Confucius once stated, “Study the past, if you would divine in the future.” This means that if you want to get a good idea of your future, then you should study your past. In addition, if you do not study your past then you may make the same mistakes in your future. There are multiple changes that have occurred in China throughout history that shaped the country into its current state. For example, though China was mainly secluded after the communist revolution, it has opened its doors to the rest of the world again. Of course, all of these changes have advantages and disadvantages. Lu Xun and Li Po, who are both very influential Chinese authors, would agree that there are still changes that need to be made. Although China has advanced economically, the country is declining environmentally and socially. Moreover, there is a lack of trust between the citizens of China and the Chinese government. As Confucius stated, China needs to study its history so it can avoid future mistakes. The country should look back at its Sage emperors and their ways to deemphasize political status and focus on moral status.
Ancient China was one of the earliest places of human civilization. The country’s history could be described as a series of dynasties each ruled by emperors. The Han dynasty set the pattern for Chinese history by causing growth in the economy and the promotion of Confucianism as the state philosophy. The Qing dynasty was ruled by Empress Wu, but a rebellion during this dynasty ended the dynasty reign. This led to China in the 20th century which includes the Treaty of Versailles, the People’s Republic of China, and, most importantly, Communism. Sun Yat-Sen, who created the Republic of China in 1912, entered alliance with the new Comm...
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...he goal of communism to work towards the benefit of the whole, many would argue that this is not being accomplished in China today. The information that the Chinese government feed to their people is affecting their citizen’s ability to decipher from what is true and what is false. Government-controlled media compare life in China today to life before liberation, where the people lived in poverty. However, many Chinese people of the younger generation view this as the past and instead compare China to its neighboring countries, such as Japan, which has accomplished much more in the same amount of time. The next generation of the Chinese people is determined initiate a change and perhaps a revolution to bring back the true harmony in China where there is trust and a lack of oppression on civil rights, and in result fulfilling Lu Xun’s wish to, “Save the children...”
From 100 CE to 600 CE the Chinese had many cultural and political life changes and continuities. A political change was in the end of the Classical Chinese period when the Han Dynasty fell. A cultural change during 100 CE to 600 CE was the paper invention that led to passing down cultural rituals. Not only were there changes but there was also continuities in the Chinese political and cultural life. An example of a cultural continuity is the increasing power of Buddhism. A political continuity is the ruler of the Chinese wanting the people to be protected with for instance The Great Wall of China.
All these experiences shattered Yang's dream and made her realize that the path of communism would not lead to the establishment of a New China where everyone would be free and equal. She was able see beyond the lies and propaganda of the leaders. The Communist party only served to further the interests of it officials and had little to no concern with the well being of the poor peasants and ordinary Chinese people. The class struggle continued to prevail and was inevitable. Yang says “I agree with Chairman Mao that class struggle continues to exist in China under socialist conditions. It goes on between Communist Party officials and the ordinary Chinese people!”( Yang, p.263).
After Chairman Mao’s death, Ji-Li and the rest of China realize that he was never the right leader for China and instead of improving China’s society, he actually prevented it. In the end, Ji-Li knows she was brainwashed by Mao’s actions. The Communist Party told them what to wear, read, think, and how to act. They never let China be free to be who they are. It was not until Mao's death that Ji-li began questioning what they were told. “It was only after Mao’s death in 1976 that people woke up. We finally learned that the whole Cultural Revolution had been part of a power struggle at the highest levels of the Party. Our leader had taken advantage of our trust and loyalty to manipulate the whole country.” (Jiang, Chapter 18). Now, as an adult, Ji-li tries to bridge the gap between China and America. She loves the freedom she enjoys in America, especially that she does not have to worry about what she says or thinks, but she does not hate China. People can not use political corruption and injustice to get what they want out of society. Promoting equality and opportunities for all is key to improving society. We can not get behind beating people up or imprisoning them because they did not abide by society’s
Daily life was influenced in both Ancient India and China because of religion and philosophies. Their well being, their beliefs, and their caste system were affected by religion and philosophies.
Ever since the establishment of the People’s Republic of China, the legitimacy of the revolution of which it was built upon has perennially been in question. For example, in a 1999 issue of the International Herald Tribune, a prestigious scholar claimed that all of China’s tragedies are ‘sustained by a mistaken belief in the correctness of the 1949 revolution’ and that the future progress of China depends on the recognition that the revolution was a failure. However, the CCP government was certainly not perfect and its most significant failures were its political failures such as the Anti-rightist movement and the Cultural Revolution and also economic failures such as the great leap forward. Millions of peoples were falsely accused and persecuted during the political movements of the Mao period as the CCP focused on class struggle instead of economic development during the period and tens of Millions of peoples died due to starvation as there were widespread food shortages during the great leap forward movement.
Jonathan Spence tells his readers of how Mao Zedong was a remarkable man to say the very least. He grew up a poor farm boy from a small rural town in Shaoshan, China. Mao was originally fated to be a farmer just as his father was. It was by chance that his young wife passed away and he was permitted to continue his education which he valued so greatly. Mao matured in a China that was undergoing a threat from foreign businesses and an unruly class of young people who wanted modernization. Throughout his school years and beyond Mao watched as the nation he lived in continued to change with the immense number of youth who began to westernize. Yet in classes he learned classical Chinese literature, poems, and history. Mao also attained a thorough knowledge of the modern and Western world. This great struggle between modern and classical Chinese is what can be attributed to most of the unrest in China during this time period. His education, determination and infectious personalit...
Most of China was ruled by Chiang Kaishek, a military dictator. The rest of China was ruled under communism by Mao Zedong. Chiang Kaishek aimed to modernise the railways, the postal services. and the telecommunications industry. In addition, powerful foreign companies.
Looking back to explore some our most memorable early civilizations and their history of women’s roles the results may be surprising. Egypt and China civilizations were too very vital periods in shaping worldwide cultures and traditions. Both societies had values that some still stands on today as well as ones that have evolved.
During the era of Ottoman and Mughal rule, two dynasties governed China, the Ming and the Qing (ching). Both dynasties took power during times of upheaval. To restore order, they established strong, centralized rule and revived traditional Chinese values, including Confucian ideals.
In conclusion, the belief, relevance, and importance of the repetition of Chinese history are all explained and propagated by concepts of the Good Life, Good Society and Good State presented within the teachings of Confucius, the Dynastic Cycle and the Han Synthesis. All three concepts evolved from the ideas of Confucius and all highlight that Chinese history repeats itself by focusing on the inevitable rise and fall of each new dynasty. This makes the state accountable to its people for its actions. Confucius’ ideas on filial piety and how a ruler should govern shaped the Han Synthesis. No matter how benevolent the individual is, time and history march inevitably onward. Benevolence gives way to corruption and the process of degeneration and creation are repeated.
Chinese Revolution is about making the entire country into Communists and killing each and one the people who hates Mao Tse-Tung. Mao Tse-Tung is the leader of China at this time who believes in equality and everyone should have the same rights. The Red Guards is a military group in which includes a group of children that eliminates the Chinese population due to hatred for Mao. If any of these events happen to our generation, most youth are smart enough to know that Mao is a bad leader and killing innocent people by the case of bitterness for Mao is wrong. The Chinese youth got swept up in the Cultural Revolution by Mao because the youth were easy to persuade into doing something. To expand this idea further, the Chinese youth weren’t old enough, not on this specific age, to realize whether Mao’s actions were virtuous or inaccurate. On the other hand, they thought that working for Mao and joining the Red Guards will help their country out, but they never knew the truth behind Mao’s plans. The truth about the Cultural Revolution was to kill anybody that gets in the way of Mao’s plans and destroying all the old buildings so that it would be replaced with new buildings or reconstruct the old buildings to become brand new again. In addition, the Chinese youth had no idea that joining the Red Guards will give a highly chance of getting killed. In other words, the adults were smarter than the youth because joining the Red Guards means the opposite of helping the country out. Mao just made them think that joining will help their country, even though it was the other way around like someone apologizing to their neighbor in which manipulating their minds that they’re now cool, but they were still rude to them afterwards. To repeat this, t...
Major changes in political structure, social and economic life define the Sui, Tang, and Song dynasties. Each period laid the foundation for the next, with changes and improvements to create a new order.
This essay has critically analysed and examined the effect of Communism on the Chinese Society during the period of 1946-1964. The overall conclusion that can be drawn is that the Chinese Communist Party managed to defeat the Kuomintang (Nationalist) Party and achieve victory in the Civil War, in spite of alienation by the Soviet Union and opposition from the U.S. This was primarily because of the superior military strategy employed by the Communists and the economic and political reforms introduced by this party which brought more equality to the peasants in the form of land ownership and better public services. This increased China’s production and manufacturing which not only boosted the country’s economy but also provided a more sustainable supply of food, goods and services for the Chinese people.
Ancient China lasted so long from their Geography, Religion, and Achievement. China’s geography has helped the civilization last over 4,000 years because it made good trade routes, allowed them to get good resources to get significant money. Religion has helped China’s civilization because it created and push out treads they do today. Achievements helped the Chinese civilization last over 4,000 years because it helps their economy and made it easier to protect from invaders and some of the inventions that are still used today. Ancient China lasted so long from their Geography, Religion, and Achievement
The Cultural Revolution had affected many people in China. About 130 million Chinese were left unschooled. Because of this, it ruined China’s educational system. Today, the Chinese should be moving into positions of responsibility and putting China's economic