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The Roles Played by Western Countries in Shaping the Changes and Development of China Since the Mid-Nineteenth Century to 197
The Roles Played by Western Countries in Shaping the Changes and Development of China Since the Mid-Nineteenth Century to 1978
Introduction
After a long isolationism period in the 19th century, China was under immense pressure from Western countries to open up to foreign relations and trade. Fueled by the Industrial Revolution that had sparked unprecedented levels of growth in Europe and the United States, there were huge gaps between China and the West (Valentini, 2012). China was significantly behind in terms of its military might and performance as well as technological advancement. At the time, China did not have the capacity to resist the Western countries, leading to an unequal agreement and treaties that forced China to open its ports as well as cities to foreigners for trade and other diplomatic relations. China’s response to the Western nations entry into Asia was different fro that of other countries like Japan. The former refused to yield to Western pressure, leading to reduced modernization and lesser interaction with the outside world. Tensions between the Chinese authorities and the British in the mid-nineteenth century led to the first of the Opium Wars, leading up to the Chinese defeat and the birth of unequal treaties (Garnaut, Song, & Fang, 2018). The treaties signed at the time were unfavorable for China, yet marked a period of increased interactions between the West and the East. Ultimately, Western countries played a vital role in bringing new ideas and technologies to China following the Industrial Revolution that shaped several changes and development of the Chinese landscape.
Introduction of New and Modern Means of Communication and Transportation
One of the main roles of the Western countries in China was the introduction of new and more modern means of communication and transportation. As the West aggressively sought trade with China, the latter benefited from the Industrial Revolution in Britain, Europe, and America. As a result, the opening up of the Chinese transport and communications infrastructure meant that more goods and products were available for trade. While this benefited the Chinese, the Western nations enjoyed the profitable trade even more. The result was an opening up of the country for trade, change in the way people communicated and moved from one space to the next, and the overall change in the transport and communication culture of the Chinese people (Zhao & Xie, 1992). The improvement of the transport and communication network to match the standards in the rest of the developed world was a crucial step to increase the interaction between China and the outside world between the mid-19th century and 1978.
Introduction of a Strong Export Market for China
Another major role of the Western countries in shaping the changes and development of China was the creation of a thriving export market. Previously, the Chinese government had confined all business relations to the frontier, especially with foreigners (Wright, 2000). However, the influence of the Western countries opened up export activities and other business opportunities after the 1842 treaty of Nanking ending the Opium War with Britain (Capen, 1912). The ceding of Hong Kong to the English and the opening up of five ports in Shanghai, Canton, Ningpo, Amoy, and Foochow saw a new era in the way China handled foreign relations in regard to business. Pressure and the changes that occurred at the time led to further opening up of China to foreigners and the increase in the number of Chinese ports on navigable rivers and the coast to increase export and foreign trade. The development of foreign trade remains to be one of the most significant roles that Western countries had on China, instituting changes that have defined the country up to date.
Integration of the Chinese Market to the Global Economy
The integration of the Chinese market into the 19th and 20th century world economy was also a significant role that was instituted by western countries between the mid-nineteenth century to the period before 1978. America and Britain were some of the most important trade partners that China had at the time. They introduced changes to the Chinese culture and society by providing alternative ways to do business, to transport goods, and brought about new ideologies applicable in the political and social arenas (Hsu, 1984). The new way of thinking was important in the introduction of modernization, and especially in ensuring that China was fit to operate its trade activities with the rest of the world. The nation was able to move from a confined system that controlled every movement and exchange from a frontier perspective to allow a more expansive global interaction to market Chinese products to the rest of the world. The establishment of China as a key trading partner for the West was largely due to the influence of British and American influences and trade. The role of the West was one that involve facilitation, not just for the products out of China but also for the foreign businesses headquartered in the new China.
Exerting Direct Pressure to Change the Chinese Commerce Scene
The role of Western countries in shaping the changes and development of China since the mid-nineteenth century to 1978 took any different channels, chief among those being the exertion of direct pressure on the Chinese government and forcing changes in the way foreigners and foreign trade were treated. China had for centuries remain a key trading partner for Western countries. However, it used a rigid system that was centrally controlled, minimizing the interaction of the people with foreigners and restricting trade to terms that were only beneficial to China (Capen, 1912). However, the Industrial Revolution in America and Europe left China at a great disadvantage. It could no longer resist the mighty power of European and American forces and their agendas. The efforts to open up China to foreign trade and commerce were realized during the mid-nineteenth century and the government was forced to adopt changes to the way it perceived and interacted with traders at all levels of commerce.
Immigration and Exchange of Ideals and Ideologies through Country-Level Interactions
The interaction between the Western countries and China also allowed movement between the East and the West. Specifically, the early 20th century saw a considerable number of students and diplomats from China visit the West and familiarize with Western ideals and institutions. On the return of these individuals back home, the ideas and ways of thinking influenced how they interacted with others, including political ideas, religious beliefs, cultural differences, social setups, and so on (Osterhammel, 1989). Chinese immigrants who settled in Europe and in America helped to spread the influence and knowledge to progressive classes back in China. Similarly, the introduction of Western publications and books in China that provided fact on western achievements, thoughts, and life shaped the way young people perceived western influence. The influence of Chinese people who resided or visited the West and become familiar with the western way of life was profound in China. It influenced changes in the way people perceived life, interactions, relations, politics, and individual ideals on progress and prosperity. The influence that primarily rocked the port cities brought about a wave of changes to the way the Chinese society perceived a number of things from the political, economic, social, cultural, and religious realms in relation to life and the interaction with others.
Religious Influence
The Chinese society was primarily social and political in its composition without a lot of religious power to influence ideology and social ideals. The introduction of Christian missionaries in China was able to reach the more remote parts of China, enabling rural China to get a glimpse of the outside world and to help in changing the inner workings of the Chinese society. Christianity, although limited by the dominant Buddhist and Confucius ideals, was able to achieve where government pressure and trade had failed. It brought about an embodiment of the Western way of life and its very foundation (Capen, 1912). Christianity achieved pervasive individual influence and laying of a foundation for new thinking. It enabled the Chinese locals to be more understanding of the western culture and to accept the ideals that western foreigners brought to China.
Overall Role of Western Countries in Changing and Developing China
The entry of Western countries into China marked a new era in how the country opened up, changed, and developed. While a majority of the changes were as a result of direct pressure exerted by British and other Western players, the aftermath was a new age not just for the locals but also for the country and its position in the world economy. The western countries, through their direct and indirect influence and participation, were able to modify the political and educational systems in China. The Christian missionaries were effective in changing the ethical, educational, and philanthropic ideals. The pressure from the western nations in 1854 changed the way trade was conducted and controlled in China, allowing foreign control and interception from externally-situated businesses. Foreigners gained a lot of power and influence as they were able to collect customs and to open up China to the rest of the world for global trade. Communication and transportation of goods were thoroughly overhauled by the introduction of postal services and custom control. Foreign traders led to the establishment of the first railway service in China in the 19th century opening up Shanghai and Wusung. The simple improvements to the way people moved, communicated, conducted businesses, and interacted with the government and other entities led to the new China. The period between the mid-nineteenth century up to 1978 was one rocked with numerous changes (Nield, 2015). The Chinese society changed significantly. While a majority of the changes were forced upon the Chinese society, several others were freely accepted as a result of the interactions between the foreigners and the people of China. The opening up of the country to trade and the free movement of people from China to the west created new ideals. A mix of Chinese culture and those of westerners led to the emergence of new ideologies in China, including political goodwill and societal changes. The results were a lot of changes to the way the Chinese economy was before, a change in the political realm, and the opening up of China to foreign influence.
Western competition and influence led to industrial changes in China and the development of various sectors and industries. The opening up of mines, the creation of large manufacturing plants, the rise of factories, the introduction of the railway, and other changes such as the introduction of a postal service in the country were all changes and developments introduced by western countries (Hou, 2013). The role of western countries was to transform China by introducing the benefits of the Industrial Revolution to the East. Western-trained Chinese people came back to the country with knowledge and experience that altered the traditional composition of the society, including the leadership and governance structures. The pressure of population in China was an issue that western ideals helped to manage through improving education, creating relative mobility, and allowing changes to the way people perceived trade. Essentially, western countries played a role that included upgrading the lifestyle of the Chinese.
Conclusion
The aim of this discussion was to showcase how western countries participated in shaping the changes and development of China since the mid-nineteenth century to 1978. China was very resistant to foreign and western entry and control. The result of this attitude was military and violent conflicts that changed the landscape of development and changes. Compared to other nations in the East such as Japan, China’s resistance policy saw the nation lag behind in development, an aspect that later saw it lose position to Japan and become a colony of the latter. The treaties signed at the time were unfavorable for China, yet marked a period of increased interactions between the West and the East. In the end, Western countries played a vital role in bringing new ideas and technologies to China following the Industrial Revolution that shaped several changes and development of the Chinese landscape. Western countries brought about new and modern means of communication and transportation, led the creation of a thriving export market, brought about the integration of the Chinese market into the 19th and 20th century world economy, and exerting direct pressure on the Chinese government and forcing changes in the way foreigners and foreign trade were treated. Western countries were able to influence the composition of the basic Chinese society, political realm, economic sector, the rise of industries, education, culture, religion, and various other areas of life.
References
Capen, E. W. (1912). The Western Influence in China. J. Race Dev., 3, 412.
Garnaut, R., Song, L., & Fang, C. (2018). China’s 40 years of reform and development: 1978–2018. ANU Press.
Hou, C. M. (2013). Foreign investment and economic development in China, 1840-1937. Harvard University Press.
Hsu, C. K. (1984). Foreign interests, state and gentry-merchant class: railway development in early modern China, 1895-1911 (Doctoral dissertation, Brown University).
Nield, R. (2015). China’s Foreign Places: The Foreign Presence in China in the Treaty Port Era, 1840–1943. Hong Kong University Press.
Osterhammel, J. (1989). British business in China, 1860s-1950s.
Valentini, G. (2012). China and Japan’s Responses to the West in the 19th Century. Available at https://www.e-ir.info/2013/11/04/chinese-and-japanese-responses-to-the-west-during-the-19th-century/
Wright, D. (2000). Translating Science: The transmission of western chemistry into late imperial China, 1840-1900 (Vol. 48). Brill.
Zhao, X., & Xie, Y. (1992). Western influence on (People’s Republic of China) Chinese students in the United States. Comparative Education Review, 36(4), 509-529.
A New Journey
A New Journey
1. Significant opportunities for learning, for self-improvement and for personal growth fill the world around us. However, these opportunities are available only to those who are willing to open up to them. This is the premise at the center of the discussion here below. Specifically, each of us has a chance for a life filled with stimulation and unseen challenges. If we still need to accept or face these unseen challenges, then we just need to confront them because the results are surprising yet advantageous.
2.The author does not just talk and teach us about the challenges that we face each day but also about some of the experiences, we have to deal with, some terrible and others pleasant. Tolle writes ‘‘to forgive is to overlook, or rather to look through. You look through the ego to the sanity that is in every human being as his or her essence’’ (Tolle 63). Sometimes, when I have a fight with my parents, some of the negative thoughts keep nagging at my heart, and then I calm myself down; at that time, I ask my heart “Well, is it important?” Every time like a pleasant awakening, though my thoughts are still running through my mind, I step back and take a more detached position to watch myself to be able to answer this question.
3. Of course, many people will simply avoid the unfamiliar as a way of evading the potential to suffer or get hurt. This is not necessarily an irrational way to behave in the face of the unfamiliar. Tolle says, “How you react to people and situations, especially when challenges arise, is the best indicator of how deeply you know yourself” (Tolle188). Travelling to an unknown destination may lead to unpredictable dangers, but I believe that such dangers are challenges for me. When I travel to new cities or new countries, I make it a point to talk to as many locals as possible. One can learn so much more from one conversation than one can from one hundred tour books. For instance, I find it better to ask locals about the best foods I can enjoy in their country or cities, the best places to sightsee, how some foods are prepared and so forth.
So I introduce myself to strangers, share experiences with travelers, bargain with shopkeepers and ask taxi drivers questions. When I speak to a waiter, I, for example, ask her where she is from and what life is like there. If one opens himself up to strangers this way, he can learn so much not just about this new place in the world but also about himself. Sometimes there is no way to predict what balance of enlightenment and endangerment might occur when one takes a chance with the unfamiliar such as venturing to speak to an unknown member of the opposite sex may lead to embarrassment, or a high seas adventure might well lead to scurvy, but there is, to be sure, value in the experience either way. For instance, getting embarrassed while talking to the opposite sex can teach one how to communicate with them better next time, and getting or witnessing scurvy can teach one that they have to carry fruit next time they take such a trip. Either way, significant challenges have the capacity to bring about adept insight.
4. In the journey of my life, any conflict and unhappiness, I have experienced acts like some kind of test. In addition, these always act as opportunities to increase my knowledge or awareness. I remember when I attended an encounter growth group; the speaker, Mr. Chen, told a story about awareness: at first when one walks on the road, he does not notice that there is a giant hole in the middle, and then one will always fall into it. At that time, one needs to spend lots of time to climb out from the hole.
The second time he walks on the road, and falls into the hole again. However, he stays in the hole for a shorter time than before. Again, he walks on the road, and he tries to go around, but still falls into it accidentally. Nevertheless, he knows how to climb out of the hole. Finally, one day, he knows there is a hole in the middle of the street, and he knows how to bypass it. However, this does not guarantee that he will not fall into another hole. The hole perhaps is depression, sadness, anger, or pain, and the only thing he can do is maintain awareness. This story makes me realize that we must be willing to fail, to falter, to suffer, in order to become greater versions of ourselves. Sometimes, seeing lesser versions of us can be the key to this personal evolution.
The story Mr. Chen gave is an appropriate example of how we should never give up trying to find solutions to our problems because the more we try the better chances we get of emerging successful. There was a time I always got distressing results for math, and my parents were increasingly disappointed in me. I tried practicing, but I could not seem to improve my results. I got a mentor who advised me to keep on practicing and applying what I learned in my tests, and finally I started improving my scores. With time, I was extremely proficient at math. It was the fact that I was not excellent in math that made me work harder to improve on my skills and knowledge. Without this failure, I would not have gained any success or improvement.
5. Perhaps most importantly, we must recognize that the personal improvement we derive from working hard does not occur easily. Albert Einstein says, “A human being is a part of a whole, called by us the ‘universe’, a part limited in time and space”. This is to mean that human beings do not exist independently; their existence and their actions affect the existence and the experiences of the other human beings. This is to mean that we improve ourselves only if we improve the value we represent for the whole of humanity, in whatever modest capacity this may be possible. If we improve ourselves, we also improve the others, or the bigger universe. By doing away with ignorance and by increasing awareness, we obtain a chance to know so much more, not just about the world but also about ourselves.
6.This perhaps is the main subject of our discussion; nothing that we do occurs independently of the needs and wishes of family, friends, communities, societies, civilizations and so on. We are insignificant units of an infinitude that is well beyond our comprehension. The best one can do is, try to understand and take this concept as a function of things that we can affect or influence. Where we can improve our lives, the lives of those around us and the lives of those beyond us, we have a responsibility to attempt to do so. Through the discussion above, we were able to see that is only through openness to the unfamiliar, willingness to learn from challenges and acknowledgement of a broader universe that will allow us to become whole human beings, capable of learning and influencing others positively.
Work cited
Tolle, Eckhart. A New Earth: Awakening to Your Life’s Purpose. New York: The Plum Book, 2005. Print.
A New Earth Awakening to Your Lifes Purpose
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A New Earth: Awakening to Your Life’s Purpose
In his book, Eckhart Tolle introduces readers to the concept of the power of now. In essence, the book examines the state of humanity, highlighting the different ways through which people live their daily lives based on a mistaken identity. He examines humanity’s egoism and how human beings have used their intellect for survival. As the author explains, the world presents humanity with plenty of opportunities for personal growth and self-improvement. However, this opportunities are only available to those who have the ability to recognize them and accept them into their personal lives. The author further explains that all human beings face plenty of challenges, which they need to accept and confront at all times.
This paper presents a critical analysis of the book, A New Earth: Awakening Your Life’s Purpose by Eckhart Tolle. Specifically, the paper explains how the book teaches its readers on how to overcome their life challenges
New Journey
In his book, Tolle writes ‘‘to forgive is to overlook, or rather to look through. You look through the ego to the sanity that is in every human being as his or her essence.’’(Tolle63). This statement simply means that forgiveness is a crucial aspect in the human life and that individuals must practice forgiveness in order to survive their life’s challenges. In support of this statement, my personal life has been a good example of what Tolle proposes. After a fight with my parents, I experience a swam of negative thoughts owing to the conflict between my parents and me. However, through forgiveness, I am able to overcome some of these negative feelings and be able to let go of these challenge with ease. Every time I practice forgiveness, it feels like a new awakening, just as Tolle explains. Forgiveness is the first step towards overcoming life’s challenges, as it allows individuals to evade the potential for suffering. As Tolle explains, “How you react to people and situations, especially when challenges arise, is the best indicator of how deeply you know yourself.” (Tolle188). Put simply, if one decides to forgive others for their shortcomings, there is a higher likelihood of such an individual to successfully proceed on with their lives with minimal disruptions.
Tolle also explains that
Travel to an unknown destination may lead to unpredictable dangers but I believe that is a challenge for me. When I travel to new cities or new countries, I make it a point to talk to as many locals as possible. You can learn so much more from one conversation than you can from one hundred tour books, so I introduce myself to strangers, share experiences with travelers, bargain with shopkeepers and ask taxi drivers questions. When I speak to a waitress, I ask her where she’s from and what life is like there. If you open yourself up to strangers this way, you can learn so much not just about this new place in the world but also about yourself. Sometimes there is no way to predict what balance of enlightenment and endangerment might occur when one takes a chance with the unfamiliar such as venturing to speak to an unknown member of the opposite sex may lead to embarrassment, or a high seas adventure might well lead to scurvy, but there is, to be sure, value in the experience either way. To this end, great challenge has the capacity to bring about great insight.
4. In the journey of my life, any conflict and unhappiness is a kind of test. Also, this is a best practice opportunities for the awareness. I remember when I attended the growth groups; the speaker Mr. Chen tells a story about awareness: At the first time, when you walk on the road, you don’t notice that there has a big hole on the middle and then you will always fall into it. At that time, you need to spend lots of time to climb out from the hole. The second time, you walk on the road, and fall into the hole again. However, you stay in the hole’s time is shorter than before. Again, you walk on the road, and you try to go around, but still fall into it accidentally. But, you know how to climb out. Finally one day, you know there has a hole on the middle of the road, and you are able to bypass. On the other hand, this does not guarantee that you will not fall into another the hole. The hole perhaps is depression, sadness, anger, or the pain, and the only thing you can do that is we need to maintain awareness. This story makes me realize that we must be willing to fail, to falter, to suffer, in order to become greater versions of ourselves. Sometimes, being shown lesser versions of us can be the key to this personal evolution.
5. And perhaps most importantly, we must recognize that this personal evolution doesn’t occur in a freedom like Albert Einstein says that “A human being is a part of a whole, called by us the ‘universe’, a part limited in time and space.”To the contrary, we improve ourselves only if we improve the value we represent for the whole of humanity, in whatever modest capacity this may be possible. By dispatching with these prejudices, we have a chance to know so much more, not just about the world but also about ourselves.
6.This is perhaps the standard in our discussion. Nothing that we do occurs independently of the needs and wishes of family, friends, communities, societies, civilizations and so on. We are insignificant units of an infinitude that is well beyond our comprehension. The best we can do is attempt to comprehend this notion as a function of that which we can impact. Where we can improve our lives, the lives of those around us and the lives of those beyond us, we have a responsibility to attempt to do so. Only through openness to the unfamiliar, a willingness to learn from suffering and recognition of the broader level of the universe will allow us to do this.
Work Cited
Tolle, Eckhart. A New Earth: Awakening to Your Life’s Purpose. New York: The plum Book, 2005. Print