It seems that some countries had a lot to deal with when the colonizing that the European countries started began. China, japan and the ottoman empire had a lot on their hands, and it's a wonder how they survived through it all. I got stressed just reading about all they had to deal just at the second page of reading!
China's population growth had big impact on them, a negative one. They didn't have an industrial revolution or anything like that in Europe, which resulted in not having enough food or jobs to sustain their growth. China now had unemployment and starvation, leading to a weaker China, and a more miserable one. Not only that, but their government was not able to keep up with controlling the people. There was not enough man power or resources to keep everything going as smoothly as it was before. Now that is a scary thought, isn't it? Because of that, authority took it into their own hands to be harsh and cruel to their peasants, because how else would it seem like they had control? This then resulted in an uprising of gangs. Man, and I thought what I said before was scary. Imagine living in that type of society at those times, with European culture breathing down your back and trying to change the ways you've always known. It seems to be all to much for China and its people.
The Taiping uprising. That's a lot of change right there, especially with women. Women were now considered equal, getting equal land, being able to fight, be civil servants, put in higher positions and no longer was family a center for marriage, it was all about mutual attraction. Which, if you think about it, is where we are now in American culture. You don't really get married to have kids, and get rich with a husband and worry about those things. You get married because you find each other attractive and you grow to love those people.
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