Biography of Zhu Di, Chinas Yongle Emperor

Zhu Di (May 2, 1360–August 12, 1424), also known as the Yongle Emperor, was the third ruler of Chinas Ming Dynasty. He embarked on a series of ambitious projects, including the lengthening and widening of the Grand Canal, which carried grain and other goods from southern China to Beijing. Zhu Di also built the Forbidden City and led a number of attacks against the Mongols, who threatened the Mings northwestern flank. Fast Facts: Zhu Di Known For: Zhu Di was the third emperor of Chinas Ming dynasty.Also Known As: Yongle EmperorBorn: May 2, 1360 in Nanjing, ChinaParents: Zhu Yuanzhang and Empress MaDied: August 12, 1424 in Yumuchuan, ChinaSpouse: Empress XuChildren: Nine Early Life Zhu Di was born on May 2, 1360, to the future founder of the Ming Dynasty, Zhu Yuanzhang, and an unknown mother. Although official records claim the boys mother was the future Empress Ma, rumors persist that his true biological mother was a Korean or Mongolian consort of Zhu Yuanzhang. From an early age, according to Ming sources, Zhu Di proved more capable and courageous than his older brother Zhu Biao. However, according to Confucian principles, the eldest son was expected to succeed to the throne. Any deviation from this rule could spark a civil war. As a teenager, Zhu Di became Prince of Yan, with his capital at Beijing. With his military prowess and aggressive nature, Zhu Di was well-suited to holding northern China against raids by the Mongols. At 16, he married the 14-year-old daughter of General Xu Da, who commanded the northern defense forces. In 1392, Crown Prince Zhu Biao died suddenly of an illness. His father had to choose a new successor: either the Crown Princes teenaged son, Zhu Yunwen, or the 32-year-old Zhu Di. Keeping with tradition, the dying Zhu Biao chose Zhu Yunwen, who was next in line for succession. Path to the Throne The first Ming emperor died in 1398. His grandson, Crown Prince Zhu Yunwen, became the Jianwen Emperor. The new emperor carried out his grandfathers orders that none of the other princes should bring their legions to observe his burial, for fear of civil war. Bit by bit, the Jianwen Emperor stripped his uncles of their lands, power, and armies. Zhu Bo, the prince of Xiang, was forced to commit suicide. Zhu Di, however, feigned mental illness as he plotted a revolt against his nephew. In July 1399, he killed two of the Jianwen Emperors officers, the first blow in his uprising. That fall, the Jianwen Emperor sent a force of 500,000 against Beijing armies. Zhu Di and his army were out on patrol elsewhere, so the women of the city fended off the imperial army by throwing crockery at them until their soldiers returned and routed Jianwens forces. By 1402, Zhu Di had made his way south to Nanjing, defeating the emperors army at every turn. On July 13, 1402, as he entered the city, the imperial palace went up in flames. Three bodies—identified as those of the Jianwen Emperor, the empress, and their oldest son—were found among the charred wreckage. Nonetheless, rumors persisted that Zhu Yunwen had survived. At the age of 42, Zhu Di took the throne under the name Yongle, meaning perpetual happiness. He immediately set about executing anyone who opposed him, along with their friends, neighbors, and relatives—a tactic invented by Qin Shi Huangdi. He also ordered the construction of a large ocean-going fleet. Some believe that the ships were intended to search for Zhu Yunwen, whom some believed had escaped to Annam, northern Vietnam, or some other foreign land. Treasure Fleet Between 1403 and 1407, the Yongle Emperors workmen built well over 1,600 oceangoing junks of various sizes. The largest were called treasure ships, and the Armada was known as the Treasure Fleet. In 1405, the first of seven voyages of the Treasure Fleet left for Calicut, India, under the direction of the Yongle Emperors old friend, the eunuch Admiral Zheng He. The Yongle Emperor would oversee six voyages through 1422, and his grandson would launch a seventh in 1433. The Treasure Fleet sailed as far as the east coast of Africa, projecting Chinese power throughout the Indian Ocean and gathering tribute from far and wide. The Yongle Emperor hoped these exploits would rehabilitate his reputation after the bloody and anti-Confucian chaos by which he gained the throne. Foreign and Domestic Policies Even as Zheng He set out on his first voyage in 1405, Ming China dodged a huge bullet from the west. The great conqueror Timur had been detaining or executing Ming envoys for years and decided it was time to conquer China in the winter of 1404-1405. Fortunately for the Yongle Emperor and the Chinese, Timur became ill and died in what is now Kazakhstan. The Chinese seem to have been oblivious to the threat. In 1406, the northern Vietnamese killed a Chinese ambassador and a visiting Vietnamese prince. The Yongle Emperor sent an army half a million strong to avenge the insult, conquering the country in 1407. However, Vietnam revolted in 1418 under the leadership of Le Loi, who founded the Le Dynasty, and by 1424 China had lost control of nearly all Vietnamese territory. The Yongle Emperor considered it a priority to erase all traces of Mongolian cultural influence from China, following his fathers defeat of the ethnically-Mongol Yuan Dynasty. He did reach out to the Buddhists of Tibet, however, offering them titles and riches. Transport was a perpetual issue early on in the Yongle era. Grain and other goods from southern China had to be shipped along the coast or else portaged from boat to boat up the narrow Grand Canal. The Yongle Emperor had the Grand Canal deepened, widened, and extended up to Beijing—a massive financial undertaking. After the controversial palace fire in Nanjing that killed the Jianwen Emperor, and a later assassination attempt there against the Yongle Emperor, the third Ming ruler decided to permanently move his capital north to Beijing. He built a massive palace compound there, called the Forbidden City, which was completed in 1420. Decline In 1421, the Yongle Emporers favorite senior wife died in the spring. Two concubines and a eunuch were caught having sex, setting off a horrific purge of palace staff that ended with the Yongle Emperor executing hundreds or even thousands of his eunuchs, concubines, and other servants. Days later, a horse that had once belonged to Timur threw the emperor, whose hand was crushed in the accident. Worst of all, on May 9, 1421, three bolts of lightning struck the main buildings of the palace, setting the newly completed Forbidden City on fire. Contritely, the Yongle Emperor remitted grain taxes for the year and promised to halt all expensive foreign adventures, including the Treasure Fleet voyages. His experiment with moderation did not last long, however. In late 1421, after the Tatar ruler Arughtai declined to pay tribute to China, the Yongle Emperor flew into a rage, requisitioning over a million bushels of grain, 340,000 pack animals, and 235,000 porters from three southern provinces to supply his army during its attack on Arughtai. The emperors ministers opposed this rash attack and six of them ended up imprisoned or dead by their own hands as a result. Over the next three summers, the Yongle Emperor launched annual attacks against Arughtai and his allies, but never managed to find the Tatar forces. Death On August 12, 1424, the 64-year-old Yongle Emperor died on the march back to Beijing after another fruitless search for the Tatars. His followers fashioned a coffin and carried him to the capital in secret. The Yongle Emperor was buried in a mounded tomb in the Tianshou Mountains, about 20 miles from Beijing. Legacy Despite his own experience and misgivings, the Yongle Emperor appointed his quiet, bookish eldest son Zhu Gaozhi as his successor. As the Hongxi Emperor, Zhu Gaozhi would lift tax burdens on peasants, outlaw foreign adventures, and promote Confucian scholars to positions of power. The Hongxi Emperor survived his father for less than a year; his own eldest son, who became the Xuande Emperor in 1425, would combine his fathers love of learning with his grandfathers martial spirit. Sources Mote, Frederick W.  Imperial China 900-1800. Harvard University Press, 2003.Roberts, J. A. G.  The Complete History of China. Sutton, 2003.

Symbolic Interactionism Essay - 1381 Words

Symbolic Interactionism On the surface, sociology is the study of society and human behavior; yet looking deeper, it is the study of humans in groups and how they interact with one another. Sociologists look at these groups by means of the sociological perspective. This involves looking at a certain behavior like it has never been looked at it before. When done right one can come to a deeper level of understanding about behavior. Using your sociological imagination you are able conceptualize how a person’s macro level, which consists of the larger aspects of life such as family and government, and their micro level, (which is the individual itself) combine in order form the person they are. Using my sociological†¦show more content†¦We chose a small square table on the first floor. To our left was a table of four girls, to our right was two guys and next to them was two small individual cubicles occupied by a male and a female. Leah and I began to unload our work; as she tries to get work done I began my observations. Each one of the four girls is diligently working almost as if the others do not exist. The two boys appear far from humorless as they read through magazines, laughing and making jokes about who is going to win the super bowl. My attention then drifts back to the girls on my left whom appear rejuvenated. As they get ready to leave they are filled with excitement about the night’s basketball game and the hottest players. Looking beyond the girls I notice some other tables in the distance occupied by a group of Korean guys who appear to be isolated from the library. They are tucked into the back of the room almost hidden. Glancing around, I now notice that all the people within site are Caucasian except for the Koreans and an African-American girl who is sitting alone in the cubicle. As I watch her I notice that every time she highlights something she will stop, stare off into the dis tance as if she is almost allowing the information to be properly stored. Leah interrupts my thoughts. She asks me the time. I tell her to buy a watch, expecting her to go back to work. She then demands me to listen to her paper. She reads me the paper and we begin to go off on extreme tangentsShow MoreRelatedSymbolic Interactionism1361 Words   |  6 PagesSymbolic Interactionism Symbolic interactionism is the way we learn to interpret and give meaning to the world through our interactions with others (LaRossa amp; Reitzes, 1993). Herbert Blumer was credited with the term â€Å"symbolic interactionism† in 1937. Blumer was a follower of George H. Mead, and was influenced by John Dewey. Dewey insisted that human beings are best understood in relation to their environment (The Society for More Creative Speech, 1996). With this as his approach, HerbertRead MoreSymbolic Interactionism In A Subculture1400 Words   |  6 Pagessubcultural career. Analyzing such subcultural careers from the symbolic interactionist perspective teaches one much about the interpretive and social dimensions of participation in a subculture. An understanding of the theoretical framework of symbolic interactionism and of the definitions of concepts such as subcultures and subcultural careers provides a framework for effectively analyzing my career in the Tylenol drug subcultur e. The symbolic interactionist perspective to interpreting subcultural careersRead MoreThe Theory Of Symbolic Interactionism878 Words   |  4 PagesIntroduction The last theoretical perspective I have applied to my movie selection, Dead Man Walking, is the symbolic interaction theory. The theory was primarily established by American philosopher George Herbert Mead in the 1920’s and the term was later coined by American sociologist Herbert Blumer in the 1960’s (McClelland, 2000). Symbolic interactionism examines society on a small scale and focuses on interactions between individuals and how these relations impact social order (Brown, 2013).Read MoreSymbolic Interactionism And Social Psychology1407 Words   |  6 PagesThe application paper Symbolic interactionism is considered to be part of the building block of micro-sociological thinking, related to anthropology and social psychology that bases the understanding of the society in communication and has greatly influenced the studies on media. This theory suggest that human interaction and communication is facilitated by words, gesture and other symbols that have acquired conventionalized meaning (Dictioinary). Symbolic interaction is a range of ideas that discussRead MoreSymbolic Interactionism And Social Structure1190 Words   |  5 Pageseducation and living in extreme poverty everyday? Using the lens of symbolic interactionism, this essay will analyze Maria’s education, gang surroundings, and family conditions. In the beginning, I will define symbolic interactionism, then I will explain why Maria a fourteen year old girls conditions contain these elements. Finally I will explain how symbolic interactionism is integrated into her life. Symbolic interactionism can be easily described as the â€Å"interactions of individuals with theRead MoreSymbolic Interactionism Theory Of Smoking1213 Words   |  5 Pages Symbolic Interactionism Theory â€Å"sees interactions and meanings as central to society, and assumes that meanings are not inherent, but are created through interactions† (Chp. 1 Theory). An example of Symbolic Interactionism Theory is smoking (informal). Smoking is harmful to your health. A person may associate a meaning for smoking. They might use smoking for means as a way to meet a new friend. When two smokers meet, and one offers the other a cigarette, that is a way to become acquaintedRead MoreEssay about Symbolic Interactionism Theory1036 Words   |  5 PagesSymbolic Interactionism Theory George Herbert Mead studied and used an interactionist approach for many years. He was a philosophy professor at the university of Chicago. Mead thought that the true test to any theory is whether or not it is useful in solving complex social problems (EM Griffin, p.83). So Mead decided to study the procedures of communicating, specifically with symbols, the theory was titled Symbolic Interactionism. Mead declared that our gift of language, our ability to manipulateRead MoreSymbolic Interactionism: Studies of Social Construction4480 Words   |  18 PagesSymbolic Interactionism: Studies of Social Construction Hundreds of years before written word, theories have been made about words, the symbolism behind them, and root meanings assigned by social construction. William Shakespeare can be shown as example of this with posed questions by characters in his writings. In Romeo and Juliet, the character Juliet poses questions that reflect the symbolism of the name of her and her star-crossed lover Romeo. â€Å"O Romeo, Romeo! Wherefore art thou Romeo. DenyRead More Applications of Symbolic Interactionism Theory Essay696 Words   |  3 PagesApplications of Symbolic Interactionism Theory George Herbert Mead begins his discussion of symbolic interactionism (talking with others) by defining three core principles that deal with meaning, language, and thought. The theory states that meaning is the construction of social reality. Humans act toward people or things on the basis of the meanings they assign to those people or things. The second principle of symbolic interactionism is language, which is the source of meaning. MeaningRead MoreFunctionalism, Conflict Theory, And Symbolic Interactionism1183 Words   |  5 Pagesfirst explain functionalism, conflict theory, and symbolic interactionism. Secondly, I will explain the different causes of global poverty. Thirdly, I will collect my own data to explain poverty in one country. Finally, I will identify the idea of ethnocentric and culturally relative. First and foremost, there are three types of theories that can be applied to global poverty which are functionalism, conflict theory, and symbolic interactionism. To start off with functionalism is when a society

Bad Boys I Synopsis Free Essays

Bad Boys which was directed by the Michael Bay, former video director, had the chance to be recognized as this action comedy film had been a big hit. Allotting a very big budget for this movie was produced by Jerry Bruckheimer and Don Simpson. The main casts in this film are two Miami cops, Mike Lowrey in the portrayal of Will Smith (a bachelor) and Marcus Burnett in the person Martin Lawrence (a family man). We will write a custom essay sample on Bad Boys I Synopsis or any similar topic only for you Order Now Their team up gives the film best shots. Lowrey and Burnett takes a highly dangerous case since 100 million dollars of heroin had been stolen out of the basement of police headquarters, which had been the biggest drug bust of their careers. These two Miami policemen have only got 72 hours to reclaim the heroin before the Internal Affairs Division shuts them down. A French drug kingpin named Fouchet (Tcheky Karyo), puts them hot on the trail, since this drug lord leaves a trace of bodies in his wake. Giving color to the story is played by Julie Mott (Tea Leoni), who witnessed the murder of her friend, Maxine Logan (a hooker). She decided to contact the police and is willing to talk only to Mike but he doesn’t know what he looks like. Since Mike is not there, Marcus, his partner needs to pretend as Mike, living a bachelor lifestyle. In Mike’s return, he should also impersonate Marcus as a married man. What makes it exciting is that it has been complicated on both parts but they have to do it in order for them to get the support of the sole witness. This movie is a great film specially their concept of the â€Å"buddy† formula. The scenes are realistic and high violence gave the movie a very attractive taste to the viewers. By the end of the movie, what we care about are the story, picture and main characters which give the movie a very fantastic film. Bad Boys. (1995). Synopsis for Bad Boys. Retrieved April 23, 2009 from http://www. imdb. com/title/tt0112442/. MSN movies. (1995). Bad Boys: Synopsis. Retrieved April 23, 2009 from http://movies. msn. com/movies/movie-synopsis/bad-boys. 1/ How to cite Bad Boys I Synopsis, Papers

jimmy cross and george orwell comparison Essay Example For Students

jimmy cross and george orwell comparison Essay George Orwell and Jimmy Cross Character ComparisonIn the two short stories, Shooting an Elephant and the Things They Carried there are certain similarities and differences that George Orwell and Jimmy Cross hold. Each character in the short stories has there own different situation they are in, but they both are in a foreign land and they both have to take orders and do what there country is asking of them. However, even though each situation is different they both deal with some of the same emotional issues throughout each story. In the story, Shooting an Elephant, George Orwell was a police officer for the British government. In the story it is hard to tell if George was actually forced to go to Burma, but none the less he states, As for the job I was doing, I hated it more bitterly than I can perhaps make clear (Orwell 1539). This is almost exactly the same way Jimmy Cross feels in the Things They Carried. Jimmy was a soldier during the Vietnam War. In the story Jimmy holds on to the memories of a girl he has a crush on and dreads every day that he is stuck in Vietnam and away from home. This plays a huge role in each of the stories mainly because each character is in a situation they dont want to be in, but are forced to deal with. For instance, in Shooting an Elephant George shoots and kills an elephant, but it is more complex than that. George feels in the beginning that he should have to shoot and kill the elephant. By the time George gets to the elephant he thinks differently and changes he thoughts as he states clearly in the story, As soon as I saw the elephant I knew with perfect certainty that I ought not to shoot himI decided that would watch him for a little while to make sure that he did not turn savage again, and then go home (Orwell 1541). At that moment though George looks around and sees that he has drawn such a huge crowd that is waiting and pressuring him into shooting the elephant. This would not have been a huge thing, but provided that the same crowd that had hated George was now showing interest in him he figured he must shoot the elephant. This is where he is linked with the other short story the Things They Carried. The Things They Carried showed that life was miserable and that men were not killing for some great glory or honor. Just like George Orwell the men were killing for a different purpose. The men in the Things They Carried were killing to because they were embarrassed not to. In fact the narrator says, Men killed, and died, because they were embarrassed not to. It was what has bought them to war in the first place, nothing positive, no dreams of glory or honor, just to avoid the blush of dishonor. They killed as to not die of embarrassmentRather they were too frightened to be cowards.(OBrien 1491) This is exactly why Orwell had shot and killed the elephant. George Orwell was so scared of what people may think of him, that is why he shot the elephant. George didnt want to be called a coward or even disregarded less of man then what he already was. This put George in a situation he never wanted to be in. The same was true for Jimmy in Vietnam. The stories also show explicit detail to how the characters deal with death. In the Things They Carried Jimmy deals with death by guilt. He believes that his soldiers deaths were his fault. The narrator states that You couldnt burn the blame (OBrien 1492), which refers to that Jimmy was taking all the blame for the death of his fallen soldier. In difference from Jimmy, Orwell did kill the elephant, but he too was taking it hard, but instead of truly accepting it to be his fault he seems to try to make excuses for what he has done. Orwell states I am glad that coolie had been killed; it put me in right and it gave me a sufficient pretext for shooting the elephant.(Orwell 1544) Orwells strongest point that he makes after he kills the elephant is at the end of the story when he says, I often wondered whether any of the others grasped that I had done it solely to avoid looking a fool.(Orwell 1544)The two characters, George and Jimmy, both shared many of these same emotions throughout eac h story. George had killed an elephant and was solely holding guilt for it. While on the other hand Jimmy had watched one of his own soldiers fall and he was holding guilt for that. Each of the two stories gives you the same feeling that is portrayed by each character in how they act and each really make a great forward approach of how they each feel that makes you feel like you down to earth people.