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"The Spider Eaters" - An Inside View of Mao's China, 2007.
A review of the book "The Spider Eaters" by Rae Yang.
1,132 words (approx. 4.5 pages), 1 source, MLA, $ 39.95
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Abstract
This paper discusses Rae Yang's memoir - "The Spider Eaters". The paper explains that the books is the story of a classless person who came of age during the Cultural Revolution and who obviously worked hard to present her experiences in a direct and emotional manner. The paper explains that Yang's volume covers the decades between 1950 and 1980 and clearly illustrates the cruelty that Yang came to see all around her though a committed communist and Red Guard. The paper also shows how Yang's memoir points to Mao as a very aware person, a megalomaniac in Communist clothing who had no care as to the degree of cruelty that was inflicted through an entire society, or how this experience might shape future Chinese society and politics. In conclusion, the paper shows that Mao and the Chinese Cultural Revolution destroyed the Chinese who might have had much to offer the socialist experiment, drove great wedges between people and accustomed the Chinese once again to conditions of great fear.
From the Paper
"Mao's regime could be, just as the Red Guard she came to recognize as brutal, a movement quickly dissolving into anarchy, a kind of gang warfare, till the Red Army intervened. This is an interesting revelation given that one is so often instructed that Mao was not aware of the abuses inflicted on many Chinese during the Cultural Revolution, that the Red Army had somehow taken over or carried out what he had not intended. Yang's memoir points to Mao as a very aware person, a megalomaniac in Communist clothing who had no care as to the degree of cruelty that was inflicted through an entire society, or how this experience might shape future Chinese society and politics. Yang's volume covers the decades between 1950 and her 1980. Shortly after, Yang left for the United States where she made her career."
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Seeds of Modernity in the Colonial Crucible, 2008.
An examination of the effects of colonialism on the indigenous people of America.
1,342 words (approx. 5.4 pages), 3 sources, MLA, $ 45.95
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Abstract
This paper examines the initial encounter between the Europeans and the indigenous peoples of the Americas between 1600-1800. The author states that colonialism's oppression and forced labor of the indigenous peoples of the Americas directly influenced the collective mythologies embedded into their respective cultures and art. The oppression of history and tyranny, that they suffered, although terrible, has clearly been a force in the quality of their work.
From the Paper
"The initial encounter between the Europeans and the indigenous peoples of the Americas became the doorway through which the old world stepped into the new. Indeed, what Chasteen refers to in his timeline as the Colonial crucible, roughly the period between 1600-1800 (Chasteen 10), would establish the pattern of hegemony of transcultural dominance and subjugation that would have far-ranging effects that we see today in everything from how or if societies became agrarian or industrial, to the sort of art painters and writers create today. The oppression of colonialism and the forced labor of its indigenous peoples directly influenced the collective mythologies that became embedded into their respective cultures and art.
"Modernity, and colonialism, as Mingolo states, are two sides of the same coin, and not two different frames of mind. He names President George W. Bush as the prime example of this duality:
"Coloniality, therefore, points toward and intends to unveil an embedded logic that enforces control, domination, and exploitation disguised in the language of salvation, progress, modernization, and being good for every one. The double register of modernity/coloniality has, perhaps, never been as clear as it has been recently under the administration of U.S. President George W. Bush. (Mingolo 6)
"Some may read Mingolo's statement as a bit inflammatory and radical; but truly, he sees Bush as the embodiment of qualities and values that began long ago, when America in the distance past was the nodal point that allowed for the expansion of the condition and values that allowed for an imperialistic European lifestyle. Mingolo goes as far as to assert that the claims on American lands were the key turning point in world history, where a specific set of values, based in colonialism, became necessary to pave the way toward modern Europe and Latin America."
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The Notion and Practice of Revolution, 2008.
A discussion of the commonalities and similarities between the Russian Revolution and Mexican Revolution.
1,707 words (approx. 6.8 pages), 6 sources, MLA, $ 55.95
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Abstract
This paper explores similarities and differences as they relate to three aspects of the Russian and Mexican Revolution: ideology; antecedents or contributing factors; and outcomes or a changed social order. The paper presents the ideology that influenced and determined the Russian Revolution, followed by ideology and a comparison for the Mexican Revolution. The paper then discusses the antecedents to revolution in Russia, and compares it to Mexico. The paper also demonstrates how the ideology which inspired revolution actually instigates that revolution. In conclusion, the outcomes for both Russian and Mexican society are discussed and compared.
Outline:
Introduction
Ideology - Russia
Ideology - Mexico
Antecedents - Russia
Antecedents - Mexico
Outcomes - Russia
Outcomes - Mexico
Conclusion
From the Paper
"Ideology has played a central role in revolution with innovative social ideas and the vision of a new social order inspiring the revolution. Strong national feeling was a very important factor in the Mexican revolution. According to Vanderwood (204) the situation in Mexico was an authentic social revolution that tended between "authoritarian rule and the endeavor to give peasants and workers a meaningful voice in government". By the time of the Cold War, Americans began to "interpret Mexico's experience largely in terms of the Communist revolution in the former Soviet Union" (Vanderwood 204). During the Mexican Revolution, the individual who was similar to Lenin in influence and vision was Villa."
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East Asian History, 2008.
This paper explores the forces behind several events in East Asian history.
1,186 words (approx. 4.7 pages), 1 source, MLA, $ 40.95
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Abstract
The paper examines the historical meaning behind several important events in East Asian history through the 'people' perspective and nationalism. The paper argues that although nationalism was the driving force behind these events, particularly in China, diverse events were brought about by different groups of 'people' in that society. The paper focuses on China and Korea and examines the the Japanese colonial rule in Korea, the 1911 Revolution in China and the Chinese May Fourth movement.
From the Paper
"The situation in Korea at the beginning of the 20th century was particularly complex. The Korean peninsula was of interest to both Russian and Japanese imperial interests for economic and strategic reasons. After the Russo-Japanese war (1904-1905) Korea was acknowledged as Japanese sphere of interest by United States and Britain. In 1910 Koreans officially lost their sovereignty when the treaty of annexation was signed. Many see the Japanese rule over Korea as contradictory. Korean people suffered from the police regime the Japanese authorities have established. The punishment for riots and crimes were strict. The Korean participation in all forms of government was cancelled."
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The Chinese Famine, 2008.
This paper examines the reasons behind the famine of China's "Great Leap Forward".
2,809 words (approx. 11.2 pages), 9 sources, APA, $ 83.95
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Abstract
The paper utilizes Amartya Sen's entitlement approach to famine as an explanation of the famine during China's Great Leap Forward. The paper argues that the primary reasons for this famine were the fundamental problems in central planning policy, together with structural inadequacies of the government system of the People's Republic of China in the 1950s.
Outline:
Introduction
The Great Leap Forward
Famine - The Theoretical Literature
Famine as a Crisis in Central Planning
The Relevance of the Sen Model
Conclusion
From the Paper
"In order to understand the famine in China in the late 1950s it is first necessary to understand the political, social and economic context that gave rise to the famine in the first place. With the establishment of the People's Republic of China under a Communist government in 1949, centuries-old traditions of agricultural production and economics were been revised at all levels of Chinese society."
"After 1949 China embarked on a series of Five-Year Plans that were designed to reestablish China's industrial capabilities and increase agricultural production. The shaping of these plans led to considerable political disagreement within the leadership of the People's Republic. The architects of the first of these plans - particularly Chen Yun and Zhou Enlai - believed that material incentives would lead to gradual increases in grain and industrial production (Spence 1990, 575). However, such "gradualism" ran contrary to paramount leader Mao Zedong's "heroic" vision of revolution as "continuing struggle" (Spence 1990, 596)."
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Human Relationships and the Land in "O Pioneers!", 2008.
An analysis of human relationships in Willa Cather's novel "O Pioneers!".
1,620 words (approx. 6.5 pages), 1 source, MLA, $ 52.95
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Abstract
This paper examines the theme of human relationships in the novel "O Pioneers!" by Willa Cather. The paper contends that human relationships are at the heart of the novel, but at the same time, those relationships are shaped and colored by the vital relationship with the land, as an inheritance and a way of life. The paper also maintains that family is a central theme connected to the land, with the character of Alexandra the focus for the family, just as the land becomes her focus as a substitute for her father. The paper argues that, although much of the novel seems pessimistic about human relationships, ultimately the novel's protagonist, Alexandra, as an embodiment of the land, shows how the struggle for the land would one day lead to an accommodation between human beings and the land.
From the Paper
"Cather seems to doubt the possibility for human beings to form meaningful and lasting relationships, and in the novel, those who try fail or even die before achieving what they seem to want. There are a number of unhappy marriages in the novel, including that of the woman Emil loves, a relationship that ends tragically for all. The one love that persists is love for the land, though that is also a love that is sorely tested again and again by weather, drought, storms, and other hardships faced by the pioneers, who either last through the crisis of fail and turn back. The novel celebrates the pioneer in America and the way the pioneer went to work and shaped the land, but what the pioneer did was also decided by the needs and wants of the land itself. In the end, the hard realities of pioneer life were anything but romantic, and the lives of the characters in this novel shows how they would often act impetuously and then suffer the consequences as far as human relationships were concerned."
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Rae Yang's "The Spider Eaters - a Memoir", 2008.
A critical review of Rae Yang's book "The Spider Eaters - a Memoir".
1,050 words (approx. 4.2 pages), 1 source, MLA, $ 36.95
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Abstract
This paper takes a look at Rae Yang's "The Spider Eaters - a Memoir", a book addressing the Cultural Revolution from the perspective of a person who was caught up in a frightening time in the early People's Republic of China (PRC).The paper considers the book a disturbing reflection on the youth of the Red Guard and the vicious sort of fascism created by Chairman Mao. It concludes that the book is well written and informative.
Table of Contents:
Introduction
Maoism and Youth
Divisions
Conclusion
From the Paper
"Yang writes in a way that is immediate and also indicating that her days in the Red Guard were far away, a dream somehow, and as much of the volume moves back and forth between the present and the past and with anecdotes to do with her childhood and family adding to a surreal and very personal explanation of a frightening time and different people's reactions to it. A chapter "A Strange Gift from the Pig Farm" refers to her habit of waking at 3 a.m. that remained after she was placed in the Manchurian countryside just as millions of other young people to finish high school were sent for menial labour away from the cities. She had had to waken at 3 a.m. to perform part of her assigned work and the habit remained, years later. (pp. 1-2) So much forgetting a disturbing time, or the person she had become, as 3 a.m. waking in America showed that some things could not be washed away. The inability to reconcile what Maoism preached, what happened, and came into view as very wrong with the CCP movement produced despair later and a wish to die which took time to overcome. Rae Yang embarked on graduate studies at the University of Massachusetts. She graduated from the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences in 1981 and in the U.S., completed her M.A. in 1985 and her Ph.D. in 1991, obtaining a post at Dickinson College where she specializes in pre-modern and modern Chinese literature."
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The Devolved Assemblies of Scotland and Whales, 2008.
A review of the history of nationalism and the devolution process in Scotland and Whales.
1,931 words (approx. 7.7 pages), 15 sources, MLA, $ 61.95
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Abstract
This paper looks at the devolved assemblies of Scotland and Wales and at their relative achievements. It focuses on explaining why devolution has worked well for everyone and should even proceed further. The paper reviews nationalism and the precipitating historical factors which led to the devolution process in both lands. In the end, the paper argues that it is not at all a bad idea to continue the process - especially in Wales which (as of yet) still lacks the sweeping powers bequeathed to the Scottish assembly.
From the Paper
"Finally, besides the rather obvious fact that devolution in both Scotland and Wales gives "local" assemblies taxing powers of some significance, the devolutionary process also gives legislative bodies the tools they need to really affect meaningful change. In the case of Scotland, local executive councils, free of interference from Westminster, provide to the general public minutes, background notes, discussion papers and other items that are all part of an ongoing effort to connect the voting citizenry with the decision-makers. In effect, devolution in Scotland has filtered down from the national assembly to the local level, and that has been ultimately good for everyone, with progressive steps being taken in a number of areas ("Local Decision-Making and Public Scrutiny," 2007)."
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Hong Kong's Economic History, 2008.
A discussion of the economic history of Hong Kong from the mid-19th century to today.
4,300 words (approx. 17.2 pages), 12 sources, MLA, $ 113.95
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Abstract
This paper recounts Hong Kong's economic history from the time it became a British colony in the mid-19th century until the present. Hong Kong has prevailed as a remarkably prosperous territory since then, surviving various calamities, and has maintained its success even under the rule of the People's Republic of China. The paper concludes that Hong Kong's economic history has produced a distinctive culture that seems permanent, different from what is found in newly industrialized and advancing areas of Mainland China.
Table of Contents:
Introduction
The 19th Century
World War II and Beyond
The 1960s and 1970s
The End of British Hong Kong
Conclusion
From the Paper
"In the 1930s, the Global Depression affected all Chinese ports including Hong Kong. Small scale manufacturing engaged many Chinese by this time whereas outsiders tend to think that most people were employed in the port of Hong Kong or its support trades and industries. The completion of the Canton-Kowloon railway was a boon because goods could be moved quickly from the Mainland, undercutting steamers and junks that once took goods to Hong Kong for onward shipping. (Chui, 1973, 55) Also, Chinese business experience allowed many to tough out years of lower demand finding new niche markets in simple goods required elsewhere in East and Southeast Asia. Clan and family networks allowed small profits from goods said to be needed in the Netherlands East Indies or Rangoon or Malaya, the general 'survivability' of the business community seen. In December of 1941, the invasion of the Imperial Japanese Army destroyed nearly built up in a hundred years of activity. No one knows how many local Chinese were murdered, foreigners interned, as Allied soldiers and local reservists tried to defend the colony, many of whom were killed or taken as prisoners of the Japanese. This time is remembered by Hong Kong people as an era of suffering and destruction. (See Banham, 2003)"
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European Revolution of the Nineteenth Century, 2008.
A review of the European revolution of the 19th century, based on D. Mason's book "Revolutionary Europe 1789-1989-Liberty, Equality, Solidarity."
1,316 words (approx. 5.3 pages), 1 source, APA, $ 44.95
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Abstract
This paper discusses the social and political movements that developed in the 19th century in Europe, which were based around certain ideas about human behavior and society and the relationship between the two. It argues that these various systems contributed to the rise of modernity by rejecting the older, more authoritarian systems and pressing more for a system based on reason and the power of ideas. The paper bases its arguments on D. Mason's book "Revolutionary Europe 1789-1989-Liberty, Equality, Solidarity."
From the Paper
"In international terms, though, the policy was not to let things be but to follow a policy of expansion, moving into parts of the world previously separate and often to impose Western control, as Britain did in India, the Dutch in South Africa, the French in parts of Africa, and so on. This has also been called the age of imperialism, and the growth of empire is the basic subject of this book, showing how the nations of Europe expanded into the Third World, imposed various levels of administration and control, exploited resources, and created a different relationship between Europe and the rest of the world. In the long run, this expansion did not so much alleviate regional tensions as expand these as well, spreading some nations too thin to maintain control of their acquisitions, and in other cases creating new battlegrounds for old enmities. The consolidation of European influence ended with the horrors of the Great War in 1914, later leaving a world divided on new lines, with the Soviet Union a different sort of counter force, and with the nations of Europe releasing themselves from colonial obligations over time."
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Gangster Film Genre, 2008.
An analysis of the historical context of the rise of the gangster film genre in the United States and its development from 1930 to 1960.
1,897 words (approx. 7.6 pages), 9 sources, MLA, $ 60.95
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Abstract
This paper looks at the history of the gangster film genre in the United States from the 1930s to the 1960s. It specifically looks at the impact that this film genre has had on American society and culture. The paper discusses the historical context of the rise of the gangster film genre and why it appealed to Americans at that time in their history. It gives specific examples of films and characters that fit into this category.
Table of Contents:
The Rise of the Gangster Genre
The Postwar World
1960's and Beyond
From the Paper
"As World War I ended, the 18th Amendment ushered in Prohibition and with it a wave of crime matched only by the drug and gang wars of our own era. Where brewing and distilling were once respectable trades, the importation, production, transportation and sale of alcoholic beverages was taken over by criminals during the 1920s. In big cities like New York or Chicago, headline grabbing mobsters battled for control of this illegal market. Competition among newspapers sensationalized and romanticized the stories of events like the St. Valentine's Day Massacre or the exploits of "Scarface" Al Capone. Our contemporary war on drugs can be seen as a parallel event - both of which run counter to the dominant free market and individual free choice ideology of the United States. Just as ethnic minorities were disproportionately represented as violating prohibition in the 1930s, those portrayed in modern gangster films are disproportionately Latino and Black or immigrant."
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The Articles of Confederation and the Constitution, 2005.
A discussion of the failure of the Articles of Confederation and the consequent emergence of the Constitution of the United States.
965 words (approx. 3.9 pages), 13 sources, MLA, $ 34.95
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Abstract
This paper recounts the drafting, implementation, amendment, and eventual rejection of the Articles of Confederation. The paper states that its main failure was that it was aimed primarily to prevent usurpation of power by the government, rather than provide for effective governance. A more effective Constitution was drafted as a result, which reduced state sovereignty and allotted greater power to the central government. In summary, the paper contends that the Articles of Confederation reflected the fear of governmental usurpation of power and created a government so powerless it could not function, while the Constitution gave the new government the power it needed to function.
From the Paper
"In Federalist # 51, James Madison argued that the government was structured to preserve liberty. No one branch could hold sway over the others, and judge, appointed by the other branches, would be selected for quality, not popularity. (Federalist # 51) By creating the checks and balances, the government could control public excesses, but could not itself usurp power. The legislature, the most dangerous branch, was the most checked. Meanwhile, the size of the nation would prevent mob rule, because factions would check one another. (Federalist # 51)"
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