Historical Artifacts Activity Red Scarf Girl English 6 I added the dinosaur as a little joke, but also to introduce kids to the idea of what a historical artifact is  A object from the past, giving us a peak into what life was like in a different time period.

The Cultural Revolution The Cultural Revolution began in 1966 and was created by Chairman Mao in an attempt to rid China of the “four olds.” These were old ideas, old customs, old culture, and old habits.

Bound Feet

Bound Feet This is a picture of a woman’s bound feet. A young girl’s feet were bound to keep them from growing larger, so they could fit into these small, delicate shoes. This was considered to be a symbol of status and beauty up until the 1800’s in China. Some older women (grandmas) in the RED SCARF GIRL have bound feet.

Red Lacquer Gold Leaf Trunks .

Red Lacquer Gold Leaf Trunks This type of ornate furniture was often given as a wedding present, due to its expensive nature. These chests are lacquered with red paint and then detailed with intricate golden leaf patterns. Why would this make such a nice wedding present?

Mao Ze-dong’s Red Book This little red book was a common handout explaining Chairman Mao Ze-dong’s ideologies about the Cultural Revolution to the people. It featured his quotes and beliefs and many people carried the book around as a reference.

Mao Ze-dong’s Red Book This little red book was a common handout explaining Chairman Mao Ze-dong’s ideology about the Cultural Revolution to the people. It featured his quotes and beliefs and people were required to carry the book around at all times, in order to praise Chairman Mao.

The Red Guard The Red Guard was an appointed group of school-age children who enforced Chairman Ze-dong’s rules during the Cultural Revolution.

The Red Guard The Red Guard was an appointed group of school-age children who enforced Chairman Mao’s rules during the Cultural Revolution. For example, these children helped raid people’s houses and write da-zi-baos DA-ZI-BAO -> big character posters that publicly displayed people’s crimes against the Cultural Revolution

“Four Old” Sign Burning

“Four Old” Sign Burning This is an example of a business sign burning that was considered to have a “four old” name or affiliation. Red Guards would take anything that was against the Revolution and destroy it in public Book burnings were also very common during this time period; anything that could be connected to the “four olds” was seen as a threat to the Cultural Revolution.

Cultural Revolution Propaganda Poster

Cultural Revolution Propaganda Poster A propaganda poster is an advertisement encouraging people to believe or do something. This poster shows a young Cultural Revolutionary working hard to crush the traditional symbols of the “four olds.” Propaganda posters played a major role in supporting the many campaigns that were designed to mobilize the people. Most of them showed people displaying model behavior.

Mao Ze-dong Mao Ze-dong was the Chinese military and political leader who led the Chinese communists to victory in the country’s civil war. He died in September of 1976. Some suggest that violent attacks on Chinese citizens had the official blessings of Mao.

The Cultural Revolution During the Cultural Revolution, schools were greatly affected. The brightest students were sent to the lowest standardized school if their background was unclear. During this period of time, students were treated unequally and were not given much choice in their future.

Ji-Li Jiang Red Scarf Girl is about a girl living through the Cultural Revolution in China (1966-1976). She has to make many hard decisions and has to choose between supporting her family or promising allegiance to Chairman Mao (the leader of Communist China) and the good of Communist China. Ji-Li Jiang has written many books, Red Scarf Girl being the first. Ji-Li has many childhood memories of the Cultural Revolution and she brings them to life in her books. She also talks at schools and conferences about her past experiences.

Ji-Li Jiang At age twelve, Ji-li Jiang had everything to look forward to - especially continued success in junior high school. She and her parents believed that a girl in Chairman Mao Ze-dong's New China could go far with so much intelligence and talent. However, in 1966, the start of the Cultural Revolution changed all that.

Ji-Li Jiang continued… Ji-li Jiang and her family were persecuted and humiliated when the old ways and ideas were suddenly deemed undesirable, Anyone with ties with the Jiang family became suspect. Because Ji-li Jiang's grandfather had been a landlord, her entire family was seen as being opposed to the new values of the Communist Party. Ji-li Jiang is forced to choose between her family and her future in Communist China.