TERMS AND
GUIDE QUESTIONS FOR FILM
THE TWO COASTS OF CHINA
Note: For some additional
information on the first Opium War and its principal players, you may see Leon Poon's
site (at http://www-chaos.umd.edu/history/modern.html#opium)
out of the University of Maryland. He
includes the Chinese characters for many terms.
Kamikaze: the "Divine Wind"
of August 1, 1281, which legend has it, drove the Mongols from the shores of
Japan. Genghis Khan (1167-1227) and Khubilai Khan (1215-94): leading rulers of the Mongol Yuan
dynasty. Marco Polo (1254? -1324?): Venetian trader and
adventurer, who traveled between Europe and Asia from 1271 to1295. Accounts of his travels have recently met
with scholarly skepticism. Lord Macartney (1737-1806): British envoy
to the Chinese Qianlong emperor in June 1793. The Qianlong Emperor (1735-96): Fourth ruler of the Qing dynasty,
whose reign was one of the longest in Chinese history. |
Cohong (Hong Merchants): intermediaries between foreign
traders and Qing officials at Canton. Warren Delano II: Senior partner in China
for the U.S. trading firm of Russell & Co. and the grandfather of future
President Franklin Delano Roosevelt. Patna (India):. the capital of the State
of Bihar. Lintin Island: an island near Canton, at
which foreign merchants unloaded opium for local consumption. Lin Zexu (1785-1850): Qing Imperial
Commissioner in Canton, who tried to
combat opium addict among local residents William Gladstone
(1809-98):
British statesman and leading figure in the English Liberal Party from 1868 to 1894. Yuan Ming Yuan: "Garden of Perfect
Brightness" the Qing summer palace burned by British and French military
forces in 1860. |
#1.
Describe some cultural differences between Mongol and Han Chinese communities
during the Imperial period. What was the legacy of the Yuan dynasty in political
and economic terms?
#2.
How did the Manchus choose to rule China?
#3.
Describe Macartney's reception at the Qing court. What misunderstandings arose?
#4.
Describe the activities of the typical European expatriate merchant in 18th-century
Macao.
#5.
How did Lin Zexu respond to the opium trade?
How did the western traders react to Lin's actions?
#6.
What was the outcome of the first Opium War?