Reflection on Rape of Nanking

The reading we received on the Rape of Nanking was shocking to say the least. I had heard of this event maybe once or twice beforehand but I never knew exactly what it was about. The Rape of Nanking was a brutal attack on the city of Nanking in China by Japanese military forces. Thousands of citizens, including women and even children (as seen in the picture) were murdered and raped in cold blood. One reason for this brutal attack on citizens was the strict military preparation that the Japanese soldiers received. Thousands of Chinese were massacred during this six week period. During this time, the Japanese did unimaginable things. They raped children and women and some even held "killing contests". After reading about this I was sickened to my stomach. I honestly could not believe that something such as this was allowed to happen and no one stopped it. However, even through this dark time some light shone through. John Rabe, a German businessman living in Nanking at the time, helped establish the Nanking Safety Zone. This zone was a small area in Nanking where refugees could find safety from the relentless Japanese soldiers. With his efforts and that of many other people as well, this safety zone helped treat many with injuries and also helped prevent many other injuries. While reading about Rabe, someone who could have easily left Nanking for safety and instead decided to risk his life to help people he did not even know, I was inspired. Rabe is a true hero and many years later the Chinese repaid him by helping him with his financial problems. The Rape of Nanking is one of the worst massacres in history and I am surprised to only just now have been taught about it. I am glad I now know the horrible actions that took place there even though much of it made me sick to my stomach.

Reflection on Foreign Policy Activity

A few weeks ago we did the "Hitler's Foreign Policy" activity. We are supposedly experts in foreign policy and we had to answer the presented issues to our advantage. I thought this activity was not only interesting but also required some thought. For example, the crisis in Czechoslovakia in 1938 was an issue that Hitler had to deal with. The best choice was for Germany to invade Czechoslovakia because one of the primary goals of Mein Kampf was to destroy the Treaty of Versailles. There are three million German speakers in the country of Czechoslovakia and a victory over the Czechs would finally destroy the Treaty of Versailles. Therefore, it was imperative that I choose invasion. I thought this activity was engaging and a great alternative to our usual class periods. After I had counted up all my total scores, I turned out to be a great leader according to the scale. I hope in the future that we will continue to have interactive activities such as this one which challenge our knowledge of history and foreign policy.

Connection Across Time: The Power of the Atom

In 1919 Rutherford showed that the atom could be split and by 1944 seven subatomic particles were identified. During WWII, the atomic bomb was invented after learning that the neutron could be split and chain reactions of unimaginable force was in fact possible. Today we are still worried about the prospect of nuclear warfare and we have invented even bigger bombs than before. However, we are also entering an age of nuclear energy. In fact most of France's energy needs are supplied by nuclear energy. I find that it is amazing how we have evolved in the area of the atom. We at first learned to release the energy within a neutron to destroy things but now we can capture that energy and use it for our own purposes. Because nonrenewable fuels such as gas are running out, nuclear power is a very plausible and efficient way to capture energy. Some day we might even have to rely on nuclear energy entirely as the rest of our fuel sources are depleted.

Three Musicians (1921)

This painting called "Three Musicians" by Picasso is a very eye-catching painting. It is quite obvious that Picasso is using cubism as there are really no smooth transitions but many geometric shapes and forms to display people. The colors are warm and welcoming and your eyes are immediately drawn to the man in the middle who is playing a guitar. All three gentlemen look different and are wearing different colors and styles of clothing and yet here they are together playing music. I think what Picasso was attempting to say through his painting is that people of different backgrounds can come together with the simplest of things, in this case music. Also the fact that the painting is very asymmetrical could mean that life in itself is not perfect but we have to learn to deal with it. Music is usually something that people play for comfort, entertainment or joy. By displaying different people in an asymmetrical setting playing music, Picasso is showing that people with differences can get along, even if life is not going well.

Isaac Soyer: Employment Agency (1937)

Isaac Soyer's Employment Agency is a very representative painting of the time. This painting shows the realities of the Great Depression. All four people in the painting seem to be down in spirit and almost giving up on life. The man in the brown suit especially displays these features. It looks as if he is thinking deep about what he has to do to keep food on the table if he does not get a job. The woman also seems to be pondering about something important. She will obviously have the most trouble getting a job as during this time racism was all too common and so was sexism. The painting captures the mood of the time perfectly. I can almost feel the emotions the people in the painting are feeling. I think Soyer painted this to capture a moment and to show future generations this dark time in the world. The man reading the newspaper does not have much of an expression on his face either. I am not sure what he is reading about but judging from the mood of the painting, he is probably reading about how America continues to go on a decline due to the depression. Lastly, these people seem to have been sitting there for a long time judging from the way they are sitting. There are probably very few openings for jobs and there are probably many people seeking jobs. Once again this painting depicts this time period very well.

Draussen un Drinnen (Outside and Inside) by George Grosz

This is George Grosz's Draussen und Drinnen (Outside and Inside). When I caught sight of this painting at the beginning of the chapter, I was very curious to what it meant. I stared at the picture for a few seconds and then it came to me. On the right side of the picture everyone seemed well dressed, well-fed and wealthy, whereas on the left side people are unhappy, dressed in rags, and one man even has a leg missing. I think the message of this painting is obvious. The "outside" world represents the desolate lower class. The injured man seems to be holding his hand out begging for money but no one seems to notice him. The "inside" represents the wealthy upper class. The wealthy people are shown to be obese, implying that they are well fed, and also very well dressed. One gentlemen is enjoying the luxury of a cigar while a man on the outside seems to be starving. I believe that George Grosz painted this to display the realities of life at the time. He wanted people to be aware of the social inequalities that seem to be right in front of their eyes and yet few people noticed it.

The Jihadist Next Door

During one class period we received an article about Omar Hammami, an Arab American who left the United States, the country he grew up in, to become a high-ranking terrorist leader. I found this article to be very intriguing. Omar was the son of a Baptist mother and had grown up in America. He seemed to be like any other normal teenager and even went to prom with one of the most sought-after girls in his school. The story seemed hard to believe because there seemed to be no motives for his actions. His father had taught Omar moral values and he lived in a good family environment. Why in the world would he want to leave all of that and his dreams of becoming a surgeon to become a leader in a terrorist organization? As I continued to read on about Omar, he states that “It’s quite obvious that I believe America is a target". After finishing the article I was still bewildered at how this could have possibly happened. I suppose Omar must have some strong beliefs and felt that those beliefs were more important than everything he had before.

Reflection on Age of Anxiety Powerpoints

The powerpoint presentations that were presented in class for the Age of Anxiety were really interesting. As we went down the list of topics I began to realize that I surprisingly already had a decent amount of knowledge on many of these people. It was not because I researched them before or that I am just knowledgeable about these kind of topics. Instead, I knew many of these topics and people from many of my other classes and it was a surprise to see all the connections that I could make and all the information that I already possessed on these topics. For example, one of the first topics which I really had a strong knowledge of was Albert Einstein and his theory of relativity. Not only had we studied this in physics this year but I also did my graduation project on this. It was very interesting to see Dan's perspective on this topic as he is very eccentric about all things science related. Another topic that I had pre-existing knowledge for was Frank Lloyd Wright. I had learned about him in my three years of drafting classes and in fact I even drew some of his designs. The topic which I had, Paul Cezanne and Henri Matisse, was all new to me. I had fun learning about these significant players in the world of art. In fact I had already seen some of their art before but I never knew that it was by them. One of these artworks was "Woman with a hat" by Matisse.