What's history? Let me attempt to answer your History 101 Final exam question.../ D5 v0 G( s. z; q/ p m) X0 I
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For a Westerner, history is what he can accomplish and be remember in the future! (i.e. the works of George W. Bush) ; v/ s6 }" i) N7 |5 T j/ I+ T5 ^. }4 f
For a Chinese (in Mainland and Taiwan), history is about the inescapable scars, sorrows, and inferiority of the past. (i.e. The reasons for the failures of various reform movements in the latter stages of the Ching Dynasty) & M$ k* m4 i8 _" w5 s2 i5 { + ~5 @' y) |) z4 [; L* ^* e2 Y9 U, ]For a Hong Konger, history is about the present! What's the newest gadget, showbiz soap opera, stock/housing prices, job situation, etc.)作者: Gretzky 時間: 2005-4-17 02:09 AM
History is not about regurgitate dates and datas on historical events! It's simple recovering what really happened in the past without using too much of our subjective lenses. While we can't get rid of our personal bias (due to family, education, etc.), that doesn't mean we can look at the past with a REFLECTIVE AND CRITICAL mindset.. j6 X, C2 Y8 {- t; \
& g+ n0 K5 T% }' |% k- IHistorical figures/event are our everyday TV shows. There are good guys and bad guys. In fact most of us are either evil or angelic in the real world. Is Li Peng the ultimate devil? i don't know if I can say that when viewing his contribution to modern China. But the only act people remember of him is the June 4, 1989 event. Is "Zhou Zhi Yang" the ultimate hero? i am not sure either.4 U) _- z: {5 L' w. }/ o5 K' A
+ h ]4 ^3 U% gOur problem when looking at events in the past is we are too quick to pass on judgments without filtering through the info received.: [( S# U$ z* O# K& B
( d! x5 r5 M; a4 s+ D; e& r4 iHistory is not about judgment. It's about 'rediscovering' what really happened in the past.作者: 樂壇渣Fit人 時間: 2005-4-17 02:16 AM
Gretzky, I have nothing to say on your essay.& x) \" a( j9 q8 A3 O% ^
Damned good!!!# n( ?, N$ V, g! X. ]1 O
and that's why I raise my question to ask 新經濟學巨人9 b1 ^0 M$ \8 W4 p' a9 J
ppl should have a second thought on the incident we are facing to nowadays作者: Gretzky 時間: 2005-4-17 03:49 AM
Responding to the statement:2 _( ?6 N& z! ]7 k0 }
香港人普遍中國歷史唔好，所以對近日事反應唔大 {( v' G; J9 K* f0 L& W; e2 `0 \" |
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The first part is probably true (thanks to the Queen!) since the younger ones don't feel attached to the last 200 yrs of Chinese history (let alone the past 5000 yrs). And for the olders ones that have first hand experience of the Cultural Revolution, their feelings are probably mixed. I have people telling me the communist hurt them more than the Japanese!% m2 H5 z9 d9 \: |$ l: C& ]: U
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HK is a predominatly capitalist city. People care about their rice bowls before other important issues. Let's just say we are more 'realistic' than our mainland brothers/sisters. The protests in the mainland are caused by more than a single anti-japanese factor. As stated in the previous post, the 'inferiority' factor weights more in the Chinese minds than anything else. Revenge and get right is on the agenda all the time. Just look at the ---s from up north, the emotions are really burning. # \% b% M0 n* |: c: B + |3 ]5 X- j3 o9 u# j" n: zI guess it's not fair to compare the reaction here in HK and to the mainland. Two different groups with two different mindsets. It's important to attend the march on Sunday if one knows the reason. The size of the match is not a big deal to me....I would pay more attention to their declaration rather than the number of attendees.
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