinese would most likely not enter the war, and if they lingered around the Yalu River, this would trigger the Chinese and give them enough reason to enter the Korean War.

According to the reading, what was the reason China entered the war?

- The Chinese felt obligated to pay the North Koreans back for all the troops that died in their conflicts and affairs.

What effect did Chinese intervention have on the US, ROK, and UN troops?

- The abrupt inclusion of the Chinese troops during the Korean War took the U.S. troops by surprise. They fell victim to the sudden attack, and the UN had to negotiate with the Chinese in order to nullify their attacks.

5/8 Explain the meaning of "Shattered Faith" how does it relate to the story?

Shattered faith basically describes what was clearly evident during the Korean War. People were hopeless and were given very little glimpses of light as they continued to live through harsh conditions throughout the war. Almost all the people in the war couldn't really expect anything fortunate. Everybody was simply pessimistic. Everything seemed to go wrong, and almost everyone seemed to live their lives as if it there was nothing more to live for. It was a very unfortunate spectacle. Specifically, the words "Shattered Faith," are significant the story mainly because Hongyong's hopes of seeing her eldest son, Yongwoon again, are killed off as she receives even more terrible news. Her "faith" in seeing her son again is completely "shattered."

6/5

Questions on Reflections on the Cultural Revolution pages 82-84

1) When was this document written and by whom?

- It was written by the CCP central committee, on June 27, 1981.

2) According to the document, who was largely to blame for the excesses and mistakes of the Cultural Revolution?

- According to the document, Lin Biao and Jiang Qing were to blame for the excesses and mistakes of the Cultural Revolution, mostly because nobody would've believed Mao Ze Dong was the one to blame. This is because he was the leader and had such a positive image.

3) What errors does the CCP believe Mao was responsible for?

Mao Ze Dong was supposedly the grand leader, that could not commit mistakes. However, Mao committed two major errors that led the downfall of his nation. First of all, Mao's principal theses was an erroneous appraisal, or simply a wrong judgement and a wrong set of ideas. In addition, Mao still believed that classes still existed. Second, he gave Lin Biao and Jiang Qing power. They deceived him and led the country to disaster.

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?

Lin and Qing seem to be the most culpable because first of all, they deceived Mao Ze Dong, and Mao Ze Dong was already a glorified figure.

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

1. The Cultural Revolution did not make sense in terms of what it was supporting. The document says that the Cultural Revolution was a 'struggle against the Capitalists.' This definition didn't make any sense at all. According to this document, the Cultural Revolution was supposed to follow strict Marxist beliefs and principles. However, Mao denounced all of the original Communist principals and tried to glorify himself.

2. Lin and Chang were blamed for being lad leaders because they criticized figures that the general republic respected.

3. The party tried to unify the people but failed, and were attacked by the general public.

4. The cultural revolution wasn't really a revolution, because it didn't bring any social progress, there was no economic basis.

6) Why do you think the document mentions achievements made by China during the Cultural Revolution?

In a way, I believe this was also written to glorify Mao in a sort of way, because the Cultural Revolution didn't really bring any changes either economically or socially to China. Any achievements through the period of the Cultural Revolution acted like a mask, covering the failure of the Cultural Revolution, but glorifying it.

7) Describe the tone at the end of the document. Why do you think it ends this way?

The tone at the end of the document is rather hopeful, mostly because it focuses on the small things that Mao achieved in the Cultural Revolution, despite the fact that it was miserable failure that only hurt China.