Section 1: Europe
Artifact 1: Prezi- Escalating Violence
Artifact 2: Breaking News Report: The King's Flight
Disguised as the servants of a Russian baroness, the king and his family attempted to escape to the Austrian border on June 21. Their destination was the stronghold of a royalist where the king planned to arrange an attack on the revolutionaries. Luckily, they only made it as far as Varennes before being captured and brought back to Tuileries in Paris.
Could a nation survive with a monarch that abandons his responsibilities at critical times? Did he just proved to us that he is reluctant to hand in his power and would turn his back on the constitution and its system of limited monarchy at any moment? Even the king’s supporter finds it hard to defend him in a situation like this; they tasted the feeling of betrayal.
Back then, although he had little real power remaining, he at least still had the faith of his country; now, thought Louis XVI constitutionally retained some power after being returned to Paris, it is clear that his days are numbered. This is a big step for the Revolution; we are one step closer to liberty. That day is not far; the day that monarchy is abolished and our beloved country declare as a Republic.
Artifact 3: French Revolution Cartoon
Artifact 4: Otto von Bismarck:the Iron Chancellor
Otto Eduard Leopold von Bismarck was born in April 1st, 1815. From 1862 to 1873 he was the prime minister of Prussia and from 1871 to 1890 he was Germany’s first Chancellor. He made the statement “The great questions of the day will not be decided by speech and solutions of majorities…but by blood and iron” in 1862 in a meeting with legislators, this “blood and iron” became a popular nickname for his policies.
In 1866, Austria was defeated in the war and was excluded from German affairs. And in 1870 to 1871, the Franco-German War was again a success of the Prussians, both leading toward the unification of Germany.
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| Bismarck in 1875 |
One of Bismarck’s achievements was the administrative reforms, which includes developing a common currency, a central bank, and a single code of commercial and civil law for Germany. Bismarck was famous for his diplomacy of Realpolitik, which is a system of politics based on practical, and not necessarily moral, considerations. From 1871 to 1890 Bismarck ruled a unified Germany, transforming it into an industrialized society. Between 1870s-80, he engaged in a number of treaties which were considered diplomatic success. German remained powerful; he smartly used potential enemies against each other, and maintained tension between rival nations for the good of Germany. He was removed by Wilhelm II in 1890, the 29 year old emperor who just ascended to his father, Kaiser Wilhelm’s position. Wilhelm II was arrogant and does not have much experience, he basically undid much of Bismarck’s accomplishments, and leading the way towards World War I. -----------------------------------------------------------
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| Wilhelm II of Germany |
excerpted from wikipedia about Wilhem II
"Taking power in 1888, he dismissed Chancellor, Prince Otto von Bismarck in 1890 and launched Germany on a bellicose "New Course" in foreign affairs, culminating in his support for Austria in the crisis of summer 1914 that caused World War I. Bombastic and impetuous, he blundered often, making major diplomatic decisions on his own, and allowing his generals to dictate policy during World War I, ignoring the civilian government. An ineffective war leader, he lost the support of the army, abdicated in November 1918, and fled to exile in the Netherlands."
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Main Sources:
2. Otto von Bismarck, the Iron Chancellor. The Master of “Realpolitik” Unified Germany by McNamara, Robert. 3. Wikipedia.org
Artifact 5: Napoleon Bonaparte
Hey :) This is a cool video I found on youtube about the French Revolution. It described the incidents that happened relating to Louis XVI and Napoleon. But please note that Napoleon crowned himself Emperor on 2 December, 1804 , not January.
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| Napoleon |
Napoleon Bonaparte was born on August 15. 1769. He was the Emperor of French from 1804 to 1815; he played a major role as military and political leader during the latter years of the French Revolution. Napoleon was trained as a military leader ever since he was a child, and won a scholarship to a French military academy at the age as young as 14.
Napoleon was perhaps one of the greatest military commanders in the history. In the first ten years of the nineteenth century, Napoleon brought the French Empire through numerous wars, which were later known as the Napoleonic Wars. After continuous victories, France under Napoleon became a dominant and threatening power in all of Europe. Napoleon was able to maintain French’s sphere of influence through the formation of alliances and the appointment of friends and family members to rule other European countries as French client states. Napoleon's campaigns are studied at military academies throughout much of the world.
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| Awesome |
Even though Napoleon was noted for his ruthlessness, however, under the states he created, he granted constitutions, introduced law codes, abolished feudalism, and
created efficient governments and did not forget the importance of education, science, literature and the arts.
One of Napoleon’s greatest achievements was the Napoleonic Code he created. The code forbid privileges based on birth, allowed freedom of religion, and stated that government jobs will give to people with the ability. The Napoleon Code was regarded by some historian as one of the few documents that have influenced the whole world; today, the Napoleon Code still forms the basis of French civil law.
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| The Battle of Waterloo |
In 1812, Napoleon’s army was badly damaged during the French invasion of Russia, and his luck never came back after that; his army was attacked a few more times by the Coalition and he was exiled to an island called Elba. However, he escaped the island within a year and became regained his power. Nevertheless, in June of 1815, Napoleon and his forces lost to the British under Duke of Wellington and Prussians during the Battle of Waterloo. Napoleon was recaptured and exiled again on the island of Saint Helena, where he passed away.
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source:
Artifact 6: 7 Billion, National Geographic Magazine
Hey guys :) This is a really awesome video by the National Geographic Magazine about the increase in human population.
Human population have been drastically growing, especially for the past one hundred years. Due to the advancement in science and technology, human's lifespan also lengthened; in the 1960s, an average person lived 53 years, in 2011, it went as high as 69. ( Although you would think most people today live longer than that, you have to consider humans who live in places such as Malawi or Sierra Leone, where an average person pass away at an age of around 40).
As the video mentioned, even though 7 billion sounds like a huge number, it isn't space that we need to worry about, it is balance. In 2008, for the first time ever, more human lived in cities than in rural areas. Like the 19th century, cities today provides people with more opportunites, convenience, and perhaps, it is simply more attractive.
If in 2045, human population really reached 9 million, what will happen to the world? Are we capable of taking care of everybody? Do we have enough resources? Can the Earth handle it?
I have absolutely no idea.
7 Billion: Are You Typical? -- National Geographic Magazine
This is a related video that I found very interesting :)
Artifact 7:Gap Minder and Analysis
In this graph, I chose income per person (GDP/capita, PPP$ inflation-adjusted) as x and life expectancy (years) as y. I chose several countries from both Africa and Europe to compare the growth over the years and analyze. In Europe, I chose the United Kingdom, France, Germany, Czech Republic, Denmark, Sweden, Romania, and Italy. In Africa, I chose Zimbabwe, Zambia, Tunisia, Algeria, Libya, Cameroon, Liberia, Chad, and Gambia. Libya, Tunisia, and Algeria are in green because they belong to the Middle East and North Africa Region. The rest of the African countries belong to the sub-Saharan Africa, which are in blue. Europe and Central Asia are in orange.
As you can see, European nations as a whole are earning much more money than those countries in blue, while the three countries in North Africa are between them. The same goes for life expectancy; France has life expectancy of 81, and most of the other European countries have life expectancy of over 70. However, for the countries in blue, the life expectancy ranges from 40-60. For North African countries, it is between 60-62. For the blue countries, their income per person does not get pass 3,000; for green countries, Libya was the most well off out of the three, earning around 12,000. For the European nations, most of them are ranged from 20,000 to 35,000. Europe earns most money and has the longest life span because of the science and medical developments of the country. Comparing with Africa, Europeans probably receive more education and have better medical equipments than the Africans. With better medical equipments and maybe more advanced knowledge of the diseases, they are able to perform more sophisticated operations that the Africans cannot perform. So why was Africa’s economy so much poorer? Africa is by far the world’s poorest inhabited continent. According to Wikipedia, it was due to Africa’s turbulent history. Since mid-20th century, the Cold War and increased corruption and despotism contributed to Africa's poor economy. The history of colonization in Africa may have also be a factor that left Africa unstable and vulnerable.
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In this picture, it shows that the
Northern countries and South Africa
are doing better than the rest. |
Another big question is, why is North Africa doing better than the sub-Saharan Africa? Even though no African nations are considered in the ranks of the developed nations yet, the entire continent still has a considerable variation of wealth. North Africa has long been closely linked to the economies of Europe and the Middle East, while South Africa is by far the continent’s wealthiest state in total GDP. The poorest states are those engaged in or just emerging from civil wars. These include the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Sierra Leone, and Burundi. Inequality is present in most African countries; with the upper class having a much higher income than the majority of the population. The current poverty of the region and its associated famines and wars have been a problem for decades. Artifact 8: Idea Page- Markets and Economics system
Hey guys, this is a diagram i created in class about "markets and economics system". This diagram shows how things are related to each other and how they all eventually end up to the consumers.
Artifact 9:Ted Videos
Lisa Gansky: The Future of Business is the "Mesh"
Listen to Lisa Gansky talk about sharing!
Salman Khan: Let's use video to reinvent education
Salman Khan is the founder of the Khan Academy. Khan Academy is a organzation to help anyone online, or in school, who wants to learn math. His original intention was to teach his cousins online; he put the videos on youtube, surprisingly for him, random people started to comment on his videos and sent emails to thank him for his great lectures. One reason that he is such a wonderful teacher is because of the tool he used; when he teach with videos, people can pause, replay, and review previous chapter as many times as they wants. His creativity allows teachers to abandon the traditional ways of teaching-- if students watch the videos at home, then they could do their homework in the classroom where the teacher will be able to help them.
I think this video relates to the topic of "sharing", because he quit his job and start devoting his time to this organization that is not for profit but for truely helping people. He said, "It was very strange for me to do something of social value."
Artifact 10: Capitalism vs. Socialism
Capitalism and Socialism are two entirely different economic systems that has its own benefits but disadvantages at the same time. The main difference between the two systems is the distribution of wealth. In capitalism, resources are privately owned. Everyone works for their own wealth; it is founded on the belief that competition brings out the best in people. [1] On the other hand, under socialism, goods are owned by the states or the public; everyone works for the wealth which is distributed equally to everyone.
But which system is better? Which one helps a country flourish? Which one is fairer? Socialists believe that capitalism widens the gap between the rich and the poor because all the money and power went exclusively to a certain group of people whereas the rest of the society suffers the unfair treatment. But of course, capitalists have a completely different set of theory; competition is the best way to produce the best products— no one will have the desire to work hard if everyone gets the equal share.
According to Karl Marx, a 19th century political economist, he believed that capitalism, which was the dominant form of economic management at that time, leads to the oppression of the proletariat; they not only make up the majority of the world’s population but also spend their lives working for the benefit of the bourgeoisie. In the first half of the 19th century the working classes in the newly industrializing countries of England and Germany suffered under many forms of exploitation. Peasants were fixed in a place on the land and their incomes were limited. Socialism was created for the purpose of equality; during the industrial revolution, the working class wanted the factory owners to share their wealth. After all, the wealth was created by the underpaid working class’s hard laboring. So from their point of view, the wealth they’ve generated was wrongfully distributed. As Karl Marx once said “Capitalist production, therefore, develops technology, and the combining together of various processes into a social whole, only by sapping the original sources of all wealth - the soil and the laborer.” Finally, in 1864, the International Working Men’s Association was formed, otherwise known as the “First International”. It was powerfully influenced by Marxism, and became a dominant force in European socialism. [3]
On the other hand, as the 19th century began, Europe went through the Napoleonic Wars, and then the Industrial Revolution. The war stimulated the growth of certain industries, such as pig iron; the growth of Britain’s industry lead to the growth of her system of finance— banks. Banks are now more than the affairs of affluent families; a new sort of banking was created— owned by anonymous stockholders, and the amount of individuals who saved small amount of money began to grow. As you can see, capitalism produces and stimulated individuals, especially entrepreneurs, for the growth of economic activity. One reason the United Kingdom became more and more important as the center of capitalism was because they open the opportunities to talented foreigners. For instance, in 1717, Johann Baring went to Bremen and became a successful cloth merchant. His sons, John and Francis Baring, became one of the most influential bankers of his time as they set up a trading company in London. In the year of his death, 1810, he was said to have 7 million pounds. [4] In 1824, Erie Canal was under construction in the United States, and as many investors look to the emerging markets today, many European investors saw opportunities in America. In 1869, the Transcontinental Railroad was completed. It was built so that trade, commerce and travel can be more efficient and convenient. Capitalism was changing the world, and making it a smaller place.
Winston Churchill once said “The inherent vice of capitalism is the unequal sharing of blessings; the inherent virtue of socialism is the equal sharing of miseries” Of course, there are plenty of miseries under capitalism too, but it allows people to work hard for themselves. So the quote will be more accurate if “unequal sharing” is changed to “unequal earnings”, because that was the reality. The huge flaw in socialism is that very little greed and jealousy can exist and people must have a general feeling of charity and a willingness to work their hardest for the good of everyone. [2] Apparently, that is a little difficult to achieve. It doesn’t exist because of human nature—greedy, egoistic, and lusts for power. To prove my point, just think, how likely would there be a group of extremely hard working people who are happy to receive the same amount of earnings as a group of people who does nothing at all and receive the same amount of earnings that they don’t deserve? If you are an optimist you are willing to believe that someday it will happen, then, what will the society become? The society would be depraved and corrupted. Lazy people will rely on hard working people, this leads to a society of free riding and slacking. [2] From New York Times Book Review, Stephen Pollard said “it was that socialism itself—in all its incarnations, wherever and however it was applied—was morally corrupting”. Even though Socialism won’t work unless everybody is willing, but capitalism will; it’s just that those who don’t want to participate will suffer the consequences.
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1. What is the Difference between Capitalism and Socialism? By M.R. Anglin
2. Socialism vs. Capitalism by B. Taylor.
3. Introduction to 19th-Century Socialism by Paul Brian
Section 2: Austonia
Artifact 11: Austonia
Hey :) Currently, the 19th century humanities classes are working on creating their own nations, which includes creating our nation's own laws, populations, geography, etc.
Nation's Profile:
I can't find a way to post my nation's profile on here so try this link:
Map:
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| Part 1 |
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| Island of Sumba |
Stop Disasters:
http://www.stopdisastersgame.org/en/home.html
Preventive Measures
Our countries top officials grew increasingly aware of the fact that a potential disaster was to come. We realized it was of utmost importance to be thoroughly prepared. Thus, we decided to type up a report of preventive measures and simulate the experience in order to be able to handle the crisis in the best way possible.
In the simulation “Stop Disasters”, our objective was to keep the damages, injuries, and deaths to the minimum. Our group selected the tsunami simulation due to the fact that the majority of our country was surrounded by a large mass of water. We started out with the easy simulation in order to be able to properly grasp the concept before diving in headfirst.
We had to choose between the options of different kinds of housing, defenses, and upgrades available to save as much lives as possible, all within a limited amount of budget.
Before building a structure, it was wise to use the risk map to see which areas would be the best to build. We fit our population into densely populated areas on cliffs, which were completely risk free. Those who could not be fit onto the cliffs were put into the other least destructive areas where the buildings were raised and foundations were stabilized.
In community centre, it is imperative to have radio system and local alarm system in order to issue warning messages. Having local alarms with loudspeakers is quickest way to alert people to take actions. It is essential to have evacuating training because it saves a lot of time and frustration during the real evacuation. It is necessary for the hotel staffs to be trained as well, they must be take courses so that they will be prepared to protect the tourists when disaster strikes.
Children are often among the people most vulnerable to disasters. Education can make a difference between life and death. Simulation exercises are a good way to learn what to do; it increases their awareness toward disasters, and thus getting a better chance of surviving during emergencies. For building upgrades, raising the buildings from the ground because hugely increases its integrity during tsunami.The building will allow much of the waves power to pass below the building resulting in less damaging flooding. Reinforce the structure of the building to make it more resistant to possible damage in the event of disaster. Deep foundation provides great resistance to huge waves and firm, strong structures; The building will allow much of the waves power to pass below the building resulting in less damaging flooding.
As for defenses, although pricey, seismic censors can detect seismic waves, alerting people up to 4 hours before tsunami reaches a location. An early warning system can save lives. Concrete breakwaters can be constructed in the ocean to protect bays against large waves. Sand dunes can provide effective protection against tsunami. It spread out much of the waves power before it reaches land. Planting mangroves, coconut trees along the coast helps provide natural protection.
Before the disaster struck, we upgraded as many buildings as we could, and used the remainder of money to build defenses along the coast. Result : 49 people was injured, 49 people did not survive the tsunami. The final score of our simulation was 78,810, we were rewarded a gold metal for this scenario.
Section 3: Africa
Artifact 12: The Hadza
Hadza is a very fascinating ethnic group in the north central Tanzania. They are not closely related to other people, and they are the last full-time hunter-gatherers in Africa. They hunt when they are hungry, and sleep anytime they want; they don’t exactly keep tract of their time. Individual autonomy is the hallmark of the Hadza. No Hadza adult has authority over any other. None has more wealth; or, rather, they all have no wealth. There are few social obligations—no birthdays, no religious holidays, no anniversaries.
What does it mean to be a person in Hadza tribe? What do they know that we’ve forgotten?
Their life seems so simple; nowadays, let’s say, a student in KAS, our main objective is to go to school, learn a lot of things ( some that will never come in handy), do a lot of projects, homework, presentation, in eleventh grade there’s IB, do community service, get the diploma, and get into a good college and make money. We live in a completely different world, an unhappier one I’d say.
So why aren’t they sitting in a chair 7 hours a day learning things that we learn? Well, I’d say the answer is quite obvious—they don’t need to know. Their culture gives us a glimpse of what life may have been like before the birth of agriculture 10,000 years ago. They are hunter-gatherers, they may not know a lot about everything else that’s going on around the world, but they have a sufficient amount of knowledge and skills that enables them to survive in their world. I love how much they know about nature, to me, that’s what we should be learning about.
Onwas, a senior member of a group in the Hadza, has lived all his life in the bush. He can start a fire, twirling a stick between his palms, in less than 30 seconds. He can converse with a honeyguide bird, whistling back and forth, and be led directly to a teeming beehive. He knows everything there is to know about the bush and virtually nothing of the land beyond. Isn’t that amazing? He knows his habitat so well and is able to do so many things that a regular businessman or student is incapable of doing. Why are our lives so complicated? Why do we make it so complicated? Why do I feel so dumb when I see what they can do, and see what I can do? What are really the important things to know? I have absolutely no wildlife surviving skills, I don’t know how to start a fire, I can’t find a beehive. So what can I do? Hmmm…I can memorize the elements in the periodic table, I know how to use sine, cosine, and tangent. I know how to use a while loop in Python. And that is exactly why I’ll die instantly if you throw me into nature.
Another thing I love about this tribe is that they don’t keep track of time. They ignore hours and days and weeks and months. When the author of the article made an appointment for visit, he scheduled it to be three weeks. Onwas promised to send his son to a particular tree to meet him when the time comes. Three weeks later, when he arrived, there was Onwas's son Ngaola waiting. Apparently, Onwas had noted the stages of the moon, and when he felt enough time had passed, he sent his son to the tree. He asked Ngaola if he'd waited a long time. "No," he said. "Only a few days." I find Ngaola’s reply quite funny but I also envy him at the same time. He say a couple of days like a couple of minutes; they seems so relaxed, never rushing for anything. Never too busy for anything, never too stressed about running out of time. This is so wonderful because I really think people will be happier if they’re don’t have to worry about time all the time. If people can just do whatever they want whenever they want, the amount of stress can greatly reduced and people won’t be forced to do things they don’t want to do. But I know the world doesn’t work that way, at least not in our world.
According to Michael Finkel, the author of this article, the two weeks he spent with the Hadza made him happier. It altered his perception of the world. They made him feel calmer, more attuned to the moment, more self-sufficient, a little braver, and in less of a constant rush. He said “There are things I envy about the Hadza—mostly, how free they appear to be. Free from possessions. Free of most social duties. Free from religious strictures. Free of many family responsibilities. Free from schedules, jobs, bosses, bills, traffic, taxes, laws, news, and money. Free from worry. Free to burp and fart without apology, to grab food and smoke and run shirtless through the thorns.” He wish there was some way to prolong the reign of the hunter-gatherers, but he knew it’s almost certainly too late.
Over the past century, the Hadza have lost exclusive possession of as much as 90 percent of their homeland. Dirt roads are now carved into the edges of the Hadza bush. A paved road is within a four-day walk. Onwas himself senses that profound changes are coming, but this does not appear to bother him. Onwas has repeatedly stated that doesn't worry about the future. He doesn't worry about anything. According to the author, no Hadza he met seemed to worry. “It was a mind-set that astounded me, for the Hadza, to my way of thinking, have very legitimate worries. ‘Will I eat tomorrow?’ ‘Will something eat me tomorrow?’ Yet they live a remarkably present-tense existence.”
Developed country versus Hadza tribe in who knows how to live, I’d say we’re greatly defeated. We fail .
Artifact 13: Sir Henry Morton Stanley
Sir Henry Morton Stanley was born in 1841, and passed away in 1904. He was considered the most effective explorer of his time. He led expeditions along the Congo and the Nile, and paved the way for ruthless colonial rule in these areas at the same time. Stanley accepted the invitation of King Leopold of Belgium to explore the Congo -- an expedition that led to the establishment of the "Congo Free State" under the sovereignty of King Leopold. Leopold II ruthlessly exploited the country's natural resources; therefore Stanley had to defend himself when he was held responsible for helping establish the rule of Leopold II over the Congo Free State.
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'Dr. Livingstone, I presume?'
"Yes", said he, with a kind smile, lifting his cap slightly. |
He is famous for his exploration of Africa and his search for David Livingstone. He traveled 700 miles in 236 days before he found the missionary-explorer David Livingstone on the island of Ujiji. At meeting Livingstone, Stanley uttered his famous greeting words: "Doctor Livingstone, I presume?"
Stanley's expedition had suffered through over six and a half months of drought, famine, floods, dysentery and starvation before it reached Ujiji. Two Thirds of the original number of porters had deserted or died.
Together with Livingstone, they explored the northern end of Lake Tangayika, which was claimed by some as the source of the Nile River. In 1874, Stanley started his second adventure in central Africa. During this journey, Stanley discovered the Shimeeyu River, and navigated around Victoria Nyanza, proving it to be the second-largest freshwater lake in the world. On August 12, 1877, he reached the Atlantic Ocean.
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| Emin Pasha |
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| Leopold II |
From 1886 to 1889, the Emin Pasha Relief Expedition, led by Henry Morton Stanley, took place. It was one of the last major European Expeditions into the interior of Africa in the 19th century. The goal was to rescue Emin, the governor of Equatoria in the southern Sudan, by going up the Congo River and through the Ituri forest, which was an extremely difficult route to cross. Stanley was ordered by Leopold II to take this route, the longer route, because Leopold hopes to acquire more territory and maybe even Equatoria. It was celebrated such a great ambition, but notorious at the same time for the bloodshed and death that resulted from the expedition. After the difficulties they went through and all the lives that were lost, Stanley finally met Emin in 1888. This expedition, unlike the previous ones which brought Stanley satisfaction, only led to disasters. James Jameson, Stanley’s subordinate, bought an eleven-year old girl and offered her to cannibals in order to document and sketch how she was cooked and eaten. This expedition stained Stanley's reputation because of the conduct of his companions.
Artifact 14: David Livingstone
David Livingstone was born in March 19, 1813 in Scotland. He arrived in Africa in 1840 at the age of 27 as a missionary and physician. In 1866, Livingstone set out an expedition in hopes of finding the sources of the River Nile, and to end the slave trade. During his exploration, he completely lost contact with the outside world for six years, thus he was thought to have be lost or even died during the journey. As a result, Henry Stanley was sent to find him, and Stanley achieved his goal on November 10, 1871. Upon meeting him, Stanley uttered his famous greeting word “Dr. Livingstone, I presume?” Stanley found Livingstone in the town of Ujiji on the shores of Lake Tanganyika. As Livingstone was ill for the last four years of his life, his illness caused him to have judgment difficulties. Regardless of Stanley’s urgings, Livingstone was adamant to stay in Africa until he completed his mission. With new supplies from Stanley, Livingstone continued his efforts to find the source of the Nile. Due to his poor health, he passed away in 1 May 1873. His body was taken back to England and buried in Westminster Abbey.
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| David Livingstone memorial at the Victorian Falls |
The Victorian Falls was considered by some to be among the Seven Natural Wonders of the World. Between year 1852 to 1856, Livingstone was believed to be the first European to witness the magnificence of Victorian Falls. He named the fall the “Victorian Falls” in honor of Queen Victoria.
Artifact 15: Scramble for Africa
Hey :) This is a really informative and interesting video I found on youtube about the Scramble for Africa. Enjoy!
The Scramble for Africa took place during the New Imperialism period, which was between year 1881 to World War I in 1914. It took place because of several factors:
- End of the Slave Trade
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| David Livingstone |
In an effort to stop slave trade, abolitionists in Britain and the rest of Europe wanted people to report the slave trading activities. As a result, explorers such as David Livingstone went into the land of Africa to gain more information to stop this dehumanizing act.
-Exploration
People were curious about the world; they wanted to learn more about this country, the creatures, the natural resources, and the sources of the major rivers. Gradually, European became more ambitious, rather than curiosity, they began aiming at making profits.
- Henry Morton Stanley
Out of all the explorers in Africa during that time, he was the most related explorer that contributed to the Scramble for Africa. Even though Stanley traveled to Africa to find David Livingstone, another objective of the journey was to explore the continent for Leopold II of Belgium, who saw the potential in expanding his country and power. Stanley's work motivated other European explorers to do the same for their country.
-Capitalism.
The European nations had their eyes on the abundant resources of Africa; rubber, coffee, sugar, palm oil, timber. Explorers entered Africa to seek for raw materials; they exploit the lands and locals of Africa to make profit for themselves.
In 1884-1885, the Berlin Conference took place. It was organized by Otto von Bismarck, the Chancellor of Germany. Major western powers were gathered to discuss the control over Africa, of course, the African tribes did not get invited to participate. Bismarck sees the conference as a chance to increase Germany’s sphere of influence over Africa, and hoped for other nations to have disputes over the territories. The participating countries includes: Austria-Hungary, Belgium, Denmark, France, Germany, Great Britain, Italy, the Netherlands, Portugal, Russia, Spain, Sweden-Norway, Turkey, and the United States of America. France, Germany, Great Britain, and Portugal were the major players in the conference.
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| The divided Africa |
T
he conference destroyed most of the existing forms of African autonomy, which is a system of self government. Before the conference, 80% of Africa was under their own control and governed under their own traditional way, and only coastal areas were colonized by European powers. However, in the conference, without even bothering for the consent of the Africans, the European nations decided to draw the boundaries for them and dividing it into countries and sprang for a piece of its interior. Disputes and fights were inevitable as rival tribes or people of different cultures who did not get along were put together.
Many Africans wanted to resist, unfortunately the European Nations were armed with much more advanced weapons, and the Africans were not match for them. The act of distribution among themselves went on and on. By 1914, Africa was fully divided into fifty countries by the European nations.
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| A cartoon depicting Leopold II as a rubber vine entangling a Congoleseman |
It was estimated that in the Congo Free State, 8 million out of 16 million native inhabitants died between 1885 to 1908 under the brutal rule of Leopold II of Belgium.
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Sources:
Wikipedia.org
What Caused the Scramble for Africa? Why was Africa so rapidly colonized? By Alistair Boddy-Evans
Artifact 16 :Youtube Video - Shaka Zulu
Shaka kaSenzangakhona, or ShakaZulu was the most influential leader of the Zulu Kingdom.
His story was made into TV series in 1986 (Which you could found on youtube). It was based on the story of Shaka, the king of Zulu from 1816 to 1828. The series consisted of 10 episodes and approximately 50 minutes each in length.
In this video, they discuss the making of this TV series;
Some of the things I found very interesting:
- They used actual Zulu people to tell the story more realistically.
- The Zulu actress who played Nandi said that back at home, her parents tell them about Shaka Zulu all the time, how great they are, how important they were. To her, he was portrayed as the greatest man that ever lived.
- According to the director, the history book tends to deliberately distort Zulu history and depict him as a “raving lunatic savage”. The director stated that the Zulu has an as complicated government system as our own and he wanted to correct the wrongful image we have on the Zulu.
- It helped them “look past the colors”. According to the director, some young white kids have looked past the color and play Shaka Zulu at school, have big pictures on their wall, and look at them as heroic figures irrespective of their color. (Remember that the series was made in 1986.)
I’m not exactly sure when this video was made, but I don’t agree that African history has been neglected. It is just important as the history of other countries and I thought Africa’s history is very fascinating and everybody (well, people who are interested in history) would like to study it.
You can go watch a lot of the series on youtube, this one is sort of like the introduction; in the description box, it says “Shaka Zulu in a moment of realization.”
:D
Eyes on Africa Project
Hey guys, recently i just finished and presented a project in class. It's called Eyes on Africa, which we basically need to select a region, tribe, or culture and do a report on it. I chose the Democratic Republic of Congo.
I presented by making a small book that contains history of Congo and its leaders from the 19th century to the modern day. Unfortunately i dont have the book with me right now but i will add photos of it when i remember to bring it home.
Some information i includes:
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Much of the fighting in the Congo is fueled by
a desire to control its many valuable natural resources.
Photo by James Nachtwey |
Sir Henry Morton Stanley--- how he paved the way for the ruthless rule of Leopold II
the Scramble for Africa
Statistics of casualties
Primary source--"The Black Man's Burden" by Edward Morel
Riots in the 1950s and the Independence of Congo
Leaders of Congo-- includes the corrupted leader Mobutu Sese Seko who plundered Congo's natural resources for more than three decades
The issue of child soldier--- include some quotes from them
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| Photo by James Nachtwey |
I chose to do Congo because we watched a film called Hotel Rwanda, which was a story of the horrible Rwandan Genocide in 1994. After watching it, Mr. Kinzer said (something like) he wa upset after he watched the film because such a serious problem took place but we don't even know about it. When i was researching about Congo, i found out that from 1998-2008 more than 5 million people have died, yet i didn't even know about it, which is why i decided to make a report on it because it is such a serious event and my audiences should know about it. After reading all the horrible things that Congolese men, women, and children--- especially children were forced to do and endure, i truely felt very very lucky to be born in Taiwan and i think i know more about life. Everytime i think life sucks, i always remind myself of the Congolese who suffered much much more but still fights to survive. I really learned alot from making this project and i hope you will too :)
Hotel Rwanda
Hotel Rwanda is a wonderful movie we watched weeks ago in class, and i'm here to share the story with you.
"In 1994 in Rwanda, a million members of the Tutsi tribe were killed by members of the Hutu tribe in a massacre that took place while the world looked away. "Hotel Rwanda" is not the story of that massacre. It is the story of a hotel manager who saved the lives of 1,200 people by being, essentially, a very good hotel manager."
- Roger Ebert
Roger Ebert's movie review is quite interesting, read more at :
http://rogerebert.suntimes.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20041221/REVIEWS/41213001
As Roger Ebert described, it is a film about the conflict between the Hutu and the Tutsi. Here is a rough timeline:
-Around the 1920s, Belgium gained control over Rwanda and gave Tutsi more priviledge than Hutu, although Hutus are the majority of the people in Rwanda.
-Since then, a more distinct division was between the two people were formed; rebellions and revolutions took place. Tutsis often have to flee to Burundi; it is estimated that around half of Tutsi was living outside of Rwandain the 1960s.
-From 1970s to 1980s Tutsis were often excluded, such as from universities, or availability of jobs.
-In 1986, RPF, or Rwandan Patriotic Front, a Tutsi dominated organization, was formed.
- The fighting continued. Accords were signed but fighting continues after a period of time.
-In April 6, 1994, President Habyarimana was killed, and it sparked the Rwandan Genocide.
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| Juvénal Habyarimana |
Juvénal Habyarimana was President of the Republic of Rwanda from 1973 until 1994. During his 20-year rule he favored his own ethnic group, the Hutus, and supported the Hutu majority in neighboring Burundi against the Tutsi government.
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| Paul Rusesabagina |
During the genocide, Paul Rusesabagina used his influence and connections as temporary manager of the Mille Collines to shelter
1,268 Tutsis and moderate Hutus from being slaughtered by the Interahamwe militia.
Interahamwe militia- armed civilian militias trained by Rwandan army
One of the most memorable lines in the film was "“
If people see this footage[of people being slaughtered]
, they'll say, 'Oh my God, that's terrible,' and they'll go on eating their dinners,”"
-Western journalist, Jack
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| Paul and Colonel Oliver |
The UN Peacekeeping forces were unable to take clear actions against the Interahamwe since they are forbidden to intervene in the genocide.
In one part of the film, even though some critics said it disgresses from the truth:
"As jeeps laden with UN troops drive up to the hotel the refugees are ecstatic: “We’re saved!” Then the exasperated UN Colonel has to break the news to Paul: “They’re not going to stay. They’re not going to stop the slaughter.” UN troops declare: “No Rwandans – only foreign nationals” as they check passports before hotel guests can board the buses. The Rwandans are devastated: “We’re being abandoned!” "
(from movie review by Dr. Peter Hammond)
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In one scene, the frustrated
Colonel Oliver blamed
racism for the indifference displayed
by the Western powers.
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By July of 1994, around 1 million were dead. If the UN had act a little bit more quickly, perhaps the outcome would have been drastically different.
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Sources:
www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/shows/rwanda/etc/cron.html (timeline)
Wikipedia
http://www.frontline.org.za/articles/hotel_rwanda.htm
Perspectives
Hey :) Weeks ago students in our class were divided into three groups : Zulu, British, and Boer. Our task was to portray their perspectives to the class.
My group was the Boer group, which is what i'm mainly focusing on :D
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| Boer guerrillas during the Second Boer War |
This prezi have pictues that described the Britsh view of their treatment to the Boers.
Here is the script of our short script of the Boer view, enjoy :)
Characters:
British officer: Jennifer
British officer's boss: Lika
Boer mother: Kelly Lo
Boer child: Grace
Boer prisoner: Veronica
Scene 1
(At the prison camp)
(officer pushes a mother and child roughly into a prison camp)
(officer leaves after kicking the mother and the child)
Mother: those British people are so cruel and arrogant. How can they justify their actions of imprisoning children and stealing our homeland, which we had only recently fought off from those barbaric Zulus!
Boer prisoner: I completely agree
(child: runs around and cries)
Boer prisoner: i wouldn't touch that if i were you. The fence will electrify you and give you a painful death. These British, they please themselves by talking about how nice they are to us, but in fact they just kill us off slowly. You look like a healthy child, so you might get lucky, you you should still be careful.
Boer child: Why are they so mean, why are they taking our home away?
Boer prisoner: The British are a bunch of selfish people who thinks everything is theirs. They want our resources, they exploited our lands, and keeps the profit to themselves. They had their ees on our minderals and diamonds. After the went through the Industrial Revolution, they now have transportation that travels at incredible speed, not to mention the deadly weapons that kills a person in seconds.
Boer child: What can we do?? (sad)
Boer mother: It scares me just being around those dirty rats. For all their talk of chivalry, they've never treatedme or any other Boer womandecently before.
Boer prisoner: (sigh) They destroyed our farms and confiscated our food and just put us, the civilians, in these camps!! Thousands of woman and children have already died, how man more are going to follow??
Boer child: (cries) I'm so hungry!!
Boer Mom: Shh, don't cry. They give even less food for prisoners whose husband or father is still in war. You can'tdo anything about it but just please tr your best to survive through this. ( sigh) My child, i doubt if i will live for long. The condition of this camp, with such poor hygiene and diet i'm certain i will catch a disease pretty soon. I have no expectations for the medical facilities here. (All Boers put on a sad face and end scene)
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Scene 2
Meanwhile, at the British camp
Boss: Enter, Officer Bradley
Officer: Yes, sir!
Boss: I would ike you to report about the conditions in the Boer prisner camp. Lately, the public has been restless, complaining about the conditions in the camp. Have our recent efforts t sanitize and bring order to the camps been effective?
Officer: Yes, sir. I can see very clearly that the camps have been organized very well. I have a written report, but i can give you a short overview now. In short, the captured Boers are confined in large enclosures, which are peaceful and quiet. An electrically charged wire lattce has been implemented, giving the camp health and security. This fence permits the prisoners a free view outside and they thus enjoy the illusion of freedom. I am also touchedto say that the Boer women have been treated withconsideration and solicitude, despite that they deserve less. Furthermore, the child are healthy and playful; the precuations we have taken have reduced child mortality to 380 per 1000.
Boss: Very well. I see that these adjustments have been well made and we have done more than enough to make the camps clean and safe, as fitting of a nation as proud and cizilized as ours.
End of Play
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Background info
There were a total of 45 tented camps built for Boer internees ( people who are confined during wartime) and64 for black African ones. Of the 28000 Boer men captured as prisoners of war, 25630 were sent overseas. Therefore, most Boers that remained in the local camps were women and children, but the native Africans also held a lrge numbers of men as well.
A report shows that 27927 Boers ( 22074 were children under 16) and 14154 black Africans had died of starvation, disease and exposure in the concentration camps.
sources:
http://www.answers.com/topic/internment
http://www.boer-war.com/Details2nd/Camps.html
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*This script has no intention to insult anybody, i apologize if you feel offended by it :o
