Reflective Journal Short story (at least 1/2 page). Imagine you are this woman... why are you flying through the air? What are you doing? Why do you have a sword in your hand? What are you striving for?
OBJECTIVES 1. Identify the primary grievances of the Secret Society of Righteous and Harmonious Fists. 2. Understand why the Secret Society of Righteous and Harmonious Fists would arise in response to the threat of foreign imperialism in China. 3. Identify "spheres of influence." 4. Analyze the motives of the Eight-Nation Alliance.
Invincible Sword Goddess!! http://movieclips.com/w2scx-crouching-tigerhidden-dragon-movie-invincible-sword-goddess/
The next slide contains nothing but text, but it's incredibly fascinating. So is this one.
Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon: Film set during the Qing dynasty (1644-1912 AD) and dramatizes the beliefs of the Secret Society of Righteous and Harmonious Fists (aka "Boxers"). The Harmonious Fists (~1900 AD) practiced "spirit possession" which involved "the whirling of swords, violent prostrations, and chanting incantations to Taoist and Buddhist spirits. When the spirit possession had been achieved, the boxers would allegedly obtain invulnerability against guns and cannon." (Thompson, 2009, as cited in Wikipedia). Furthermore, the Harmonious Fists "believed that they could, through training, diet, martial arts and prayer perform extraordinary feats, such as flight. Further, they popularly claimed that millions of spirit soldiers would descend from the heavens and assist them in purifying China of foreign influences." (Wikipedia)
All farrrred up!!
We're all farrrred up!!
Seven things made the Righteous and Harmonious Fists all farrred up: 1) Western imperialism 2) Christianity 3) Modern technology 4) "Spheres of influence" tearing China apart 5) Opium traders & opium junkies 6) A broke government 7) Natural disasters (droughts, then floods 1897-1898) "Support the Qing, destroy the foreigners!" (apparently this is a catchy rhyme in Chinese)
2) Christianity
- 1800s saw a heavy influx of Roman Catholic, Protestant, and Russian Orthodox missionaries in China - After the Opium Wars, all foreigners, including missionaries, given the right of "extraterritoriality" -- exemption from local Chinese laws; this caused resentment "Take away your missionaries and your opium and you will be welcome." - The Harmonious Fists saw Christianity as merely the religious aspect of the spread of European imperialism - Summer of 1900, 239 missionaries were killed by the Harmonious Fists (189 Protestant, 40 Roman Catholic) and 32,000 Chinese Christians were killed (30,000 Protestants, 2,000 Roman Catholics, 200-400 Orthodox)
"Saint John, an eight-yearold child, was disfigured by the Boxers the same day. Although the mob cut off his ears, nose, and toes, Saint John did not seem to feel any pain, and walked steadily. Crowds mocked the young confessor, as they mocked his Lord before him, calling him a demon for his unwillingness to bend to make sacrifice to the idols. To the amazement of onlookers, although he was mutilated, mocked, and alone, young Saint John declared that it did not hurt to suffer for
3) Spheres of influence = "an area or region over which a state or organization has significant cultural, economic, military or political influence" or "not technically a colony, but still..." Depicted: Queen Victoria of England, Kaiser Wilhelm II of Germany, Czar Nicholas II of Russia, Marianne (national emblem of France), a samurai (representing Japan)... wait, where's the US??
Enter the Eight-Nation Alliance! = Japan, The United Kingdom, United States of America, Russia, France, Germany, Italy and Austria-Hungary
The Boxer Rebellion (1900) - Boxers burned down buildings, tore up railroads and telegraphs, and ironically used modern weaponry to kill Christians... vs. - Eight-Nation Alliance formed and crushed rebellion with a combined 54,000 troops and 54 warships (largest contingent was Japanese w/ 21,000 troops) - As it turns out, spirit possession did not make them invincible against bullets, and no spirit warriors resurrected from the dead to overthrow the foreigners
http://movieclips.com/h2vycrouching-tiger-hiddendragon-movie-bamboo-forestfight/