Directions: The following is a check list of the main ideas from Chapter 11. Begin by asking your partner to tell you everything from a given section (and mark the main ideas that are described). Then, provide your partner with cues (underlined terms) to prompt them to describe the remaining main ideas.

11.1 Environmental Geography

Uncued / Cued / X / Main Ideas
  1. China currently is facing several severe environmental problems, more so than any other East Asian nation.
  2. Because mountains are the most common physical feature, the area of land useful for human development is extremely limited in China, Korea, and Japan.
  3. The climate of East Asia is predictably varied with sub-arctic temperatures in the north and sub-tropical temperatures.

11.2 Population & Settlement

Uncued / Cued / X / Main Ideas
  1. China, Korea, and Japan have very high population density with residential areas and agricultural areas sharing the same land.
  2. China is the only non-urban nation in East Asia; every other country is highly urbanized.
  3. East Asian nations are dominated by one or two extremely large cities that dominate the economy and politics of the region.

11.3 Cultural Coherence

Uncued / Cued / X / Main Ideas
  1. Ideographic writing is the use of symbols to represent ideas rather than sounds, which is a language characteristic of all the East Asian nations.
  2. China is a dominant cultural force in the region because of its belief in the Middle Kingdom.
  3. The five major philosophies/religions of East Asia are Confucianism, Buddhism, Daoism, Shinto, and Legalism.
  4. Confucianism believes in order and obedience, for example the five relationships.
  5. Buddhism believes the soul is reincarnated until a person is able to free themselves of desire and achieve spiritual harmony.
  6. Daoism and Shinto believes in natural spirits and achieving harmony with nature, but Daoism is practiced in China, while Shinto is practiced in Japan.
  7. Legalism stresses the use of strict rewards and punishments by leaders to create an orderly society.

11.4 Geopolitical Framework

Uncued / Cued / X / Main Ideas
  1. China was ruled by numerous dynasties for 4000 years, which is explained by the mandate of heaven and the dynastic cycle.
  2. A major revolution in 1911 ended the dynastic system in China, as a result of lack of technology, European intervention (Opium Wars), and internal chaos.
  3. After the 1911 revolution, Chinese nationalists and communists fought for control of the government with the communists winning after WWII.
  4. Japan has only had one dynasty, but authority often rested in the hands of shoguns.
  5. TokugawaJapan was the age of the samurai and a period of peace, but ended as the social structure crumbled.
  6. As a result of the 1868 revolution, the Meiji Restoration led to rapid modernization and a spirit of imperialism.
  7. WWII was largely a result of Japan’s effort to build an empire called the Greater East Asia Co-Prosperity Sphere.
  8. Korea drastically changed as a result of WWII and the Cold War because of the its division into North and South.

11.5 Economic & Social Development

Uncued / Cued / X / Main Ideas
  1. Japan, after WWII, went through an economic miracle that has based on exports and today is extremely developed.
  2. South Korea, Hong Kong, and Taiwan represent some of the newly industrialized countries in East Asia (and the world).
  3. China’s economy struggled badly under Mao Zedong’s communist policies, like the Great Leap Forward and Cultural Revolution.
  4. China has recently been experiencing rapid economic growth under Deng Xiaoping’s reforms (Special Economic Zones), which encouraged more capitalistic ideas.