Thesis: In the year 1939, China was hit by the World War II. In the midst of this event, the interviewee suffered the alienation from his father at a critical age of 10. This event would instantly change his environment and extremely influence the rest of his life. Considering aspects of development life course alongside attachment theory, the content of this interview shall be utilized in showcasing that protective variables including familial, educational, social, and financial support, provide him the opportunity to survive and thrive following this upsetting event and a re-traumatization period after the alienation of his father. His resilience is a proof not only in his age and astounding memory, but also in his positive “possibilist” outlook on life.
In the whole developmental life, the social environment matters a lot. Changes in social environment can determine the direction of people’s life. The old man interviewed in this person experienced several social transformations of China. Especially, before the foundation of the People’s Republic of China, the social environment is so bad that children in that time cannot grow healthily and in common pattern (Hu 2017). Though there was racial discrimination in China, the changes in social environment in China during the 20th century generated profound influences on generations at that time. The current leaders of China such as President Xijinping and Premier Likeqiang, were growing to be adults at that time. Like the old man interviewed in this paper, the life path of young people at that time was greatly changed by social environment. By carrying out an insightful research on the experiences of the old man, the conclusion can be drawn as the stage of childhood has profound effects on the whole life of a person, and a bitter childhood can make a better life when being adult. A discomfort childhood can strengthen a person from young age and give the person a nice career when being an adult.
The interviewee interview can be reviewed best based on the different stages of his life trajectory through his early youth, middle age and old age.
The interviewee started his early life in a bitter footing as he says that at the very beginning his life was quite bitter. He was about ten before the WWII outbreak. He was father was then forced to attend Chinese army and became a soldier in anti-Japanese war in China. It is at this point that the interviewee life changed from bad to worst having been a mere son of a peasant (breadwinner) who was again alienated from him. Much worse was that his mother to whom he was left with, had nothing to offer. Indeed, his grandpa was extremely poor and merely a long-term laborer working for a landlord. Moreover, his grandma was only a smart one but never attended school. They only survived on small farmlands donated to them by their grandma and grandpa after accumulating some wealth from their diligent and thrifty lifestyle. Being that the mother could not farm, the little boy bore all the burden to farm at a very young age. He planted rice, cut firewood, pastured cattle alone. In fact, life was even made hard for him as the place had plenty of mountains from where he had to cut firewood and pasture his cattle. He fled everywhere to escape the ruthless war both the anti-Japanese war and civil war that made him suffer a painful life being a Chinse as the Chinese people lived on edge of starvation especially, farmers like him. However, it must be noted that in his own words, he was convinced that the work he did had were beneficial to him. It built his body and strengthened his will. He was convinced that such uncomfortable life at childhood was good for his future life. He regarded the comfort life at tender age as not a good one for his long-term development. At the post-war era, life started being better but with its own challenges for the interviewee. The economic recovery was ripe. He went to school to receive education. He remembered his father had told him that education was the best way to have a better future. This is because it was solely through education that he could get to urban areas for better and successful career.
This was several years following the end of the civil war. The first disturbing challenge was the outbreak of the Korean War. The interviewee witnessed a cruel war and this was again very traumatizing. During his high school, “Cultural Revolution” broke in China which was another major challenge to him. Their head teacher to whom he had a great affection was criticized and he and classmates had to protect him. However, the interviewee had some instances of smooth incidences while in high school. He studied very hard to get of the countryside. However, he had to study late into the night by reading books. This was bad and good at the same time. For example, the bad side was that he had little time to sleep but the good side is that this made his teachers to like him very much. He had better performance in Math, Composition and Chinese among other subjects. He got high grades which saw him get a place in the Commemorative Book in Primary School. He had planned to choose a vocational high school upon graduating from junior high school due to lack of school fees for high school, however, his performance saw him attend the a high school and prestigious university. He had all the chances to apply for scholarships in case he had no school fee. He went to a high school and became a secretary in class. His life was really on a smooth path! However, his plans to go to Peking University or Tsinghua University was hit by challenge as he ate some watermelon that triggered dysentery just before his final examination that hampered his performance. However, he did not lose hope and joined Nankai University and had a comparatively smooth life. He became a squad leader and a propaganda committee member. Upon graduating from Nankai University in 1964, he became a successful teacher in the same University and then a Professor. Indeed his life had now changed a great deal to the better. In 1966 when the Cultural Revolution started he partook in the Red Guards and even became a leader in his department as he believed in words of Chairman Mao. However, he got his way due to his outstanding performance as he was never punished when the “Cultural Revolution”. It must be noted that his life was full of ups and downs as he later became a member of the party group. He got transferred in 1973 to Hunan Institute of Medicine. He studied drugs and change his profession doing research in Chinese Medicine after learning the plant biology in the University. He wanted as well to engage in practical things and thereby inventing various novel drugs and winning honor. He did research in optical spectrum after being assigned to study for one year away from the University. He was later transferred to Hexi Institute and became a dean of a department and developed a range of new drugs thereafter. Indeed, the interviewee middle youth life was an exciting one. From the wars to Cultural Revolution to reforming as well as opening up, the interviewee’s nation changed so fast and he kept with the pace. His thoughts greatly changed to the better.
Old Age
The interviewee old age life followed his retirement. He had amassed wealth and had been a successful scholar with better skills and good career. His life has been a smooth one as he has nothing to suffer from again. His hard work both at early youth and middle youth indeed bore him a fruitful future he is now enjoying years after his retirement.
A Framework For Wonderful Life Trajectory Due To Discomfort Childhood
Social Environment: How the social environment influences the interviewee’s developmental life will be illustrated by using the arguments in the interview transcript, such as the biggest social context, the Second World War, and the unstable Chinese society at that time. The WW II was a critical event that shaped the entire life of the interviewee. Just before the Chinese civil war, the interviewee’s father was compelled to attend the Chinese army hence becoming a soldier against the Japanese war in China during WW II. It is at this point that the interviewee’s life changed forever.
This is because the only breadwinner had been taken as a soldier leaving the son and the mother without anything to survive on. Indeed, the interviewee’s grandpa was even poorer as he had only been a long-term laborer employed by a landlord. The grandma was equally poor because and did not go to school as well. Thus, the interviewee to begin working in the in farm at a tender age.
However, this never changed his will and he was determined to change the status quo. Despite the huge mountains in the interviewee’s home town, he managed to cut firewood and pastured his cattle without complaint. These experiences only hardened the interviewee and rather losing focus in life, he took them as the best opportunities to work hard and change everything negative about his family.
The interviewee kept the pace with the wars, Cultural Revolution, reforming to opening up that greatly changed swiftly. He was never left behind because he knew whatever faced him throughout his life and vowed to change the status quo. For example, he has stated clearly that he followed the changes quickly. His thoughts changed greatly which really shaped his career and life. His though changed from the traditional one during school life. He also had a deep belief in leadership and Communist Party. However, we see how Cultural Revolution made him realized that Chairman Mao only had anti-trend and not extremely conservative. This shows that he is one who has developed to a level that he can no longer be merely swayed but must think critically to know what is best for him and critique others’ views. For example, he is able to appreciate that Mao had best initial ideas of making their nation better albeit he made a wrong decision in Cultural Revolution as they finally embraced capitalism. He was able to critically review the Mao’s thoughts and ideas and mentioned that he was pragmatic as engaging in revolution would lead to chaos. He then went ahead give his views on moderate policy of alleviating poverty.
Family Conditions: The poor family will be described to present the suffering life of the interviewee when he was young. Poverty shaped the characteristics of the interviewee. After his farther was enforced to attend the army, his family was wholly on his shoulders as his mother had no ability to work. Evidences from his family are given out in this section. The interview’s father was taken away from him forcefully while at a tender age. His mother was no better anyway (Shonkoff et al. 2012).
The mother could not even cater for the son. This had to force the interviewee to be the breadwinner at that tender age. This made his life so miserable and even delayed go to school. However, as has been indicated by the interviewee himself, he took this hard life as a positive experience. It is upon this backdrop that he swore to change both his life and that of his family by working hard in whatever he was doing. He managed to cater for his mother who couldn’t do anything to generate income (Li 2015).
Body Building and Mind Strengthening: A discomfort childhood made the interviewee gained opportunity to build his body and strengthen his will. Farm working such as rice transplanting, cutting firewood, and pasturing cattle, build his body and strengthen his will young he was very young, and consequently makes his health long-life. The hardships he went through shaped his life. For example, it is indicated that the interviewee managed to build his body and strengthened his will because of the miseries he went through at a tender age (Szyf and Bick 2013).
Despite this uncomfortable life he was subjected to, he had a belief that it was a good thing to his future years and hence this made him to work hard in life. This was even profound when the interviewee himself indicated that he knew that a comfort at a tender would not mean go to him. Thus, he took this as an opportunity to shape his long-term development. These experience were justification for the interviewee’s hard work at school. For instance, he has indicated that for him to get to the urban centers, his only way was through studying very hard to pass exams. This even meant reading his books at night. This made his teachers to like him so much because he performed well in writing composition, Math and Chinese.
Education: Education functions as the key determinant that changed the direction of the interviewee’s life. It is indicated from the interviewee’s own word, following the post WW II, the interviewee went to school when the economy was recovering. This is because his father had indicated that education was the only unique path for him to change his life. This is indicative that education is a way in which can change his life irrespective of how he faced challenges in his childhood. This is because education can make one to go to the urban and get employed to be success in life. This is justified in this case as the interviewee did exactly what his fathered had mentioned to him despite starting the school late.
As a son of a Chinese peasant, he had no choices but to go to school to receive education. The healthy body and the strengthened human will made him gain high education achievement and get a pretty nice career when being an adult. The interview was hardened in life by the hard facts in life he had to face. It is upon this backdrop that he resorted to education as the only way to get through his life hurdles. This presents a typical case of one who is determined to change his life regardless of his bad childhood life. He is seen doing farm work at a tender age but his dream was never shuttered. His will is strengthened by the bitter childhood he went through and this makes him a very hardworking and determined person even when he was in his school.
We see how his performance was above board and had chosen the best University in mind to attend to after the high school. Despite even being sick which led to his underperformance, he never lost his hope and stood focused. He still went to a different University and excelled. This is because evidence suggest that children with bitter childhood always become serious in their studies unlike those pampered. For example, it is clear from the interview transcript that despite the emergence of Korean War that him experience a cruel war, he managed to achieve what the fathered had indicated (Fan 2016). Even at high school he still faced the “Cultural Revolution” in China, but this could not deter the interviewer from achieving his goals despite the major influences that this revolution brought to his social life. They stood with their teacher who got a lot of criticisms during the social turbulence because the interviewee knew very well that life and future career was hinged on his teacher.
Further, despite the interview transferred from Nankai University to Hunan Institute of Medicine, he remained focused. Indeed, he studied drugs and changed his profession. His love for plant biology and need to engage in something practical shaped his career. This made become very successful as he invented various drugs and won honor. He was assigned to study for one year away from the institution to study spectrum. He was transferred then to Hexi Institute and successfully became the dean of one department and he developed a range of new drugs. This clearly shows a case of one who can succeed irrespective of challenges in live at childhood (Eccles et al. 1993). It is also showing what education can do one’s life. No one could have known that a mere son of a peasant could have invented new drugs. Moreover, he was not only a son of a peasant but one who went through all the worst that one can think. However, this is a motivation to many people since it shows clearly that one needs to remain focused in his goals to achieve whatever he wants to achieve in his career path.
Conclusion
In the year 1939, China was hit by the World War II. In the midst of this event, the interviewee suffered the alienation from his father at a critical age of 10. This event would instantly change his environment and extremely influence the rest of his life. Considering aspects of development life course alongside attachment theory, the content of this interview shall be utilized in showcasing that protective variables including familial, educational, social, and financial support, provide him the opportunity to survive and thrive following this upsetting event and a re-traumatization period after the alienation of his father. His resilience is a proof not only in his age and astounding memory, but also in his positive “possibilist” outlook on life. This thesis statement is clearly supported since it is clear from the interviewee’s own words that whatever one has set out to achieve can be achieved even in the face of miseries. He suffered a lot but swore never to be swayed into thinking that he was vulnerable and hence could not change the status quo. The social environment, family conditions, bodybuilding, mind-strengthening and education in the interviewee’s childhood have profoundly affected his life will. In regards to social environment, this can be seen via the WW II to Cultural Revolution in China that the little boy faced leading to severe challenges. However, he faced these challenged head on and achieved what he wanted in life, a promising life. With respect to bodybuilding, he managed to build the body which enabled him to pasture on mountains and even work in farms to cater for himself and his mother after the father had been forced into military following the outbreak of WWII. In regards to education, the little boy delayed in starting school but he never gave up as he fulfilled what his father had mentioned about education. He became an innovator and inventor of new drugs and received honors through education hence becoming a successful societal figure with a promising career. In regards to familial condition, the little boy understood the condition of his family best and swore to change. Being from a poor family coupled with the alienation from the father (breadwinner), he immediately took up this vacant left by his father and cared for his mother despite the miseries in the farm and the rugged mountains he was pasturing in. All these together shaped and determined the interviewee’s eventual promising life.
References
Eccles, J.S., Midgley, C., Wigfield, A., Buchanan, C.M., Reuman, D., Flanagan, C. and Mac Iver, D., 1993. Development during adolescence: The impact of stage-environment fit on young adolescents’ experiences in schools and in families. American psychologist, 48(2), p.90. https://doi.org/10.1037/0003-066X.48.2.90
Fan, W., 2016. Education delayed but not denied: The Chinese Cultural Revolution cohort returning to school. Advances in Life Course Research. https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1016/j.alcr.2016.09.004
Hu, D., 2017. Despite or Due to the Cultural Revolution: The Development of Chinese Science, Technology, and Medicine in the 1960s and 1970s. Endeavour, 41(3), pp.78-84. https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1016/j.endeavour.2017.06.012
Li, L.A., 2015. The edge of expertise: Representing barefoot doctors in Cultural Revolution China. Endeavour, 39(3), pp.160-167. https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1016/j.endeavour.2015.05.007
Shonkoff, J.P., Garner, A.S., Siegel, B.S., Dobbins, M.I., Earls, M.F., McGuinn, L., Pascoe, J., Wood, D.L., Committee on Psychosocial Aspects of Child and Family Health and Committee on Early Childhood, Adoption, and Dependent Care, 2012. The lifelong effects of early childhood adversity and toxic stress. Pediatrics, 129(1), pp.e232-e246. https://pediatrics.aappublications.org/content/129/1/e232.abstract
Szyf, M. and Bick, J., 2013. DNA methylation: a mechanism for embedding early life experiences in the genome. Child development, 84(1), pp.49-57. https://trove.nla.gov.au/work/175817466?q&versionId=191505557
Zhang, J., Liu, P.W. and Yung, L., 2007. The Cultural Revolution and returns to schooling in China: Estimates based on twins. Journal of Development Economics, 84(2), pp.631-639. https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jdeveco.2006.12.006
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