HIS 391 Reading Report: Individualism and Racism

Individualism and Racism
Student’s Name
Institution
Individualism and Racism
This paper reflects on two accounts from the Land Without Ghosts. The first one is on individualism as written by “Gongwang” in 1932. From the individual account, the author terms America as “the most extremely individualistic nation” (Arkush & Lee, p145). As seen, there is an emphasis by the author on the individualistic nature of the American people. It is important to note that an aspect that is greatly contrasted between the American and Chinese society to date is individuality. While the members of the Chinese are considered to be more collective, the Americans are considered to be more individualistic. The author notes that the country is the most pleasure-seeking nation in the world. As per the author, the members of the American society are not dependent on others and look after themselves. There is a minimal interference with the lives of people in the country. The government interferes minimally, and the same applies to parents with their children.
An aspect of individualism that the author expounds on about the American society is how parents stop providing for their children once they grow up. In addition, when the parents grow old, they do not receive support from their children. It is evident, therefore, that there is a minimal dependence on one another. The emphasis on the individualism among Americans by the author only means that the Chinese society is different and there is more collectivism where children and parents depend on one another. The author gives an example of an old woman whose daughter lives just a mile from her, but she only visited her only once a week. However, since the lady had some money saved, she spent most of the days relaxing and reading at her home without her daughter. From the description of the author, it is evident that such thing is not possible in the Chinese society.
The author contrasts the individualism among Americans to the collectivism among the Chinese. An example of how the Chinese are close to their families is given. The example is that of a Chinese student in the US who sacrificed graduate education in order to help his brother who had gone bankrupt. When this account was narrated to an American professor, he considered it an unprecedented act. While this can be considered a remarkable act in the American society, it is the order of the day in the Chinese society. The author also gives an example of divorce rates in the US which he terms as “astonishing” (Arkush & Lee, 1993, p.146). The family ties among Americans are not as strong as among the Chinese. I agree with the author significantly in these aspects. Family members in the American society are not as close to one another as it is the case in the Chinese society.
The second account from the Land Without Ghosts that I find interesting is one by Zou Taofen who expounds on the experiences with racism. After the author had stayed for a week in Washington, he took a train to Birmingham. The author points out that he noted blacks were not allowed to sit with white people in the same cars. In addition, the white and black people had different entrances to and exits. The entrances an...