Historical China


Advertisement
Published: August 9th 2007
Edit Blog Post

City BusCity BusCity Bus

This is the 113 line. I ride this bus to see my host family. I was fortunate enough to ride a brand new bus this time!
China is a country of enormous development. A country filled with history. A country full of contradictions. I am lucky enough to be living here and experiencing the great divides between old and new, traditional and modern, being comfortable and taking a risk. It is my aim to impart the wisdom I accumulate during my time in China to you, dear readers.

As I walk down the streets of the central business district in Beijing, I imagine what the city must have looked like during the 1960s and 1970s-- the time of the Cultural Revolution. Chairman Mao was the leader of the Communist Party when they fought the Nationalists for control of the country in the late 1940s and became leader of the new republic when it was formed in 1949. The Communists fought long and hard for their ascent to power, even embarking upon a 6,000 mile long trek across China to escape from the formidable Nationalist army. This is what was known as the Long March. . After a decade in power, Mao decided that the country wasn't progressing as quickly as he
The Men of Real Life EnglishThe Men of Real Life EnglishThe Men of Real Life English

We hold toga parties in our spare time...
would have liked. He enacted a campaign known as the "Great Leap Forward". This campaign began in 1958 and concluded in late 1961. The goal of this campaign was to push industrialization forward and catch up with Western countries such as the United States and Great Britain. What the US and the UK accomplished in 15 years, Mao hoped to accomplish in less than 5. Peasants were forced to create backyard furnaces, melting down all of their cooking equipment and keeping the makeshift ovens going all hours of day and night to make steel. The problems associated with this were many. For one thing, the peasants were forced to surrender all of their tools and cooking equipment. For another, there was no time to spend toiling in the fields; the entire focus was on making this low-grade steel. Thousands upon thousands of tons of this sub-par steel were made; most of it was unusable. The feeble amounts of crops that were grown were immediately shipped to the cities. Contributing to the massive famine was another campaign that was concurrently put into effect. The purpose was to rid China of flies, mosquitoes, rats and sparrows. To this end, people were instructed to stand on their roofs for hours on end, banging pots and pans in order to scare the sparrows into flight. The continuous flying eventually caused thousands of sparrows to drop dead and the campaign was considered a success. However, what was not taken into consideration was the fact that sparrows eat many types of insects that are harmful to crops. These two campaigns created a massive famine that killed millions of peasants, one of the worst famines in world history.

After the Great Leap Forward ended in late 1961, it must have been obvious to the Chairman and others in power that it had been an enormous failure and that China's place in the world had not progressed as anticipated. This, and other contributing factors, lead to an event that is known the world over: the Cultural Revolution. Mao felt that he could no longer depend on the Communist Party. He was convinced that it had been infiltrated with what he termed "capitalist" and "bourgeois" ideals. He turned to his right-hand man, Lin Biao, and the People's Liberation Army to counteract the influence of those he publically identified as a threat to China, but privately viewed as a threat to his own grasp of power. Mao also turned to middle-school students for political demonstrations on his behalf. These students, joined also by some university students, came to be known as the Red Guards . Millions of Red Guards were encouraged by the leaders of the Cultural Revolution to publically admonish and condemn those viewed in opposition to the Revolution’s tenets. These tenets eschewed anything old or traditional; Confucius was out and Mao was in. Any Western influence was scorned and those caught with forbidden items such as Western instruments or records were publically chastised, sometimes beaten and even murdered at the hands of the overzealous Red Guards.

The "four big rights"--speaking out freely, airing views fully, holding great debates, and writing big-character posters --became an important factor in encouraging Mao's youthful followers to criticize his intra-party rivals. These same “four big rights”, interestingly enough, bear close resemblance to the United States constitutional amendments. The result of Red Guard enthusiasm was massive civil disorder, punctuated also by clashes among rival Red Guard gangs. Towards the middle of the Revolution, Mao dictated the beginning of the ‘sent-down’ period; a period of time in which all city-dwelling youth were
Real Life EnglishReal Life EnglishReal Life English

Taken during our busiest hour of the day: 5:30 to 6:30 PM
instructed to journey to the countrysides and toil with the peasants in the fields. This action was intended to teach the city dwellers about the hard life peasants endured, in order to lessen the disparity between economic levels of city and country dwellers. Numerous autobiographies have been written by various sent-down youth about the dire conditions they suffered through; most of these books are now banned in China. After massive political rallies, the sent-down period, public criticisms, beatings and hangings en masse, and other horrific events, the Party had to concede defeat. The central party organization was eventually shattered from top to bottom. The Cultural Revolution, one of the most tragic events in human history, was over. To this day, Mao Zedong is still considered 70% right, and 30% wrong.

I digress. It’s difficult for me to walk down the streets of Beijing and not think about the incredible history this city, and country, has. I cannot look upon the wrinkled face of an elderly woman and not wonder what hardships she has suffered in her life. I cannot stand in the middle of Tiananmen Square and not picture the million young people who so passionately demonstrated in support of their political and ideological beliefs, albeit with disastrous consequences. Even nearly 20 years after the fact, the Chinese government continues to cover up the incident. A student was asking a colleague and I the other day for information about the events of 1989 because she is unable to find any books or access any websites in China that would enlighten her. The 1989 massacre (as it is sometimes known as in the West) is a very sensitive topic that we teachers have been cautioned against discussing with the students many times. I could only smile at my student and hastily change the subject. She refused to be dissuaded, however, and bluntly asked me if we had access to information about 1989 in the United States. My colleague and I honestly told her that, yes, we did have access to those facts. Her face quickly fell and she was quiet for some time. It's incidents like this that remind me that we are living in a country that is still ruled by a communist government. Our daily activities may or may not be monitored. On occasion, I've heard a strange clicking on the phone line while having a conversation, and
Michael with the supercarMichael with the supercarMichael with the supercar

After teaching our corporate client classes at the law firm, we sometimes take our time getting back to the office.....
I am not paranoid to wonder if my lines are tapped. Every foreigner who enters China is given a file somewhere in the depths of the government recordkeeping offices; these files are updated each and every time said foreigner leaves or reenters China or even applies to go to autonomous regions of China, such as Tibet or Maceau. I wonder what they've added to my file now that I've gotten my plane tickets to Hong Kong...

May Holiday is fast approaching. In addition to the government-sanctioned 3 days public holiday, I will be using my 2 weekend days to visit Hong Kong. Amazingly, 10 years after being returned to China, Hong Kong is still considered an international destination; my plane tickets were not cheap. I am looking forward to 4 days filled with sightseeing, Hong Kong Disneyland, delicious food and, of course, shopping. I will be traveling to Hong Kong with friends from my school; it should be a good opportunity to get to know them better.

My professional responsibilities continue to mount; some good, others slightly more taxing. Recently, when I arrived for teaching duties at Maryma Couture, I was given a different assignment. April is fashion
Maryma CoutureMaryma CoutureMaryma Couture

The lobby of Hanwei Plaza, where I teach at Maryma Couture
month in the Pacific Region, and my students are preparing for an enormous week of fashion in Korea, similar to New York fashion week. Mary Ma, the CEO of the company, was interviewed for the Korean national papers and her interview was translated into English by one of the employees. However, his or her translation was so inaccurate, that I could not understand a word of it. I wound up re-translating the entire interview; now the interview will appear in all the South Korean newspapers with the byline "translated by Merritt Wilson, USA".

I'm continuing my piano studies as well. In addition to Mendelssohn's 'Rondo Capriccioso', I've decided to broaden my classical horizons and study Liszt. Never before have I attempted any of this notoriously difficult composer's works. I have selected "Liebestraum", or "Dream of Love"; this piece is immediately recognizable if one were to hear the first few bars. Purchasing my piano was one of the best decisions I've made since I've come to China. It's paid for itself a thousand times over in terms of my ability to remain sane in the midst of chaos at work. And, of course, I will always retain my musical soul;
My team of students and migrant schoolchildren My team of students and migrant schoolchildren My team of students and migrant schoolchildren

Easter Egg Scavenger Hunt at Chaoyang Park
quitting the music school has not ruined the pure happiness and joy I feel when I am playing the piano. That is something that will remain with me for the rest of my life.

On that note, I will draw this never-ending entry to a close. As always, thanks for reading.


Additional photos below
Photos: 16, Displayed: 16


Advertisement

The Coliseum...in China? The Coliseum...in China?
The Coliseum...in China?

Easter Egg Scavenger Hunt at Chaoyang Park
Ping Pong is still a popular sport here Ping Pong is still a popular sport here
Ping Pong is still a popular sport here

Easter Egg Scavenger Hunt at Chaoyang Park
CJ explaining the rules of the egg toss CJ explaining the rules of the egg toss
CJ explaining the rules of the egg toss

Easter Egg Scavenger Hunt at Chaoyang Park
Egg Toss ChallengeEgg Toss Challenge
Egg Toss Challenge

Easter Egg Scavenger Hunt at Chaoyang Park
Random Chinese people watching the Egg TossRandom Chinese people watching the Egg Toss
Random Chinese people watching the Egg Toss

Easter Egg Scavenger Hunt at Chaoyang Park
Sheepie!Sheepie!
Sheepie!

Little guy my parents sent me for Easter....reminds me of my poodle at home
Interview ExcerptInterview Excerpt
Interview Excerpt

Part of the interview I translated for Mary Ma's appearance in Korea for Asian Fashion Week.


12th April 2007

That give me a better understanding of everything going around me, even in the modern city of Shanghai. I am very impressed by your translation skills!! And as for the egg toss, I expected to see a picture of you with an egg smashed over your head from not being able to catch it...must say, I'm a little disappointed ;-)

Tot: 0.257s; Tpl: 0.012s; cc: 14; qc: 73; dbt: 0.1015s; 1; m:domysql w:travelblog (10.17.0.13); sld: 1; ; mem: 1.3mb