Journal 35 - Tradition

From what little I know about the story, I would say that tradition plays a lot in the role of the story. It is because of tradition that Okonkwo's father, Unoka, died rotting in the Evil Forest. This would not have had a good effect on Okonkwo. As a result, wanting to avoid this conclusion, Okonkwo works hard. What I thought was that the society of this is very traditional. Because of this, when the colonists attack, everything falls apart because they are only accustomed to their traditions. The positives of the society that relies on traditions to how to live, what to do, when to do it and etc. is that everything is well planned out and set. It is very orderly such as harvesting on the full moon day. The negatives are plenty though but I would only like to mention a few. Some negative effects would be that if you only stuck to origin the most, then nothing might get done at all. For example, if you are waiting for the right time to attack a village, you would get nothing done and the village would crush you instead. My own society used to be traditional. It is very traditional yet it is shifting towards Westernization. There used to be only Buddhism but more religions as well as cultures are coming in. I think that I am highly affected and controlled by religion because I am having to be a monk a couple times a year. It is a strong force in my life because I believe some traditions like this with my heart and sould but sometimes, it has no impact at all.

Journal 34 - Romance

Nothing much comes into my mind when I hear the word romance. Nothing stereotypical comes in like the love birds or flowers or hearts. Romantic could even mean from Italy or Rome. It does not give me much sight to see. All I would see at the most is Romeo and Juliet. When I see this, this is accompanied by the seven deadly sins. I like talking about the seven deadly sins because a problem can lead to one of them and so on. Romance, I would define it as something nice and cute going on between people. But the other definition which I would choose over this definition would be the extraordinary and the mysterious. This is because this is so much more interesting than the "Romance" that people like. This is because in the end, all of us will die and we will leave each other. Lust, which is usually associated with Romance, is accompanied by Greed, backed by Wrath and can involve Pride. All these are not good, at least I don't think they are good to a certain extent. The more you think of it the more disgusting it becomes. Romantic emotions would be cute, lovely or even lusty. Romantic actions would be kissing, giving presents or so. the most "Romantic" thing I have heard of would be holding hands or cuddling. I think this because it could be the most innocent form of attraction. However, I would want to talk about the unknown and extraordinary part of romance. In a way, the Bermuda Triangle is romantic. It really is. It is just so mysterious and the things that happen there are so mysterious. Therefore, being romantic is not always nice. It might lose you a life just like in Romeo and Juliet.

Journal 33 - Colonialism and Corruption

What is similar about these countries are that they were all corrupted. There is still a lot of bribery taking place. The governments are corrupted or were once but I would still consider the current government of Myanmar corrupted. You could easily do what you want by paying the higher ups or as the documentary states, an envelope of happiness. A lot of illegal stuff are still going on in the government. Excessive amount of drugs being sold, weapons being traded, unofficial diplomats being created and etc. Cocaine, weed and many other drugs are obtained very very easily. There is also the similarity of some form of group fighting against the government. In the Central African Republic, there was a coup. In Sierra Leone, there is a civil war. A lot of casualties occurred. In Myanmar, there are still civil wars going on in the country. There were also several uprisings with a lot of casualties. What is also similar is that the countries are war-torn at least at one point in time. The differences are that Myanmar's conflicts are in the borders of the country or in the countryside, far away from huge cities. This is kind of different from Sierra Leone who's situation was safe in capitals and big cities. Later, the rebels took over everything. It is more like the rebels and the soldiers join forces to fight against the civilian government. The state of Sierra Leone is just terrible. CAR has a lot of outside influence usually by the Europeans. Sierra Leone also had a lot of outside influence. In Myanmar, the rebels are the borders had outside influence and help such as the support of weapons. I would want to develop Myanmar economically. I would because I want to. I would also implement harsh rules, taking away people who doesn't deserve the improvements. I would have new roads, economic plans and also new infrastructure development. When I carefully think, it would be so hard to change everything in Myanmar, but I would try. My advice to other people would be to do what is right and what will benefit the people because if you benefit the people, you will benefit because you are of the people, by the people and for the people.