It’s been 10 years since the start of the revolution. There were no more different estates, no more absolutism, no more king, and no more inequality. But these are just superficial claims. Napoleon was now in charge, still having supreme power over normal people. A lot of people were still poor. And although it was stated by the government that all were equal now, some people were more equal than others.
Jiyuan
"Be yourself; everyone else is already taken." -Oscar Wilde
Tag: Humanities
This is our CommonCraft video about the French Revolution.
The Boxer Rebellion does not deserve a bad reputation. First, when the Christian missionaries arrived at Shandong, a drought was happening. The Boxers thought that the churches poked so high that it angered the Gods. So, they destroyed churches and tried to get the foreigners out. This was only an act of self-protection and religious thoughts. The Boxers did nothing wrong.
Second, the canal is an open sewer, and foreigners are sneaking in without permission. After they’ve rescued the prisoners, they started slaughtering in Beijing, killing those who they thought were Boxers. The Boxers has only trapped the foreigners for their own countries’ faults. The foreigners are sneaking in to save people who are rightful prisoners of the Chinese government and the Boxers. (As the real troublemakers cannot be caught, so they were substitutes.) The foreigners robbed and slaughtered many people that were not Boxers, causing many innocent deaths.
In general, the Boxers were only protecting themselves and giving rightful punishments to the foreigners. They shouldn’t have a bad reputation just because of this.
Picture from here
The strength of youth Vs. the wisdom of elders
Are elder people always less smart than the youth?
The theme in the story was Elder people can be way wiser than people of youth, as they have a lot more experience in life. In the story The Aged Mother, by Matsuo Basho, The leader of the town Shining created a cruel law that was to kill all elderlies in the town. A poor farmer did not want his mother to die and the order of the leader was to present him with a rope of ashes. The mother of the farmer suggested to burn a rope of twisted straws into ashes. The leader was pleased at the sight and demanded to know where the farmer obtained the wisdom. The farmer couldn’t lie so told him the truth. The leader pondered after hearing the story and decided to abolish the law. He realizes the importance of the wisdom of old people and they are not necessarily dumber than the youth.
When the son told his mother the order, she said, “’ Wait! … I will think. I will think’” (Basho 2). This means although she is old, she has confidence in solving the problem. The son is worried, but she seems calmer and fuller of knowledge.
At the end of the story, the text said “Shining needs more than strength of youth” (Basho 2). This suggests that the elderly can be wiser than the youth. Elders can be very wise and beneficial, and the wisdom can surpass the strength of youth.
In general, the theme of the story The Aged Mother is that the elders often hold more wisdom than young people.
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