China since 1900

[Rob_Hugo@PortNW]

Hello everyone,

It is always difficult to condense a century+ of history into a timed presentation, but Clay Dube did an admirable job of it Monday evening. However, some of you may still have questions about particular names, dates or episodes, so please feel free to post them here.

Clay will continue on Chinese historical development from the Cultural Revolution at a subsequent session, so if you have any suggestions on specific topics you would like him to cover then, please let us know.

Hope to hear from you,
Miranda[Edit by="miranda k on Nov 21, 11:00:40 AM"][/Edit]

[Anonymous]

Hi Miranda and thank you for starting a new forum ... but... why does it say Palos Verdes? I almpst by-passed it!

Yes indeed, Prof. Dube's presentation was not only formidable, but also admirable... he is always so thorough in very squeezed-in time capsules... I would be very interested in learning more about the Korean language.. it appeared to me that the way it has been "created" or designed... is a very unique and peculiar approach to creating languages... using scientific methology... would it be possible to have someone introduce the technical aspects of the Korean language to us and teach us some rudimentary techniques? I think that many of the teachers attending the seminars might be interested.

[Anonymous]

Miranda, thanks for sending my log in information.

I guess my questions would be what's going on in China after 1989... how can a nation be totalitarian and seemingly capitalist at the same time? What is the profit motive for business leaders to develop like they are? Does the government call all the shots like a classic Russian Communist command economy?

I really enjoyed Clay's lecture to put faces with some of the names, also how he developed the history between the imperial powers and China.

[Anonymous]

Mike,

I am hoping that your questions will be covered in the next session we have with Jack Wills. The seminar focus will be on Taiwan, but I expect that since such a discussion is not possible without bringing in the role of the mainland, we will be spending some time discussing China's post-1989 political development as well.

You are always free to bring up any questions with Professor Wills.

-Miranda

[Anonymous]

I've been watching quite a few Chinese movies lately and have been referring back to my notes from Prof. Dube's lecture quite often. Having had no background on the history of China, I think I would have been quite lost about the historical references in the films. I initially pulled out my notes for The Blue Kite, but have since used them for Farewell My Concubine, The Last Emperor, and Shadow Magic. The movies are also helping solidify my understanding of the modern history of China.

On that note, can anyone tell me about the custom of shaving young boys' heads? It seems that in every movie I've seen, boys in the early part of the 20th century have only a small patch of hair on their heads. Was this the fashion or was it customary for some other reason?

Thanks

[Anonymous]

I knew almost nothing about China's history or leadership at the start of the class. Since then I have been trying to educate myself. I recently came upon a VERY basic article about Deng Xiaoping, good for someone with no or very little knowledge of China's modern history. It is at the timeforkids.com website. Type "china" into the search box and go to page 10. The article is called "Farewell to a Leader" and is dated Feb. 28th 1997. It is an article written for grades 5 and up that gives a very brief overview of the life of this leader. It would be a good read for someone wanting just the bare bones background of his era (teacher or student).

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