Success in a journey can be defined by the combination of gaining experience, the completion of goals, and in specific cases, improving foreign and domestic relationships. By following this definition, it is obvious that Marco Polo had a successful journey. Not only was he able to document his journey to China, but he was also able to spread his experience throughout Europe, thereby immortalizing his name. Marco Polo took the long journey to China with his father and his uncle which changed his life forever. From becoming an ambassador of the Chinese Empire to telling his story while a prisoner of war, Marco Polo’s journey was incredible. Though this seems undisputable, Polo’s journey may not have truly taken place. Strong evidence shows that all of Polo’s accounts of China may have been secondhand. Though there is no definite proof that any of his stories were true, that does not change the fact that his journey was a success.
Marco Polo’s journey to China was a very successful one in the sense that he accomplished his goals and more. The goal of the journey was to deliver holy oil to the Emperor of China, Kublai Kahn, and it was delivered successfully (Baker 452-453). This goal having been completed, if Marco Polo had then returned to Italy his mission would have been considered a success. Yet Polo went beyond his initial goal of delivering the holy oil. He became a member of the Chinese government as an ambassador of Kublai Kahn’s and educated him on Western advancements (Baker 454; Terkla 166). By having such a significant role in the Chinese government Polo most likely also improved how the Chinese people viewed Europeans. Such improved foreign relations increased the success of the journey by possibly improving...
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...t of his contemporaries. Marco Polo’s journey most likely spurred further expeditions to Asia that in all likelihood affected trade between Asian and European countries. Even though it is possible that Marco Polo did not succeed in realizing his initial goals, such as delivering the holy oil to Kublai Kahn, his journey was a success because of the strong influence he had on social relationships between Europe and Asia. Because of this, it can be established that Marco Polo’s journey was a successful one.
Works Cited
Works Cited
Baker, Daniel, ed. Explorers and Discoverers of the World. Detroit: Gale Research Inc., 1993.
Fahey, David M. Encyclopedia of World History: V: II. New York: InfoBase Publishing, 2008.
Terkla, Dan. The Oxford Companion to World Exploration: V: II. New York: Oxford University Press Inc., 2007.
When comparing the Chinese and Western historical development, the similar key events would have very different outcomes due to their different backgrounds. During the fifteenth century, Zheng He was commissioned to lead the “treasure ships” for seven voyages down the Western Seas. And, Prince Henry sent expeditions to explore the western coast of Africa. China and Portugal, the both ends of the Eurasian continent, almost simultaneously began marine navigations. They have shared some similar features, but there are actually major differences between the two. This paper will compare and contrast these two remarkable explorers. The focus will be on the ideas and circumstances that influenced their actions, and their importance in shaping history.
What is a key attribute of a strong leader? Would he be strong, bold, courageous, fearless? Magellan, a portuguese captain during the fifteen hundreds crossed the world through the Pacific Ocean, Atlantic Ocean and the Indian Ocean. Ferdinand Magellan did not deserve defense. He would treat his crewmen unfairly, put himself first, and was distracted from his goal. (Document A, B, C, D, E)
As new ideas traveled main trade routes, such as the Silk Road and the Mediterranean, the effects of such were felt through an influx of contact between countries due to increased desire for new information and countries gaining a larger presence on the world stage. This phenomenon can also be seen through the lens of cultural exchange that took place during this same time period in Eurasia. A major component of the Eurasian trade networks, such as the Silk Road and Indian Ocean, was that they fostered interregional contacts that had ceased to previously exist. When a country had a desire for study or technology, they earned more respect on the global stage. This can be further examined by looking at Marco Polo’s voyage into Asia.
Christopher Columbus is a mythical hero or in other words, not a true hero. The story of Christopher Columbus is part of the many myths of Western civilization. Also the story of Christopher Columbus represents the power of those that are privileged and in most cases white European men that have written this mythical history. Zinn (2009 exposes the truth about Columbus through eyes of the people who were there when he had arrived which were the Native Indians (p.481). Columbus had kept a personal journal for his voyage to describe the people and the journey. What was evident throughout his journal was the Native Americans were very nice, gentle and kind hearted people (Zinn, 2009, 481). As Zinn suggests Columbus spoke of the Native Americans as” they are the best people in the world and
It is thought by many that Christopher Columbus was a skilled sailor on a mission of greed. Many think that he in fact did it all for the money, honor and the status that comes with an explorer, but this is not the case entirely. Columbus was an adventurer and was enthused by the thrill of the quest of the unknown. “Columbus had a firm religious faith and a scientific curiosity, a zest for life, the felling for beauty and the striving for novelty that we associate with the advancement of learning”. He had heard of the legendary Atlantic voyages and sailors reports of land to the west of Madeira and the Azores. He believed that Japan was about 4,800 km to the west of Portugal. In 1484, Columbus wanted support for an exploratory voyage from King John II of Portugal, but he was refused. In 1485, Columbus took his son Diego and went to Spain to get some help.
...age. The following Emperors had no such interest in foreign affairs and terminated the expensive voyages. The lack of imperial political interests and support in navy expedition to foreign countries was the main reason why China withdrew from the ocean after Zheng He’s 7 voyages. However, the political significance and legacy of Zheng He’s expeditions cannot be ignored. It strengthened the Middle Kingdom’s power and influence in Asia during the early years of the Ming Dynasty. The peaceful nature of Zheng He’s voyages is still used by the Chinese government today as a political tool to advocate the benevolent intention of contemporary Chinese foreign policy (Dreyer, p. 29).
In our personal lives we consider our past forgotten, however in our history everyone affects how they see themselves. "history repeats itself " is gradually long time we know manipulated and deceived us the wrong information, books, learning in school, the "biased" report before the newspaper, radio and television. Let us move on and we just solemn pray for that will prosper in our country. I noticed that there have been distortions in our history. It’s sad because it seems like we have forgotten the sacrifices of those who died during the time of dictatorship. This tragedy cannot continue. We should stand up for someone’s rights today. Times have changed. More sooner than later, they will take power into their hands by all and whatever
Nowadays the wide array of transportation means and infrastructures at our disposal has made it relatively easy for us to travel from one country to another; even when those countries are thousands of miles away from each other. However, during the 13th and 14th centuries, travelling was not that easy. Yet, two men, the Italian tradesman Marco Polo and the Moroccan Jurist Ibn Battuta became famous for having managed to perform extremely long distance journeys away from their home country. At the end of their long travels, both men shared their experiences with the world via the books, The Travels of Marco Polo and The Travels of Ibn Battuta. An analysis of those two texts reveals two things. On one hand, Marco Polo remained a cultural outsider to the people he met during his travels, thus enhancing his power of observation and stimulating his curiosity. On the other hand, Ibn Battuta travelled as an insider, and consequently he judged the people he met only in light of his Muslim background.
... [New ed. New York: Liveright ;, 2003. Print. This source tells the reader about the tales of Marco Polo's travels, but it also goes in depth into the troubles that Marco Polo faced once he did return. This sources tells the reader about the people the critics who questioned Marco's work. This source also tells the reader about the challenges the Polos faced, trying to return to Venice after having been away for so long.
During the 15th century, the Chinese had one of the most advanced naval fleets known to man. As a result, China was able to establish many trade routes to places such as Africa, India, Singapore, etc… If the Chinese wanted to, they could have sailed all the way to Europe and even as far as North America. However, the Chinese ran into some political problems that prevented explorations in the future. If they had continued their voyages, it would have been possible for them to have discovered the New World before Columbus. Had China discovered America before Columbus, our world would be different from what it is today.
Not only did he explore a variety of lands he also brought things back creating trade routes throughout Asia, Africa, and the Middle East. As Zheng He returned from his voyages he brought back goods and much tribute. We can see how Zheng He explored many lands as shown on the map in document A. We can also see that his voyages were long and did go up to 19000 miles’ roundtrip per voyage (doc A). This evidence proves that Zheng He must’ve been a good leader in order to successfully carry out 7 of these voyages and bringing back tributes like “local products, pepper, horses, and money” (doc D). This shows how the voyages actually benefited the emperor and proves that we would be celebrating something that included
...e, Europeans were finding themselves short of land and room for expansion due to numerous empires in a relatively small area. This led to the search for land. The political powers sought wealth and hoped to achieve this by conquering Asians markets as had been done in the west. Much like the political powers, the Christian church greedily sought mass expansion and conversion, pushing for missions in the foreign lands. In contrast to the Europeans motives, the reasons for Chinese commercial expansion were desires and curiosity of a single emperor in the Ming dynasty that was not pushed for by the aristocrats, church, or scholar-gentry. Whereas the general consensus of Europe pushed for expansion for economic, political, and religious reasons, the expansion was the doing of one emperor who looked for wealth for defense against the threat of the Mongols from the north.
There is a debate whether or not Marco Polo truly went to China. The side that does not believe Marco Polo traveled to China has this view because Marco Polo did not mention the Great Wall. In addition, the Chinese culture was not noted of. Being a foreigner, Marco Polo did not write about these strange things such as foot binding, calligraphy and etcetera. Not only that, but Marco Polo did not catch onto and learn the Chinese language due to the time he was there. Also, Marco Polo was not mentioned or documented about directly in the Chinese writings. However, three Venetians were written about.
Starr, Chester G., Nowell, Charles E., Lyon Bryce, Stearns, Raymond P., Hamerow Theordore S. A History of the World: Volume II- 1500 to Present. Chicago: Rand McNally, 1960.
European exploration brought many new ideas and practices to the world. Europeans exploration discoveries brought negative and positive impacts to the society they were building. The explorations was a success for many countries, but it also was a loss for a lot of Native Americans people. The exploration started a new mankind, it gave countries and people items they never had. The discovery of new world was a big impacts from the European exploration. Countries were now fighting over lands and the resources that were on the land. Slavery and the Columbian change were also big impacts from the exploration. The world changed because of these three big impacts of the European explorations. There