Reading Response 11

      The article I chose is called “Peace on the Fence? Israel’s Security Culture and the Separation Fence to the West Bank”. Obviously, this article discussed about Israel identity in the separation barrier. As we know, the separation barrier is a way to protect the new born country, Israel. Doing the research today, I found that a number of articles talk about the negative aspects of separation barrier. However, in this article, the author from historical perspective to discusses the separation barrier, and relate to today’s border conflicts. Then, It suggests what did it means to Israel society, and how does it affects Israel and Palestine relationship. I think it is interesting to mention that the opinion of this article about the separation barrier. The author believe that the separation barrier could make a peace in the future on the middle east, because the separation barrier could not be there forever. One day, Israel people and Palestinian will sit together to discuss about this problem. 

The reason I am so interesting of this article is related with my background. Most of people heard about the Great Wall. The Great Wall has been built for the same reason as the separation barrier. It was to prevent the invasion of people from North. At first, it played an important role of protecting Qin Dynasty from the invasion. However, it didn’t work very well, so Qin Dynasty was destroyed. Eventually, the following dynasty, Han Dynasty decided to build a good friendship with people from North, so here is coming, China. Even if there were still a lots of difficulties in this process in the following history, it still proved that the separation barrier could be a way to help solve the problem.

Reading Response 10

In the tenth reading response, I don't have much ideas about the article of Julie. It is interesting, and using graffiti, as an perspective researching national identity of Palestine is different. What's more, it is very objective. It discussed about the use of graffiti, people's idea about it and so on. There are not much personal ideas in this article, so I don't have a position to argue it. All the things I could remember from the article is how people communicating through graffiti, and different groups has different color in graffiti. However, I don't know things about graffiti still existing in Israel, but if it was, I couldn't wait to see it, and take a great number of pictures.

Then, I like the idea of new definition of nationalism in Noura's article. We always have problem in dealing with national identity of Palestine and Israel. However, if we could redefine these national identity, and create a new one, it would solve a lot of problems. It is a good solution. Nevertheless, there is a problem about this idea. It is how. How could we create a new idea of national identity in a conflict, such as Israel-Palestine. Palestinian and people living in Israel has been separated from the wall, so there is no way for them to communicate and create a common identity based on new country.  

Thus, I think the first way to solve this problem should be "the wall problem". 

outline of my final project

            My final project for this class would be attitude about Jerusalem between ‘me’and ‘my friends’. As I know, almost all of my friends tell the same statement when they know I am going to Jerusalem. It is that “Qing, you are insane.” So am I. Before learning about the city, I also believe that I am insane. However, I think it is a meaningful decision now with much better understanding about Jerusalem, so I am going to using video as a way to present my final project.

       I will first ask several questions to my friends about their attitude of Jerusalem. For example, “When knowing I am going to Jerusalem, what kind of idea you have? Can you explain about your idea?”

        Then, I will provide some information about Jerusalem. In the end of semester, I will use the same question to ask them.

       Thus, I will do the comparison between these two, and to show is it possible that information or education can change peoples’ attitude.

         In conclusion, my final project is about comparing attitude before knowing Jerusalem, and attitude after knowing it.

Reading Response 9

       First, I want to say that I really don’t understand music. I like listening music but music and I have communicating problems. In others words, none of my genes is about music. However, I enjoy reading the conversation between Daniel Barenboim, Edward Said and Ara Guzelimian very much. It seems like they are talking about music, but it is not limited to music. There is another much meaningful thing in their conversation.

The part I like it mostly is their attitude toward culture. Using a quotation from the conversation, “I believe that in cultural matters--with literature and, even better , with music, because it doesn’t have to do with explicit ideas -- if we foster this kind of a contact, it can only help people feel nearer to each other, and this is all.” Especially, their idea about culture is not talking about one dominant culture, but different culture join in together. They also said that we cannot understand one case unless we take other’s position to feel about it. It is really interesting, and I thought their idea about music is not limited to music but to a more deeper thing. It is about philosophy. What is the way to see the world? In their perspective, music helps. I don’t know if I would agree with their idea, because I really don’t understand music. Is this to say that if I don’t know music, I couldn’t understand their splendid idea. Actually, I totally agree with them. 

Thus, music is not the only way to help people in the middle east, maybe anything about culture can help.

Question for Mariam Said

1. What is the most obvious difference for young people in each side after they are getting to know each other? Is must helping the progress of understanding?

2. What is the big problem for you to use this project to help young Arabs and Jews dealing with prejudice?

Journal 3

      “Who I am?” It is a simple question but also a hard one. The obvious symbol is I am Chinese, which is also I am proud of. I love my country no matter how people say about it. I know there are a huge number of problems in my hometown, China. However, The idea of China in my heart is like Jerusalem for its follows. Jerusalem has death, pain and problems, but people says that, it is our holy city. So do I. Therefore, I am going to talk about my identity closely connected with China.

        I have born in a small town in China. It is called Hangzhou, a very beautiful place. Here are some pictures:

It is also a holy city in China, according to a popular story, it is the birth place of a very nice and warm-hearted Buddha. From my grandma’s idea, she told me that we are protected by the Buddha. What’s more, this is why we could have happy life, and people in the city are nice and warm-hearted. Thus, in Hangzhou, most of people are Buddhism. There is a very famous Temple called Lingyin Temple where people will go when they want to see Buddha. 

It has been built in Tang Dynasty that around 1050 AD. It has a very long history, but very different from church. We wouldn’t go there very often, such as once a week. In the most time, for buddhist, they have a small place in their house for pray. For example, in my grandma’s house, there is a place where she will prey every morning. It is just as I heard from my mom that, Buddha is everywhere, so people can prey wherever they want. There is a very famous quotation in Buddhism, “Buddha is in our heart.” 

For me, I am not strictly Buddhist, because my mom and daddy is not an religion person. However, they still have some beliefs connected with buddhism, so it is really hard to explain. Maybe, I am a selective Buddhist. 

Here is a picture of Lingyin Temple.

         Even if I am a selective Buddhist, I have went the Temple one time when there was a depression in my life. As there was an emotional connected with me, I got a feeling of peace from the Temple. Because of my experience, I understand that religion is not a simple thing for its followers. It is a symbol to people living in a poor or depressive situation to have courage. This is why I think we should respect everyone’s religion, because religion is the hope for people who have a belief about it. 

     

Reading Response 8

         Firstly, I want to say that I don’t understand these two article very much. It seems that no clear point in these articles. 

         It discusses that, the culture in the middle east, and how was people living in a city with a lot of diversity. 

         However, it seems to me that there are no conflicts anymore. What’s more, the most important thing for them is life.

I think it may be a good thing for me, who could find a different perspective about the place.

As I know, middle east is a complicated place. It has different religion, race and political aspects, but it seems like differences is much complicated than I have expected. For example, the first article, “Isaq Shami and the Predicament of the Arab Jew in Palestine”, Shami is an very complicated author. I even couldn’t tell what is his perspective of conflicts between Arabic and Jews. I don’t understand if he support Zionism, how could his story is about arabic people or Muslim. It looks weird to me, so my question is that, if Shami is not the only person who has complicated background, how would people like him do for these conflicts?

Maybe just Somekh says, “we are Arabic Jews just as there are American Jews - it’s historical fact.”

        We need to be objective.

Reading Response 7

           Seven is a magic number. I learned this sentence from the book, “Harry Potter”. However, it is not the thing I want to discuss. When finishing reading the book, all the information has been connected. How these three religions, Judaism, Christian and Islam, play an important role in the holy city. In this way, I change my first idea about Jerusalem. Jerusalem now is not a city of wars but a city with hope, death, desires and lost. People always say that, Jerusalem is a center of the world. It is the center of the world no matter how scientific researches say it is not. The reason is that we can see Jerusalem as the earth, everything happens in Jerusalem also in the earth. We all have been connected with each other, so the only way to solve the problem is to learn living together with “tolerance and coexistence”.

          Giving an example from chapter 15,  The Western Wall is not a holy place for Jews from the beginning. Actually, it is a man-made place for being holy, and then it became a  sacred place. Thus, I want to say that Jerusalem belonging to whom is a silly question. If I really need to answer that question.  My answer would be The Nature. (I don’t know if I said in a right way.) Nothing really belongs to human, and all the thing we got is from The Nature, or we can use “God”. 

Reading response 6

         Reading the chapters this time is much enjoyable, and there is lots of new thoughts coming to my mind. For example, one interesting idea is that Jerusalem is liking a magnet.      As we all know, a magnet can draw anything that has iron. So Jerusalem is. Anything have a connection with religion, Jerusalem always could be the holy city. No matter how many holy cities a religion have, there always is a position for Jerusalem.  How is it possible? I think I need to keep this question until there is enough information to answer that.

For now, I want to talk about the chapter 11 and 12. Because chapter 13 is not enjoyable to read, and too much disturbance make me feel very bad, so I wouldn't to talk about it.  

As we know, chapter 8 to 10 is talking about how was Jerusalem becoming the holy city of Christian. Thus, chapter 11 to 13 is about Jerusalem and Muslims. It is good to see that Islam is such a gentle religion. They focus on harmony, life purpose and direction, and it is almost a modern idea about religion. Yes, that is religion. Religion is a way providing a positive way to lead people to a good environment. What's more, when Jews and Christian rejected the idea of Muhammad about God, Muhammad respecting them, from my perceptive, is a presenting greatness about him.

Then, I am going to talk about policies when Muslim occupied the city.

Even if there are lots of limitations of their policies in Jerusalem, but the way they treat local people is in a great manners. I don't know how to describe my feelings, but I would love to say that people in today's world should learn something from it.   

Therefore, I have one question left now. How is a politeness nation becoming today's terrorists?