Asian History Commons^™

Fatally Flawed: D.D. Kosambi’S Grave Missteps In The Study Of Indian History, Vivek K. Rallabandi

Student Publications

D.D. Kosambi, a multifaceted historian in late colonial and post-colonial India, has been acclaimed for his scholarship. However, this paper argues that Kosambi's Marxist ideology caused him to interpret Indian history in a way that conformed with his ideological presuppositions. Such an approach, this paper posits, led to critical historical inaccuracies in Kosambi's work.

Tadaypaly Veeraragava Roy’S Gettysburg: A Reconstruction-Era Study, Vivek K. Rallabandi

Student Publications

One of the first international students that attended Pennsylvania College (now Gettysburg College) was Tadaypaly Veeraragava Roy, who was a student at the college for about a semester in 1876. Roy was a student from Guntur, a prominent city in what is now the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh. Guntur was the center of the American Evangelical Lutheran Church's missionary operations in India, and there were many missionary schools and churches in the region. It is possible that Roy came into contact with Lutheran missionaries that may have made him aware of Pennsylvania College's existence. As one of the college's …

Religious Affairs In British Indian Governance: 1857-1905, Vivek K. Rallabandi

Student Publications

This paper examines the British government’s approach to religious affairs in British India in the late nineteenth century, positing that religion was an important factor in understanding imperial governance in the period between 1857 and 1905. Beginning with a historiography containing the works of four authors, which is followed by a brief consideration of Queen Victoria’s 1858 proclamation, the paper proceeds to consider three distinct areas, namely personal law, caste, and interfaith interactions. Some of the specific elements examined include the role of English belief in Christianity in their dealings with religion and the British policy of “divide and rule,” …

The Fall Of The Ikko Ikki: The Demise Of The Honganji In The Late Sengoku Period, Alexander M. Remington

Student Publications

During the late Sengoku Period Japan witnessed the fall of the Honganji, a sect of Pure Land Buddhism. The Honganji was a significant military, political, and economic power and commanded armies of commoners known as Ikko Ikki. The Honganji fell because it challenged the traditional social order of Japan, lacked unity, and stood against warlord Oda Nobunaga during his bid for hegemony. The fall of the Honganji resulted in consequential policies and impacted Japanese society going into the Tokugawa period.

The Narrow Road To The Deep North By Richard Flanagan, Patrick R. Sullivan

Student Publications

A review of Richard Flanagan's novel, The Narrow Road to the Deep North. This paper looks at the background, the themes, the story, and the contribution of this novel to the conversations on the Burma Railway, war, legacy, and love. The usage of the novel form by Flanagan contributes greatly to the power of his novel which becomes a major analytical point of this paper.

Vietnam: A War With Two Fronts, Justin D. Winkel

Student Publications

The Vietnam War is viewed by many historians as a turning point in American war memory. Never before had there been such an outstanding opposition to a military endeavor by the United States' own citizens, government officials, soldiers, and veterans. Drawing from the first hand accounts of PFC Steven Warner and the work of numerous historians, this paper offers an examination into the ways in which some high profile events of the Vietnam War (such as the Cambodia Campaign and the Kent State Shootings) created an environment that negatively impacted United States soldiers and veterans of the Vietnam War.

A Monument To Culture And Achievement: The Samurai Suit Of Armor And Katana At Gettysburg College, Carolyn Hauk

Student Publications

Of the many artifacts found in Gettysburg College’s Musselman library, perhaps the most unusual and seemingly out of place may be the centuries-old replica of a samurai suit and katana standing guard over visitors and students from an oversized glass case on the first floor. Though hard to miss, their connection with Gettysburg College is not so obvious. A plaque located below the suit reads, “Samurai Armor and Warrior Katana; Late 19th Century; Gift of Major General Charles A. Willoughby; Class of 1914.” These artifacts represent hundreds of years of the ancient Samurai tradition in Japan, a crucial element of …

"Avenging Furies": The Memoirs Of American Women In The Philippines During The Second World War, Meghan E. O'Donnell

Student Publications

A large and active resistance movement developed in the Philippines during the Japanese occupation of the islands from 1942-1945. This paper discusses the memoirs of several women caught up in these movements, specifically Claire Phillips, Margaret Utinsky, Yay Panlilio, and Virginia Hansen Holmes. I argue that these women utilized their memoirs to secure places for themselves in history, using gendered and racialized language to define their experiences as incredible adventures. Their memoirs give significant insight into the civilian experience of the Japanese occupation and testify to the unique efforts made by women to support the American cause.

Religion And The State: The Influence Of The Tokugawa On Religious Life, Thought, And Institutions, Savannah A. Labbe

Student Publications

This paper describes the influence of the Tokugawa government on religious life in Japan. It focuses on the religious traditions of Buddhism, Shintoism, and Neo-Confucianism and how the state used these religions to their advantage. The Tokugawa had strict control over all aspects of Japanese life including religion and this paper explores that.

Seato Stumbles: The Failure Of The Nato Model In The Third World, Louis T. Gentilucci

Student Publications

NATO as an alliance has stood the test of time since the early post-war years. Yet similar alliances such as SEATO passed into history long ago. The problem with the NATO model of alliance was its inability to be applied to the Third World. The particular circumstances of Southeast Asia prevented SEATO from becoming a true successor to the NATO alliance system. In addition, the approach of Eisenhower and his administration to Southeast Asia and anti-communist alliances was undermined by their own political needs and personal experiences. Southeast Asia was fit into the mold of the post-war period and the …

The Tokugawa Samurai: Values & Lifestyle Transition, Kathleen A. Mcgurty

Student Publications

The Tokugawa period of Japan was a time of great prosperity but also great strife among the social classes. Of the most affected peoples of the Japanese feudal system was the samurai, who had so long been at the center of military and even political power. For hundreds of years, these highly revered peoples had lived a consistent life based off of virtues passed on through a code, and have also lived comfortable lives due to special powers that were reserved for them.

However, with a lack of warfare and increasing Western influence on the political, social, and military system …

Dreamcatcher From Mao's Last Revolution: My Venture Into Creative Social Documentary Video, Christopher Shea Howard

Student Publications

Dreamcatcher From Mao’s Last Revolution is a filmmaking venture into creative social documentary production undertaken by this filmmaker as his own experimental departure from narrative feature film production and the fiction genre. This thesis report not only describes aspects of this film production that are specific to the methodology of documentary film production, but also describes the film’s cinematic expression of memory and the filmmaker’s telling of the story. Some cinematic and conceptual aspects of the story are related to the film’s influences, specifically to those theoretical concepts and techniques employed by documentary filmmaker, Werner Herzog.

The documentary story is …