Illustrious Artist - Carolina Laport

Red Scarf Girl

-Week #5

-Author: Ji-li Jiang

“You are different from your parents. You

were born and raised in New China. You are a

child of Chairman Mao. You can choose your

own destiny: You can make a clean break with

your parents and follow Chairman Mao, and

have a bright future; or you can follow your

parents, and then… you will not come to a

good end.”   P.267

The reason why I choose to draw this image was because I throughout this phrase had a very important impacted to the story. She had to me a choice, or she would follow Chairmon Mao or she would end up like her parents. I think it was very hard for her because usually we follow are parents footsteps but in this case following their path would not end well. The choice that she made would define her life and future. She  had to be sure that her choice was right for her, and what she believed in.

Question Commander

Q1: Do you think that Jiang ji li just wanted to hide the fact that she in fact did not agree with chairman Mao's revolutionary ideas?

I believe that Jiang Ji Li was unknowingly hiding it because she wanted to show to herself that she did follow chairman Mao revolutionary ideas. I also think that she was felling peer pressure and wanted to go with the flow and feel important and "help society". There is evidence in the book where she feels pitty for people she is not supposed to and letting family get in her way of a political life.

Q2: Do you think that the revolution would be ridiculed by other countries if it was happening today?

I believe that the revolution would definably be ridiculed and seen as a threat by other countries today. The reason i think this is because now there exists a international law of human rights that give humans basic rights. Also because the UN is now greater power amongst countries they would have a chance to change china although china would have Vito power.

Q3: Do you find that chairman Mao was keeping secrets from the people

I found it to be almost certain that chairman Mao was keeping secrets from everyone. I felt that they described him in every part of the book as perfect but was actually suppressing the people. This is show in many was as they portray him as a god and in some parts of the book say you need to confess to him and by him they mean his portrait. Also i feel that in the background as most tyrants do he was having unloyalw army men and generals killed.

Question Commander - Felipe M.

       

        1#: Do you think that the people in the cultural revolution " brainwashed " the citizens so they would think that Chairman Mao only did good things?
        I think that they "brainwashed" societies heads because they only told positive things about Chairman Mao and said that everybody that opposed him was bad and had to be punished. This really influenced the people and this didn't enable them to form their one opinions about the revolution, so everybody thought that Chairman Mao was going to completely change China into a better country and his regime was perfect. This was a kind of brainwashing because they made up the population's opinion so they could manipulate them into doing what they wanted to support the regime.

        2#: Do you think that in a way Ji-Li lost a part of her childhood?
        I do think that Ji-Li important part of her childhood because, in the beginning of the book, she was immature, she thought that her life and her family were perfect. After a large amount of bad things happening to her, she started to think that the world was unfair and became more mature very rapidly. She didn't have as much fun as she should had if she had a normal childhood. If she hadn't had passed through this, she would have became more mature in a slower rate and she would also had experienced things that are usually common at her age.

        3#: How would you feel if your family members had to do chores for the government even though they were not able to do them very well and the only thing you could do would be to sit down and watch them?
        I would fell very terrible and I would also fell a huge desire to help them. If I saw my grandmother doing chores that should not be done by an elderly person, the first thing I would do would be to help her. I would have suffered a lot if I were in Ji-Li's position and I couldn't help my grandmother.

Question Commander #6

Why did Ji-Li Jiang used her own facts to write her book "Red Scarf Girl"?



Ji-Li Jiang wrote her book as a memoir. She wrote this book because she was expressing her ideas in book, so people could conprehend what she passed in her life during the Chinese revolution. She was bullied by her class mates telling that she her familly was anticommunist past and that when she grows up, she would be a Red Successor, which meant that she would be part of the Red Guardians. She graduated in one of the Unviversities in China, than when the cultural revolution ended, she moved with her family to Hawaii. "She then mastered English and wrote Red Scarf Girl, a memoir of her life during the Cultural Revolution. " (Wikipedia)

Why did Ji-Li Jiang prefer being part of the revolution, than protecting her own family?



Ji-Li- Jiang tought that being part of her familly was worse than not being part of teh familly. She tought that she wasn't the chid that people thinked she was, a smart and intelligent girl. Se tought that she was traitor to the country, so she decided to "clean" her name up so she would be able to be part of the "society again", and that she woudl be able to graduate and have a good grades in the University.

IIllustrious Artist - Blog #6

Illustrious Artist

Week #6

Juan Carlos Thomas

Chapters 16, 17 + Epilogue

Image Citation

I chose the image of a letter because Ji-Li Jiang’s family received a letter. The letter complained about the situation in the theatre. The letter talked about how the Rebels did whatever they wanted and ignored the policy directives from the Central Committee of the Party. The letter also stated that Aunt Wu had been humiliated because she was considered a “ class enemy “. The letter concluded with “ The Municipal Party Committee will investigate this situation and correct it before it is too late. Ji- Li Jiang became worried after she finished reading the letter. She was especially worried about  her mom and Uncle Tian because they could get in serious trouble. She was also worried about what would happen her dad and Aunt Wu. In conclusion, this letter worried Ji-Li Jiang and her family. 

Image Citation

I also decided to choose the image of a woman sweeping the floor because Grandma was forced to sweep the streets of the alley. This was because she was a landlord’s wife. Many of Ji-Li Jiang’s neighbours and classmates were watching as her grandma swept the pavement. Ji-Li Jiang couldn’t bear to see them watching Grandma sweeping. 

Blog #6 - Line Illuminator

Red Scarf Girl
Ji Li Jiang
chapters 16, 17, epilogue
Line illuminator

"Now it was my turn to watch her and take care of her. I no longer worried that she was a landlord's wife. She was my grandmother." (chapter 17)
This is where Ji Li finally realizes that her family is more important and means more than the cultural revolution. Throughout the whole book, Ji Li does everything she can to clean her name and support the revolution. She went to do summer labor in the countryside knowing that her mom and grandma were really sick and her dad was not there. She put aside her family to do something to prove Chairman Mao that she supported the revolution. She even tried to change her name so she would be part of a black family anymore. Throughout the whole book, she blamed her grandfather for being a landlord. Now, she doesn't care anymore if her grandma was the landlord's wife. She finally prioritizes her family instead of the cultural revolution. She finally sees her grandmother and her grandma instead of the landlord's wife. 

"We were all brainwashed." (epilogue) 


This, for me, explains everything in the book. It explains why Ji Li and everyone in China acted the way they did with the Cultural Revolution. They were all brainwashed into thinking that everything Chairman Mao said was right and wrong, was right and wrong. They accused people of doing nothing wrong thinking that it was wrong. They punished people for being guiltless. They made kids hate their own parents. If it wasn't for Chairman Mao brainwashing everyone, people would never do this to one another. The fact that they were all brainwashed, explains why Ji Li acted the way she did in every situation. It explains why she wanted to be part of and dedicated everything to support the revolution. It wasn't their fault for acting the way they did because they had no other option. Everyone around them would tell them what was right and what was wrong. We are all influenced by the community in which we live in. It started with Chairman Mao and the Red Guards setting rules and saying what was right and wrong. They would spread it to the citizens in China. These citizens spread it to the people around them. Ji Li had no other option but to believe and do what Chairman Mao says because they are all influenced by the community in which they live in. As time went by, more and more people were brainwashed.

Link to image

Blogpost #6 Juho Kim

Illustrious Artist

Ji Li being surprised

 I decided to put a picture of the scene where Ji- Li reads the article that says that the Jang's are a landlord family. I think it was an important scene in the book because it shows a moment when Ji- Li gets really mad and really expresses her feelings. Adding, right after she reads that, she screams to her mom: "I hate this landlord family!" I could really feel what she was feeling because I already passed through various situations made by my mom and my life. I remember many times in Korea, when I had to go to academies without any opinion of mine. I would just have to do as my father and mother said. I would have a daily routine of various types of academies but during the same time every day. I would usually sleep at 2 or 3, since I had lots of homework to do. While others could have some free time, but that was all made by someone who was in a higher level than I was, who were my mom and dad. But I think I should thank my dad for giving me an opportunity to come to Brazil and study and have more free time. Also I should thank my mom, since she gave me the opportunity to get better grades than most parents would expect I would, and for getting me my own technological devices. Which led me to great success and given me my benefits for life.

Blog Post #5

Is the book’s structure chronological or does it move back and forth between past and present? Does the author use a single (first or third person) viewpoint or shifting points of view?  Why might the author have chosen to tell the story this way and how does it influence the reader’s understanding?


In Red Scarf Girl, the book is in chronological structure, which means that the story doesn't not goes and comes back to present and past. The book is like this because the author and main character Ji-Li Jiang tells the story of her child hood until she goes to college. The book is  almsot like a autobiography. She tells everything about her. The story impacts the reader because it is based on true facts that makes you fill not normal because she passes through some things that is hard to imagine that happened with her. Her family has this background that avoids the main character to do certain thing such as going to the college that she wanted to go. She was also bullied in school. They called her family a "land lord" family. This changes the readers way of thinking about the book. You get to much in this situation, that you fill a little bit of guilt for her and her family.

Literary analysis Jason

5. How did the author use a particular literary technique (allusion, metaphor, imagery, symbolism, etc.) and what effect does this technique have on the reader?

From what I interpret from this book, I think that the literature techniques that the author is using in this book is to make the reader able to imagine how Ji li ( the protagonist) feels kind of to put the reader in her shoes. As the author mixes the first and third person style of writing. Such as sometimes, the author might say "The Liberation Army woman smiled sweetly. “That was very good. Now you maygo back to your classroom.” She patted me on my head before she turned back to test Tong Chao." page 19 In this phrase or paragraph, you can actually feel that mixture of first and third person. Moreover sometimes the author might use similes to describe how the protagonist feels. Like " It felt like the sky was falling towards me" .

"May Be Me Dialogue: Law Reform, Gender and Disability." N.p., n.d. Web. 10 Nov. 2014.

Literary Analysis (Robert Gibbs)

5. How did the author use a particular literary technique (allusion, metaphor, imagery, symbolism, etc.) and what effect does this technique have on the reader?

I felt that the author mainly used imagery to really put the reader in the authors place. I Felt that the way the author used imagery it really helped the reader to connect and in ways feel the emotions of the story more fluidly. It also helped the reader see the story through the character and not through their perspectives. Allusion to text would be in this case more allusion to history because, since the book is based of a real time period and states what actually happened it basically alludes to the past and the Chinese cultural revolution. These things all add up to making the story an extremely imaginary story by that I mean it makes you use your imagination. These thing really for me at least help improve the way I read the story because I can connect.

Formative Blog Post: Literary Analysis - Juliana R.

How did the author use a particular literary technique (allusion, metaphor, imagery, symbolism, etc.) and what effect does this technique have on the reader?

I think a literary technique that the author uses a lot is imagery, and it affects the book in a very positive way. For example, on page 157, she wrote the following: ''The classroom was much more spacious than the classroom in Xin Er Primary School, and brighter. Facing the street were three big windows, and I could see the trees and housetops across the way. The desks and chairs were made of iron and painted orange. The huge blackboard was made of real slate. It gave off a sharp sound when you tapped it, and it would not need to be painted regularly like the wooden ones we had in primary school.'' This imagery is effective because it shows us, readers, how the different environments in a different culture and different time were. The Chinese culture is very different from the American or Brazilian, so it shows us how it was. Also, it was at a different time period, which I wasn't alive, so it shows me the technologies in a school at that time.

I found another imagery about Ji-Ls new school in page 160. ''...spacious classrooms, the tall buildings, and the huge, well-equipped gymnasiums.'' This quote shows what Ji-Li was amazed by in her new school. For example, a well-equipped gym is something new and amazing for Ji-Li, yet for me, it is normal because I have one in my school. So, we can see the difference of time periods, how things change.

I drew this based on the imagery on page 157. It is Ji-Li's new classroom in her new school.

#2 Formative Blogpost/ Sydney

The Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution “was a social-political movement that took place in the People's Republic of China from 1966 until 1976.”(A) It was created by the chairman of the Communist party of China, Mao Zedong. The youth of China was greatly influenced by the revolution. To show their devotion the made an Association of Red Guard groups all around China. The effects Cultural Revolution influenced the author of Red Scarf Girl, Jiang Ji-Li to write her novel.

“Wiping my eyes, I slowly walked home. With every step I hoped that Chairman Mao would my black class status and let me be a Red Guard too.” ( Page 116) Ji-Li had thought this quote as she was walking home from the meeting with Jia Hong-yu. She was crying because of how happy Jia Hong-yu was when she told the story of how she saw Chairman Mao. This demonstrates how much she, and others were affected by Chairman Mao in the revolution. They weren’t able to have the same privileges, like being a Red Guard as those who have “perfect” social class families. On page 58 Jiang Ji-Li is greatly influenced by embarrassment from a da-zi bao that a classmate had written about her. “( Let’s Look at the Relationship Between Ke Cheng and his Favorite Student, Jiang Ji-li) I suddenly felt dizzy. Relationship? Me? A relationship with a male teacher? The whole world faded before my eyes. The only things I could see were the Jiang Ji-Li and the word relationship.” This quote shows how she was influenced by her classmates to write her novel because of certain incidents that happened to her caused by them. Lastly in the very beginning of the book, there is a scene where Jiang Ji-Li gets picked to audition to be a Liberation Army Dancer, but her father refusing to let her go. “ Ji-Li,” I heard Dad call. I looked up.Mom and Dad and Grandma were looking at each other solemnly. “ It might be better not to do the audition.” Dad spoke slowly, but his tone was serious,very serious.” ( Page 17) This indicates that how she foreshadowed in her story. But at the time she was truly confused and had no idea what was coming for her next. Overall, the Cultural Revolution influenced the author of Red Scarf Girl, Jiang Ji-li to write her novel, because of the effect of Chairman Mao, her classmates and her parents.

1. "Cultural Revolution." Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, 11 Sept. 2014. Web. 09 Nov. 2014. <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cultural_Revolution>.

Picture: "Ji-li Jiang." HarperCollins US. Harper Collins Publishers, n.d. Web. 09 Nov. 2014. <http://www.harpercollins.com/cr-100515/ji-li-jiang>.

Juan Carlos Thomas - Literary Analysis - Week 5

Juan Carlos Thomas
Literary Analysis
Week 5
Chapters 13-15

Is the book’s structure chronological or does it move back and forth between past and present? Does the author use a single (first or third person) viewpoint or shifting points of view?  Why might the author have chosen to tell the story this way and how does it influence the reader’s understanding?

Image Citation

The structure in how a book is written has a great impact on the reader's understanding of the story. The Red Scarf Girl is written in chronological order. This is because the author, Ji-Li Jiang is also the protagonist of the book. Since Ji- Li is sharing her experiences and memories during the Cultural Revolution, doing it in chronological order helps the reader understand why things are happening in the book. For example, on page 43, Ji - Li Jiang wrote " A few days later, when I got to school, I was told we were going to post da-zi-bao on the house of the bourgeoise living near the school ". This phrase supports the idea that the book is written in chronological order because she says " a few days later " and that tells the reader that an event is happening after the previous event.

Image Citation

The point of view in which the auhtor writes a story also has an impact on the reader's understanding of the book. The author wrote Red Scarf Girl in a first person point of view because it is basically an autobiography. For example, on page 1, Ji-Li Jiang wrote " I was born on Chinese Year ". Instead of using " She ", JI-Li Jiang wrote " I " because she is writing in first person point of view. I think that the author decided to write this book in first person not only because because it is an autobiography but because it makes it easier for the author to write details and clearly explain the event that is happening and what she is thinking or feeling. Obviously the more detail, the easier for the reader to understand the story. In conclusion, the book is written in a first person point of view and chronological order to help the reader understand better.

Blog post #5 Juho Kim

4. Describe a choice made by a character in the novel.  Why did the character make this choice?  Was his or her action justified?
   
   
   
   
    The main character in this book was Ji Li Jiang. But I would like to talk more about Ji Li's father, who had made the influence of Ji Li's family's dark past, which made them the Half- City Jiangs. As in the story Ji Li gets to meet her father. But after taking what he needs, he ran away. Why? Now I don't know why he had to do that. But one of the prediction is that he decided it would be safer for his family to survive, because there were hard times for all the family because of one person. So he decided to leave the family by themselves to make them more comfortable and easier to live.
   
   
   I think it would for the sake of his life and his family's lives. But I think it wouldn't have been for Ji Li at that time. He literally sacrificed himself for the rest of the family, for his mother, daughters, wife, and others. But it would have been a hard choice to leave the family without a proper man adult to protect his own family ( wife, daughters). But he did a justified action to save his family from being the sacrifice of all the people. He just ran away without anyone which made him the easier target, and made the family have a better life.
   
   

   

   Ji Li's dad

   
   

Week #5 - Literary Analysis Question

Red Scarf Girl

Ji Li Jiang 

Chapters 13, 14, 15

Literary Analysis Question 

2) How does the protagonist change form the beginning to the end of the novel? What does this character learn about himself (or herself) and about how the world works? 

Ji Li Jiang, the main character of the book Red Scarf Girl, drastically changes from the beginning to the end of the book. In the beginning, She thought she was the happiest person in the world. She had everything everyone wanted to have. Ji Li comes from a rich family, has perfect grades, is the leader of her class, and has good relationships with everyone. When the cultural revolution started, she was proud and supported the revolution and Chairman Mao’s ideas. Before the Cultural Revolution, her family’s past and background was not a problem and didn’t influence Ji Li’s actions. But, her life slowly started changing because of her family’s past. Before, Ji Li was the role model student and everyone highly respected her. When people found out that her grandfather was a landlord and that her father was falsely accused of listening to foreign radio, she got bullied, humiliated, had a da-zi-bao written about her and couldn’t do things that she wanted because of her black family. Her family’s background influenced everything she did.  For example, when Ji Li was chosen to represent her class in the Class Education Exhibition, she wrote a really powerful speech that moved everyone in the audience. Everyone loved it. Her teacher chose Ji Li to represent the class because he knew that there is no one better than her to represent his class. He believed that she is strong enough to overcome all the obstacles that she would have to face because of her black family. But, the principal removes her because of her bad status. They knew that Ji Li was the perfect student. They knew she was a great writer and awed many people with her speech. She was the best out of all the students. She stood out the most but still, she was removed because of her political situation. Ji Li also helps more with housework and becomes more responsible and mature. Before, her family had a housemaid, Song PoPo. But, they fired her because they were afraid of being caught. Without their housemaid, Ji Li helps her mother clean the house, she woke up earlier and went to the market to buy ingredients and cooked. With more responsibilities, the more mature and responsible Ji Li became. 

Throughout the book, we can see how Ji Li slowly starts realizing that the Cultural Revolution is bad and not good and that life is not fair. In the beginning, the cultural revolution was everything to her. She loves the ideas and changes that Chairman Mao wants to do to their country. She believes that theses changes are for the best and does everything she can to support it. From the point where they start writing da-zi-bao of the teachers, she starts realizing that the Cultural Revolution is not good. When they were writing the da-zi-baos, she couldn't think of anything bad to say about her teacher because they did nothing wrong. Teachers did nothing wrong and Chairman Mao is changing everything of schools. They go to junior high according to where they live and not by their grades. Ji Li sees that it is not right. Later on, when the Red Guards invade their house, she realizes that there is no where where she can have privacy. Home, where you can be comfortable and safe doesn't exist. From the actions made by the Red Guards, she realizes that it is a bad thing. Ji Li realizes that life is not fair. The example I gave before about the da-zi-baos about the teachers shows that. The teachers did nothing wrong for teaching students. They say that the teachers are anti-revolutionists because of the way they teach. Teachers were blamed and cursed for doing nothing wrong. For example, in of the dao-zi-baos, they were cursing the teacher and saying they were anti-revolutionists for scolding the kids for fighting. Ji Li realizes that it is unfair for the teachers because they were blamed for things they did nothing wrong of. When Ji Li was being humiliated by her peers for having a grandfather that was a landlord, she was really angry. She didn't think it was fair that she was being treated like that when she never saw her grandfather or talked to him. She didn't feel like she was connected with her grandfather. She wasn't close to him and never saw him but was still blamed and bullied for having a grandfather that was a landlord. She also finds it's not fair that her father was being accused of listening to foreign radio when he never did. When the people from the theater came to see her to ask about her father, she would say the truth that he never listened to foreign radio but they wouldn't believe her. It was not fair that they falsely accused her father of listening, asked her and the rest of the family to confess and tell the truth, they say the truth but don't believe them. 

 I chose this image because life is better for some and worse for others. It is not fair. It is not balanced just like this balance. 

Link to image.

Risk Taking Researcher - Felipe M.

week 5#

Job: Risk Taking Researcher

Red Scarf Girl

Ji-Li Jiang

       I made a deep research about Chairman Mao's life this week. He was born in December 26, 1893 in Shaoshan village, his father, Mao Yichang became a wealthiest farmer in Shaoshan. Yichang's wife Wen Qimei was a Buddhist. Mao also became a Buddhist but abandoned his faith in his early teenage years. When Mao was 8 years old, he was sent to Shaoshan Primary School. When Mao was 13, he finished primary school and his father married him to a 17 year old girl. When Mao grew older, he became interested by the military prowess and nationalistic fervor of George Washington and Napoleon Bonaparte. In 1911, Mao began Middle School in Changsha. Revolutionary sentiment was strong in the city,  with widespread disagreement towards Emperor Puyi's absolute monarchy. Mao enrolled and dropped out of a police academy, a soap-production school, a law school, an economics school, and the government-run Changsha Middle School. In his first school year, Mao befriended an older student, Xiao Yu; together they went on a walking tour of Hunan, begging and writing literary couplets to obtain food.  A popular student, in 1915 Mao was elected secretary of the Students Society. Making an Association for Student Self-Government, he led protests against school rules.  Mao graduated in June 1919.

       Mao moved to Beijing, where his mentor Yang Changji had taken a job at Peking University. At the university, Mao was made fun of due to his rural accent and lowly position. On May 4, 1919, students in Beijing gathered at the Gate of Heavenly Peace to protest the Chinese government's weak resistance to Japanese expansion in China. In Changsha, Mao had begun teaching history at the Xiuye Primary School.