Japan Project: Presentation Proposal

In my presentation for the Japan Project, I will be investigating things that an American ought to know before relocating to Japan. Some of the topics I plan to investigate are traditional cultural behaviors, housing and good cities to live in, real estate and taxes, attractions and places to see, and the education system, and perhaps more topics, in time.

This research will be presented by means of a PowerPoint Presentation and my imagined audience will be any Americans who are planning to move to Japan in the near future.

The Olympics: Where the tradition began...

Well, most everyone knows that the ancient Olympics began in Greece, thousands of years ago, and that eventually they were stopped. But now we observe summer and winter Olympics every 2 years, with summer and winter alternating. And with the 2010 Winter Olympics beginning in Vancouver in just 3 days, it's interesting to know how the modern tradition we know today got started.
Well, the man credited with reviving the Olympic Games is Baron Pierre de Coubertin. In the early 1890s he expressed interest in reviving the games, but his ideas were met with considerable opposition. It was not until 1894 when 9 countries agreed to support his efforts and it was at their meeting that the IOC (International Olympic Committee) was formed. Its first president, appropriately, was the Greek Demetrious Vikelas. The first modern games took place in Athens, Greece in April 1896 at the newly restored Panathenaic Stadium. These games had only 245 competitors, most of whom were from Greece. It was officially for men only, but at the 1900 Summer Olympics in Paris, women were allowed to compete. The Paris Olympics brought in over 1000 competitors, and it is from here that the tradition has continued for over 100 years!
(This information comes from summerolympicgames.com.)

Everest: Why they went into the Death Zone...

Well, after watching the documentary movie Everest, I have a little bit more insight as to why people would attempt dangerous, exploration-based stunts. In this movie, we followed the tale of a group that ascended Mt. Everest, and it was a really impressive story (made all the more impressive accompanied by the voice of Liam Neeson!). Anyway, there were two motivations in particular worth noting. Araceli Segarra took the climb because of her real passion for climbing, in addition to being the first Spanish woman to climb Mt. Everest. One of the men who was part of the team (whose name was Ed, I believe) said that he climbs Everest to climb in extreme climates that have never been climbed in before. So, once again, I shift my view of those people who go into extreme cliamtes. It's not just about collecting information or setting a new record. Here it becomes clear that there are some people who do this simply because they love doing it!

Exploring Extremes

The first expedition to successfully reach the South Pole was led by Roald Amundsen, with a team of four men. They reached the South Pole on December 14, 1911 (UNESCO.org).

The first expedition to successfully reach the North Pole is credited to Robert Peary, who reached the Pole on April 6, 1909, leading Matthew Henson and four eskimos (enchantedlearning.com) . However, there is some dispute on the accuracy of this fact, and others believe that the first true reaching of the North Pole was done by Roald Amundsen on May 12, 1926...

The Everest expedition in 1924 was led by George Mallory. He and his climbing partner, Andrew Irvine, went missing during their expedition, and their fates were unknown until Mallory's body was discovered in 1999 (malloryexpedition.com).

The first person to successfully reach the summit of Mt. Everest was Sir Edmund Hillary, who reached the summit on May 29, 1953 (enotes.com).

I suppose there are many reasons why people would want to do things like this. They could range from wanting to set a record to simply searching for information or perhaps even seeking a reward in money (though I'm not sure any were offered...). Anyway, I would rather not engage in activities such as these, for the main reason that they're so hazardous that death is a highly likely possibility. I don't know about others, but I'm not willing to risk my life just to explore extreme cliamtes or set a world record!

More Than 100 Years Later, the World I Live In Still Displays the Impact of the New Imperialism

The New Imperialism took place over 100 years ago, but it has not been forgotten. No, I'm not talking about it simply being taught in history classes- it had several significant impacts worth mentioning. Firstly, this time period included the creation of the Suez Canal, which is still heavily used today, profiting very many. In addition, it was during the New Imperialism that much foreign nationalism came in to play. Whether it be the Zulus or Indians, Asante or Chinese, groups of natives banded together to attempt to drive out the "foreign devils" who were upsetting their lifestyles. While these revolts were not always successful, they caused unity among many divided tribes, and this unity began to lay the foundation for many of the nations known today. Another effect was the beginning of interest among children in explorers such as Henry Stanley in his search for Dr. Livingstone, who often became their heroes and subjects of the games they played. This sort of thing is still around today, with kids playing games like explorers or pirates or wizards. All in all, the effects of the New Imperialism can still be found today, if you know where to look for them.

Positive Effects of The New Imperialism

However, it cannot be said that the New Imperialism was without benefits. Unfortunately, these benefits were found mostly with those who were doing the conquering. The Europeans set out the gain new territories for their empires, find natural resources to use or sell, and to gain the ports to sell those goods at. In general, they did just that. the British gained so much territory and their emipire became so vast that the phrase "The Sun never sets on the Brisish Empire" became known. In addition, the Brisitsh gained Chinese tea and silver in payment for opium. Another type of profit that benefited many was the creation of the Suez Canal, which allowed passage from Europe to Asia without sailing around Africa.

However, there was also a less direct, but still significant, postive effect for those who were conquered: they became more joined together. With their lands being invaded and their homes taken away, these people became unified in struggles to keep their lands as a result of Nationalism. This spirit would continue to live on among these peoples for years to come.

Negative Effects of The New Imperialism

In my humble opinion, the New Imperialism was an extremely negative period in history. I think this because it consisted of a very hard time for those natives who were conquered by the Europeans. When the natives resisted, great struggles broke out that turned into wars, such as with the Boer War in southern Africa, the Sepoy Rebellion against the British in India and the Boxer Rebellion in China. In this case, negative effects are clear. There would be slaughter of those fighting on both sides and therefore great sufferning. Then with the results of the struggles- usually domination by the winning side, only more pain and suffering would be caused. Overall, the New Imperialism was made negative by the conquests and struggles that resulted from it.

What was "The New Imperialism"?

The time known as the New Imperialism took place in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Stated basically, it is when Europeans began to explore and conquer foreign lands, namely Africa, the Middle East, India and China. The main European powers that took part in this expansion were Britain, Germany, France, Spain and Portugal. This invasion of foreign lands involved the dividing up of the regions of these lands amongst their conquerers and the often cruel or unfair treatment of their peoples. Often, natives were driven out of their villages, and when they refused to leave, they were killed. For example, this was the case in which the Boers (settlers from the Netherlands) invaded the territory of the Zulus in southern Africa and the Boer War broke out. The main reasons for this imperial expansion were for Europeans to expand their territories (for a large empire supposedly made them superior), to gain natural resources to sell for great profit, and to gain the market at which to sell those goods. In additon, being able to conquer others was a sign of superiority, or at least such was the belief held through Social Darwinism.