Chapter 23

This chapter was very meaningful in that it put together everything that occurred and its global impact. Cultural influences was a topic that was the most interesting to me. Even though I did not really appreciate colonization, it was fascinating to read about the impact of Barbie and how its popularity reached a global culture. One quote that impacted me was an Iranian toy seller who said, "I think every Barbie doll is more harmful than an American missile." Even though I think that this quote is a bit exaggerated, I do understand the concern. I think that some Americans had similar concerns regarding Barbie and Ken. The fact that they were both skinny and white and unmarried. The impossible beauty and body standards that came from these dolls were harmful to little girls. I was also touched by Strayer's conclusion. He explained how history constantly have a pattern of people suffering and none of us are exempt. Another issue includes having hope and how it seems hard to have being that our environment, global conflict, etc. seem to keep us afraid or unhappy about the future. I definitely agree with his statements because most of us feel torn. We feel torn because we have seen a lot of progress throughout history but have also seen resistance to progress which makes us somewhat uneasy or stagnant. We are afraid to speak up and be active for what we believe are right because of what resistance we might have to overcome. My mind kept racing when I read how learning about history "provide a marvelous window into the unfamiliar, confront us with the whole panorama of human achievement, tragedy, and sensibility, and offer us company for the journey of our own lives," etc. All of this is true. This is exactly how we feel when I walk into class learning and discussing these topics.

Chapter 22

Chapter 22 was very interesting and informative. One aspect of this chapter that caught my attention was South Africa and their fight for independence. What really struck me was how the minority, which was white, managed to have all of the control and the power. It makes me think of America in how mostly white people are seen to be more in control as the majority. Many white nationalists or supremacists claim their fear of diversity because they believe that diversity will wipe out the entire power of the white people. However, white South Africans still managed to maintain power as the minority. I just thought that that was intriguing in a strange way. I also thought that it was fascinating how colonial rule in these different countries brought about ideas of race and certain ideologies that brought inequality and injustice towards others. I liked how Strayer described our ignorance of what the future holds. He further explained the uneasiness that historians have about history and its future. I would say that I feel the same along with others. None of us know what the future holds, but we can have some kind of understanding since we realized a certain pattern with history and how it seems to repeat itself at times. I would like to be hopeful and feel hopeful but can't help but have a sense of uneasiness when it comes to seeing a future where everyone has equal opportunity and everything is close to perfect with no war or struggle. However, I feel good in that I know that I am not the only one who feels the same way.

Chapter 21

After reading about communism and how that affected certain countries, I find myself still somewhat confused about the process and goals behind communism. I think that the confusion comes from me learning it in middle school and how that was seen as not good for society. I always felt that communism was like a dictatorship because that was what was insinuated to me during middle school. Now, I realize that communism is for equality. However, communism has its downsides as well. Therefore, I feel that there should be a happy medium. In countries such as Russia and China, many people died and suffered from these revolutions and fight for communism. One aspect that I am still trying to understand is the difference between socialism and communism. From what I understand in the chapter, socialism and communism seems to be interchangeable in some parts. We hear the term socialism in the news all the time in the same sentences as Bernie Sanders or other Democratic politicians even President Obama. I still find myself stuck when learning about communism and socialism and wonder if I consider myself to be one or some of those values that they hold. I definitely believe in equal opportunities for everyone, but I also believe in working for what you want. Everyone has to put in the work in order to be successful financially. However, not everyone is given a fair chance, which is a major problem that is being discussed everyday. There are still injustices that occur, and many people are suffering from being discriminated against. I think that communism and socialism were meant to fight against those inequalities and injustices and give everyone a chance at succeeding to make their country thrive. Of course there will be issues with every form of government, and there needs to be some kind of compromise between capitalism and socialism in my opinion. I believe that there is an answer to social inequality and further believe that there are people who choose to not work for social inequality and wants to keep things the way that it is, unfair while they continue to find loopholes for their own benefits.

Chapter 20

This will probably be my favorite chapter. The World Wars were always very fascinating to me, especially the social ideas and events that came with them. One aspect that I want to touch on first is the Great Depression. I find it very interesting because it was the first time that capitalism was hit and went on a downward spiral. It really made me understand better how capitalism really worked when Strayer described the background of it and how it is unstable, "with cycles of boom and bust, expansion and recession." In the millennium, I find that we are still struggling with our economic system such as the recession in the late 2000s, and how the significant social inequalities still exist. Another part of this chapter that I always enjoyed reading about was the women of this time period. The "flappers" were very comfortable with themselves, and it also reminds me of the music and some of the artists around that time. Josephine Baker was the first person that came to mind. Of course I could not help but to mention Hitler and his Nazi Regime. After taking the Holocaust class, I found myself very fascinated by Germany's expression of European fascism. With that being said, I was captivated by Strayer's last words in this chapter, "History repeats itself most certainly only in its unexpectedness." I am not in no way comparing anyone to Hitler, but I find that we often find ourselves going back to certain mindsets that could potentially not only make that certain aspect of history repeat itself, but others as well. With the flappers, I think of the Women's March and how women are expressing themselves in a certain way today. With the Great Depression, we had a Great Recession and are still fighting with how the economic system should be in the U.S. With Germany's past issues, I think of the people who still have this kind of Nazi mentality and are now emboldened to enforce them in very subtle ways. I find myself very much engaged in how Strayer presents these chapters.

Chapter 19

In Chapter 19, it was very fascinating to me to read and learn about China's struggles. I always thought of China as a powerful and independent nation and did not realize that they had their share of struggles economically, socially, and politically. It was surprising to learn how China was behind on the Industrial Revolution since their population soared from being a success earlier in time. One aspect that I thought was interesting was how women were treated and a concern for their rights during reform. Many women suffered from the Industrial Revolution since they were excluded from political life and only way to survive was by working in the factories, which were in terrible conditions. I also laughed inside when Europe or "the West" were considered "barbarians," which I agree in that the West were barbaric in how they conquered and became powerful and successful globally. That brings me to the reflection at the end of this chapter when Strayer questions what was actually successful in history and what were the failures. Like Strayer, I think that that question depends on what we consider more important for a nation in terms of being successful and/or failing. When I read over the reflection, it made me reflect on the "successes" of the Western civilizations and if I would really consider them a success. I think that I would disagree in terms of morale and ethics because what the West did and how they became successful was very wrong in my eyes, and I somewhat see it as a failure. Furthermore, I consider them a failure because we are continuously dealing with the same problems since colonization with issues including equality, justice, and much more that are constantly haunting us. Therefore, I believe that it depends on your own interpretation of how you view succeeding in life and failing in life.

Chapter 18

This chapter reminds me of my research paper that I just wrote for this class. This chapter explains how Europeans thought of themselves as superior and entitled to anything they wanted. It further describes how colonial rule over different empires such as Africa, Asia, and India brought a lot of racism and inequality, but they were still very successful economically. It is very frustrated but somewhat fascinating how the Europeans were very successful with doing what was very wrong socially, politically, economically, and morally. I could not help but to think about slavery in the American South when Strayer stated that European men wanted to be called "master" and called African men "boy." It also reminded me of that when they limited the education in order to keep the natives inferior. The intro stated how the Europeans spoke to the Africans in Swahili even though some were very fluent because the Europeans want that kind of superiority over them and other natives. Even though I knew South Africa experienced the terrible effects of colonial rule, I did not realize that the Europeans settled in many countries to instill their own ways of living. With colonial rule, the Europeans wanted to bring their culture to these new empires regardless of the native culture that existed first. This is nothing new to me nor others who pay attention to history. Because of colonial rule, ideas of racism, and other kinds of superiority from the Europeans were spread throughout the world, well at least in my opinion I think so. The fact that the Europeans tried to scientifically prove that they were racially superior further proves what occurred after those years like the Holocaust with effects that society still endures today. I like how this chapter goes into great detail about what colonial rule was all about around the world and its effects. I think that this shows how far we have come, but we still need to be aware and notice some of the aftereffects that are happening today.

Chapter 17

Chapter 17 dealt with industrialization. With industrialization, came wealth, products, and a hierarchy of social classes. Another important aspect of the rise of industrialization was the environment. I think that it is safe to say that our environment is constantly struggling and is under attack due to many of these innovations known as climate change. Even though these inventions and/or innovations and new technology are great for society, I'm wondering if we will eventually kill our planet due to the increases in technological innovations and our obsession of "the next big thing." Social hierarchies also became more prominent during the Industrial Revolution. It is not surprising at all to learn that everyone were not affected the same way from the rise of industrialization. Just like today, some people are very well off while others are not. Even though the top class known as the aristocracy declined due to industrialization, they still had that protection or "cushion" like Strayer described because of their social prestige and wealth whereas the lower classes did not. In the United States, the political problems that occurred during their industrialization still occurs today. The people of the working class did not benefit as much as the elite did from the Industrial Revolution. There is still this tension that exists between conservatives and ones who want change. Today, socialism is still defined as "un-American" and conservatives call it "big government." Republicans or conservatives or the rights define socialism just as that. I feel like that they are reaching, meaning that they are thinking of socialism in the most extreme way and are not thinking of the bigger picture and how it would be practiced and approached. I hope that there can be a middle-ground because I feel that individualism is important, and it should be encouraged for people to make their own money and not live off of the government. However, everyone should have the same equal rights and opportunities to do so, and I think that many people are afraid to have that happen one day.

Part 5 & Chapter 16

I want to discuss more of part 5 than chapter 16. Part 5 really intrigued me in that the author mentioned a new way of thinking that has significantly influenced the world today. Strayer mentioned that these "modern" societies "generated many of the transformative ideas that have guided human behavior over the past several centuries: that movement toward social equality and the end of poverty was possible; that ordinary people might participate in political life; that nations might trump empires (lol at the word "trump"); that women could be equal to men; that slavery was no longer necessary." This quote made me really think about how far we have come as a country and as a world and humans. This also reminded me of my other class Intro to Comm with Professor Lowenthal, and she mentioned that women and everyone else has all of these rights, but they can easily be taken away at the snap of a finger. It makes me think that yes, we have these ways of thinking and ideas of human decency, and I find myself sometimes questioning whether these rights can be taken away and we'll move backwards in time before the time of the "long nineteenth century." When I read further, I feel that the Europeans then felt entitled because they were central and powerful, successful and prosperous. I think that this Eurocentric way of thinking is beginning to creep back into society if we don't notice the symptoms of such behavior and thinking that is being displayed. Moving on to chapter 16, I am both appalled and surprised that France made Haiti pay them so much in compensation for property! However, it was interesting to learn and compare all of the revolutions that occurred .

Founders' Week

The reading about the Julie and Francoise was very inspiring. I definitely most related to Julie in that she was brought up in rich and fancy household. I also attended a very religious private school, which shaped in the person that I am today. However, I find myself very different from Julie in that her childhood was very disheartening and upsetting to read about. Even though Julie did not have the best childhood, that did not stop her from helping others regardless of how bad she had it personally. Julie still taught her children while bedridden, something that I would probably never do if I was in her situation. Francoise's life was inspiring as well in that she had basically the best of the best growing up, but she still managed to be selfless and think of others first. Francoise figured out how unfair the world is and did her part in trying to change that. It was interesting to learn about not only these two women but also the history of my school. Even though I am not Catholic, I still know much of the religion and can somewhat still relate to it because my grandmother was raised Catholic. I was also touched with the volunteer work that the Sisters of Notre Dame have done and are still doing. I also enjoyed touring the chapel. I loved everything about the chapel. While Sister Roseanne was describing the glass in the chapel and the Bible stories behind them, I knew almost all of them from my childhood and learning them in school and in church. Hopefully I will learn more about this school's history and will be inspired to take part in it when I feel more comfortable.

Chapter 15

In Chapter 15, it discussed the crossing of religion and science. For me, I take religion very seriously when it comes to my faith. Even though science is a wonderful thing, and we have the means to discover most of God's creations, I do not believe in replacing science with my faith. Science is a human study, and some things are not meant to be understood. Again, I appreciate science and I enjoy learning about it, but I feel that we should not lose touch with our God and all of what He made. I know I may sound like I'm preaching, but I just do not agree with the book's statement of how science became a competing worldview and almost a new religion. We should appreciate science but not praise it. Even though I am a firm believer in my religion, I do not think that it is right to have religious wars like they did in the past. I certainly did not agree with how the Europeans felt that it was their God-given duty to conquer the New World. It was interesting to learn about how the spread of Christianity failed in China. Even though I was not surprised, it was still very intriguing to read about how China looked down upon the Westerners and their Christian beliefs. I always thought of China having their own minds and not being able to be controlled by anyone but themselves. Lastly, it is obvious to say that science and religion played a major role in most of the world in the early modern era.

Chapter 13 and 14

After reading Chapters 13 and 14, I can't help but to wonder if this country will ever move away from inequality. I think that America was built on inequality, and it is still haunting us today. One thing that I did not realize was how slavery occurred well in other countries. I always wondered how some Brazilians, Dominicans, Puerto Ricans, Haitians, etc. looked more like me and realized that maybe there are some who are mixed with black. It is astonishing how much these countries relied on slavery. As I learn more and more about the "discovery" of the New World, I tend to feel annoyed with how I learned about it in middle school. I think that we are still teaching children about the good things of the Columbus's work rather than being more truthful about the event. Even though there were some good incentives with Columbus, there were only a few and still automatically lead to inequality. I also wonder what our country would be like if the Europeans did not result to their use of power and inequality. It is also interesting to have read about the other countries like Brazil and how they view race and/or color differently than America. I find myself very interested on how the Europeans found it okay to own people and enforce their power over the native people. It is also very frustrating to have people today who try to shove this history under the rug. I feel that if everyone accepted history for what it is and admit that some people are still at a disadvantage and unequal in society, we can move this country forward for the better instead trying to "Make America great again," which was never the case for this country ever in its history in my opinion. However, I am somewhat positive for the future in that the younger generation is making their voice heard around the world for equality. I pray and hope everyday that this history will not be the downfall for this country. I have a lot of concerns on how the future looks at the moment, but I am still hopeful that this country will no longer be divided in a negative way.

Yay I'm done!