Chapter 14

Since I'm catching up on my blog entries, I'll write my reaction to the whole Chapter of our assigned readings.
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I like how the book recognizes that although Europe conquered societies and created entirely new ones, the colonies were different due to the conquered people, resources available, and the type of economy. It's strange to think that Europe created "wholly new societies". That phrase to me sounds like the writers tooting Europe's horn or bragging in some form; the reality is that it's true. The Americas are definitely a testament to that phrase: "wholly new societies". I suppose another form of a new society would be the mixing of a native people with the colonists, since they're interactions that would've never happened and the structure of the native population's society is severely altered, and therefore, new.

Although the Aztecs and Incas were among the most populated and wealthiest societies in the Western Hemisphere, it's pathetic the Europeans were unable the recognize that. Their lack of understanding shows through their establishments of education, economy, and bureaucracy. Those factors most likely contributed to the fall of the Aztecs and Incas. Nice going, Spain. Slavery was the most pitiful part of this period since we know how brutal and demeaning the perpetrators were even if it was a smart business move. No amount of money can make up for the violence and bloodshed. I have always wondered if the Europeans felt what they were doing was wrong or if they understood what sort of impact they were imposing onto people. Did anyone have any remorse?

When I read the word, "parliament," I automatically think of Model Arab League since it's a parliamentary simulation among the countries in the Middle East competition that I'm involved with for school. I was voted Head Delegate of Qatar, since Qatar is the country that we're representing. I'm excited! We're currently working on Robert's Rules. During break, I''m going to try and drill the ins and out of Robert's Rules in my head since our next meeting is a mock trial. We have a month and a half to prepare for the event; we want to beat Berkeley (again).

"by 1776, 90 percent of population of North American colonies was European." Again, this is completely connected to the colonists creating, "wholly new societies." I couldn't imagine such a society since the identity of a society is fluid and always changing. Maybe I live in a bubble, but the Bay Area is such a diverse part of the United States where people of European descent are not the majority since Hispanics and Asians make up a lot of the population.

If Russia became an Asian power as well as a European one, then what continent did it originate from? I always thought they were Asian to begin with... Maybe the text is just suggesting that it became a power in Asia rather than just being part of Asia.

I absolutely love learning about the Qing dynasty. It stems back to me being a little girl and watching old Chinese movies that had historical background with my dad. The most famous movie about the end of the Qing dynasty is Once Upon a Time in China. It depicts the Boxer Revolution, Chinese resentment towards foreigners, and Sun Yat Sen acquiring the paperwork/power/support for the Nationalist movement. The last time I watched this movie was when I was 11. I'm pretty sure I understood the movie the same as how I described it just now at 23. My dad was born in Hong Kong but immigrated to the US at the age of 2, so he's not entirely connected with his country of birth. The US is home. Perhaps that's why Chinese history has always highly interested and was passed down to me. His interest has largely influenced my interest in history, except I'm able to expand my interest into an education and career.

Although our book covers Muslims and the Ottoman Empire, a lot of my knowledge stems from Dr. Ferdowsi's class, Middle Eastern Area Studies, since it's a class I'm currently taking this semester. The first book we read was about the origins and the religion of Islam in general. The next book was about the region of the Middle East in general. The book we're currently reading is about the modernization of Persia, which became Iran. The most difficult thing, for me, about reading this type of history were the names of people and places. It is still hard for me to remember everyone's names and places. Dr. Ferdowsi said those names and places are like English names and place in the US... which he said took him awhile to differentiate too. One of the most interesting pieces of information about the Middle East I've learned is that the first converted Christian country was Egypt, but the region and its power converted Egypt into an Islamic country to what we know it as today.

Eurocentrism is something I've encountered, knowingly or unknowingly, since I was a child. When I studied history when I was younger, I found myself bored to tears because I couldn't connect to European or American history directly yet. When I was 16, I took matters into my own hands and read the book, The Rape of Nanking. It's about Japanese atrocities in Nanking (now Nanjing), China during WWII. I found I could relate to it because my Chinese grandma had experienced something similar in the same time period and it helped explained why some Chinese people held a lot of animosity towards the Japanese. After I found that I could understand history mentally and emotionally, studying history through college became a lot easier and the conception of Eurocentrism was easier for me to grasp. Especially living in the Bay Area, I believe we should have a well-rounded education that emphasizes importance different perceptions of history rather than just the European one.