The repressed express

It is evident that in both of these cases the general population is rallied together to revolt against their old rules. Even though they are told from different perspectives, the main situation is quite evident. Like many of the other revolutions we studied, these are stories of repressed people that are rallied to speak out. They are encouraged by their new leaders, or governments and they take the opportunity to express their feeling about their prior leaders. They have been keeping these feelings bottled up and now they express them with little fear with they help of their new leaders. They both evidently have the same goals of letting the general population speak out and not feel repressed with their leaders, and also to make their prior leaders pay for not letting them speak.

new routine

I interviewed some friends of my fathers about the cold war and they had vague memories of it affecting their childhood. One of them said that he remembered that there were constant bomb drills in school, but other than that he did not remember much. His wife though had a bit more memories of it. She remembered that her best friend’s family had built a bomb shelter in their backyard. Since she spent most of her time at her friend’s house she practiced drill with them. She said that when she was little she did not understand the gravity of the situation. Overall it did not affect them much, it just added another routine into their daily lives.

Pan-Islamism

I was browsing through the news on yahoo when I came across this article. I couldn't help to notice who closely it related to the idea of unification of African countries that we read about a few nights ago. It also fit in with the idea that the Islamic countries that are pushing for unification are the ones without oil - and if I remember correctly, Egypt doesn't have any.

In summary, the article, taken from the Wall Street Journal, explains how a secretive Islamic Organization, 'Muslim Brotherhood,' which had gained enormous political power in Egypt, becoming the country's largest opposition party, over the last few years, has just been significantly weakened by the Egyptian government. Because it may have rigged several elections, several of its main leaders have been jailed, its funds have been confiscated, and new laws have been drafted to make it harder for religious parties to be succesfull.

Is this backlash going a bit too far? Perhaps. But in an era when the extreme-Muslim Taliban have almost gained control of Pakistan, a country with nuclear weaponry, such precautions have to be taken.

Revolution in China

I think that in both of these sources, the people shared a similar goal, to destroy the old ways. In land reform in action, a peasant strikes an official. As the book says, "Not in living memory had any peasant ever struck an official." This is a type of revolution that the people have never seen before, one that involves using violence. This is further displayed in Make Revolution! The Red Guards violently invade the home of the official and one of them begins to smash old cups, which are essentially artifacts from old China. Also, it seems in both of these that Mao is attempting to rile up the lower to middle class. The Red Guards consisted of people from all social classes, however they specifically targeted any "anti-Maoist" elements, which is basically anyone who is rich.

Arc de Triomphe Research Questions

Why is there a gap in between the years that the arc commemorates?  It commemorated the time of Napoleon Bonaparte and the WWI effort, but it completely ignores the segment that connects the two - the colonial era.  Why did France leave out this significant piece of history?  Is it scared that recognizing the full truth will alter the image of France?  What does this show about France?  Because France has changed significantly since these happenings, is L'Arc de Triomphe still a relevant monument that accurately portrays France?

Symbols of Strength

The propaganda posters of Rosie the Riveter greatly increased the role of women in the war effort.  During WWI, women were viewed much differently than during WWII.  Originally, American women were not really seen as involved in the war effort.  When the men left to go fight, the women were left with no choice but to assume the jobs of the men back home.  It was seen as just a temporary thing.  They believed that everything would go back to the way things were when the men got back.  After the war, however, the image of women in society began to shift from being an obedient housewife to being independent and free.  This brought about the 1920's image of the flapper.  During WWII, the image of women continued to change and gain momentum.  For example, Rosie the Riveter was a propaganda poster that portrayed a strong working woman.  This image gave women a newfound strength that allowed them to participate in a wider range of jobs including those that were thought to be traditionally for men.  With new ideals for women, people were now able to freely contribute to the war effort, with out feeling tied back by society.

WWII in Our Culture

Saving Private Ryan

The Sound of Music

The Diary of Anne Frank

A Separate Peace

The Sunflower

Band of Brothers

Valkyrie

Letters from Iwo Jima

Sadako and the Thousand Paper Cranes

Maus