Chapter 3-6 Reflection

This reading was definitely not an easy one. Before I begin my reflection I do want to say how interesting it is to be taking this class now. I used to hate history and now I find myself fascinated in the topic. The chapter that really caught my attention was chapter 5 when it discussed the inequality in society. Slayter discusses that anyone who had power in China was male and that power meant owning land. I found it to be really sad that peasants are actually the ones who owned all of the land but as the civilization progressed they felt that it was necessary to sell their land because they weren’t able to afford the taxes. It’s very fascinating because years later, land is still power and land is even more valuable than before. Not much has changed there. This chapter really made me think of my personal background. I am an American citizen and was born here but my mother was born in Korea. This chapter was mainly about China but a lot of their ideals were the same as Korea. I am half Korean and to this day, Koreans and many other Asian ethinicities still believe that males are superior to females. My mom is still so stuck on how it was in Korea that she would always tell me to not marry an Asian man because he would always think of me as inferior. Whereas, a Caucasian male would worship me. I don’t believe this but it’s very interesting how one could grow up learning this and even though she has been in America since she was 16 years old, she still believes this to be true. Learning about the history and how it used to be really puts your life into perspective and make you appreciate all of the opportunities that are now so easily accessible to you.