Burmese Crafts

Burmese Crafts PDF Author: Sylvia Fraser-Lu
Publisher: Oxford University Press, USA
ISBN:
Category : Art
Languages : en
Pages : 428

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Book Description
Craftsmen have always held an honoured place in Burmese society and have taken great pride in their creative abilities. In pre-colonial Burma, all sections of the population - from royalty to the monkhood to the common folk - used finely crafted objects in their everyday lives. Prehistoricand Historic evidence indicates that the inhabitants of Burma have been fashioning objects of beauty and utility for over 2,000 years.Buddhism over the centuries has been the prime inspiration for much of Burma's artistic endeavour. This, in combination with a thriving body of pre-Buddhist animistic beliefs, a rich oral and vernacular literature, and a love of detailed surface embellishment, have culminated in the production ofdistinctive works of art.In this work, the author introduces the reader to the scope and beauty of Burmese crafts by exploring the historical background, the foundations of Burma's artistic traditions, and the temple and pagoda arts of brick, stucco, sculpture, and painting, before embarking on a systematic survey of thedevelopment and evolution of Burma's major crafts, such as bronze and ironwork, wooden architecture, wood-carving, gold, silver, and jewellery, ceramics, lacquer, textiles and costume, books, paper, baskets, mats, and umbrellas.The author has lived and worked in Asia as a writer and educator for over twenty-five years and has written numerous articles and books about Asian arts and crafts.

Burmese Crafts

Burmese Crafts PDF Author: Sylvia Fraser-Lu
Publisher: Oxford University Press, USA
ISBN:
Category : Art
Languages : en
Pages : 428

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Book Description
Craftsmen have always held an honoured place in Burmese society and have taken great pride in their creative abilities. In pre-colonial Burma, all sections of the population - from royalty to the monkhood to the common folk - used finely crafted objects in their everyday lives. Prehistoricand Historic evidence indicates that the inhabitants of Burma have been fashioning objects of beauty and utility for over 2,000 years.Buddhism over the centuries has been the prime inspiration for much of Burma's artistic endeavour. This, in combination with a thriving body of pre-Buddhist animistic beliefs, a rich oral and vernacular literature, and a love of detailed surface embellishment, have culminated in the production ofdistinctive works of art.In this work, the author introduces the reader to the scope and beauty of Burmese crafts by exploring the historical background, the foundations of Burma's artistic traditions, and the temple and pagoda arts of brick, stucco, sculpture, and painting, before embarking on a systematic survey of thedevelopment and evolution of Burma's major crafts, such as bronze and ironwork, wooden architecture, wood-carving, gold, silver, and jewellery, ceramics, lacquer, textiles and costume, books, paper, baskets, mats, and umbrellas.The author has lived and worked in Asia as a writer and educator for over twenty-five years and has written numerous articles and books about Asian arts and crafts.

The Hidden History of Burma: Race, Capitalism, and the Crisis of Democracy in the 21st Century

The Hidden History of Burma: Race, Capitalism, and the Crisis of Democracy in the 21st Century PDF Author: Thant Myint-U
Publisher: W. W. Norton & Company
ISBN: 1324003308
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 240

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Book Description
A New York Times Critics' Top Book of 2019 A Foreign Affairs Best Book of 2020 “An urgent book.” —Jennifer Szalai, New York Times During a century of colonialism, Burma was plundered for its natural resources and remade as a racial hierarchy. Over decades of dictatorship, it suffered civil war, repression, and deep poverty. Today, Burma faces a mountain of challenges: crony capitalism, exploding inequality, rising ethnonationalism, extreme racial violence, climate change, multibillion dollar criminal networks, and the power of China next door. Thant Myint-U shows how the country’s past shapes its recent and almost unbelievable attempt to create a new democracy in the heart of Asia, and helps to answer the big questions: Can this multicultural country of 55 million succeed? And what does Burma’s story really tell us about the most critical issues of our time?

Making Enemies

Making Enemies PDF Author: Mary Patricia Callahan
Publisher: Cornell University Press
ISBN: 9780801472671
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 300

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Book Description
The Burmese army took political power in Burma in 1962 and has ruled the country ever since. The persistence of this government--even in the face of long-term nonviolent opposition led by activist Aung San Suu Kyi, who was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1991--has puzzled scholars. In a book relevant to current debates about democratization, Mary P. Callahan seeks to explain the extraordinary durability of the Burmese military regime. In her view, the origins of army rule are to be found in the relationship between war and state formation.Burma's colonial past had seen a large imbalance between the military and civil sectors. That imbalance was accentuated soon after formal independence by one of the earliest and most persistent covert Cold War conflicts, involving CIA-funded Kuomintang incursions across the Burmese border into the People's Republic of China. Because this raised concerns in Rangoon about the possibility of a showdown with Communist China, the Burmese Army received even more autonomy and funding to protect the integrity of the new nation-state.The military transformed itself during the late 1940s and the 1950s from a group of anticolonial guerrilla bands into the professional force that seized power in 1962. The army edged out all other state and social institutions in the competition for national power. Making Enemies draws upon Callahan's interviews with former military officers and her archival work in Burmese libraries and halls of power. Callahan's unparalleled access allows her to correct existing explanations of Burmese authoritarianism and to supply new information about the coups of 1958 and 1962.

Burma

Burma PDF Author: Benedict Rogers
Publisher: Random House
ISBN: 1448118654
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 306

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Book Description
UPDATED For more than 50 years, Burma has been ruled by a succession of military regimes which rank among the most oppressive dictatorships in the world. Accused of crimes against humanity, they have brutally mistreated their people. Yet, in the last few years, the pace of change has been breathtaking. Much is now hoped for. However, Burma is one of the most ethnically diverse nations in Southeast Asia: there are roughly seven major ethnic groups living along its borders. They have a long history of conflict with the government and have been cruelly treated by the current regime. Their future affects the country as a whole, as Benedict Rogers explains. Drawing heavily on his many fact-finding visits both inside Burma and along its frontiers, he gives a unique appraisal of the current ethnic situation and its implications for the nation as a whole. Wide-ranging, expertly researched, and full of brand new accounts of the courage and determination of the Burmese people, Burma: A Nation at the Crossroads explains the country's conflicted history, as well as its contemporary struggle for justice. Burma stands poised for freedom, or for further repression. No one can be sure. This fascinating and accessible book describes what is really happening inside this beautiful, secretive, and potentially prosperous country.

History of Burma: from the Earliest Times to 10 March, 1824

History of Burma: from the Earliest Times to 10 March, 1824 PDF Author: Godfrey Eric Harvey
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Burma
Languages : en
Pages : 486

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Book Description


Blood, Dreams and Gold

Blood, Dreams and Gold PDF Author: Richard Cockett
Publisher: Yale University Press
ISBN: 0300215983
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 352

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Book Description
Burma is one of the largest countries in Southeast Asia and was once one of its richest. Under successive military regimes, however, the country eventually ended up as one of the poorest countries in Asia, a byword for repression and ethnic violence. Richard Cockett spent years in the region as a correspondent for The Economist and witnessed firsthand the vicious sectarian politics of the Burmese government, and later, also, its surprising attempts at political and social reform. Cockett’s enlightening history, from the colonial era on, explains how Burma descended into decades of civil war and authoritarian government. Taking advantage of the opening up of the country since 2011, Cockett has interviewed hundreds of former political prisoners, guerilla fighters, ministers, monks, and others to give a vivid account of life under one of the most brutal regimes in the world. In many cases, this is the first time that they have been able to tell their stories to the outside world. Cockett also explains why the regime has started to reform, and why these reforms will not go as far as many people had hoped. This is the most rounded survey to date of this volatile Asian nation.

A History of Modern Burma

A History of Modern Burma PDF Author: Michael W. Charney
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
ISBN: 1316342492
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 401

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Book Description
Burma has lived under military rule for nearly half a century. The results of its 1990 elections were never recognized by the ruling junta and Aung San Suu Kyi, leader of Burma's pro-democracy movement, was denied her victory. She has been under house-arrest ever since. Now an economic satellite and political dependent of the People's Republic of China, Burma is at a crossroads. Will it become another North Korea, will it succumb to China's political embrace or will the people prevail? Michael Charney's book- the first general history of modern Burma in over five decades - traces the highs and lows of Burma's history from its colonial past to the devastation of Cyclone Nargis in 2008. By exploring key themes such as the political division between lowland and highland Burma and monastic opposition to state control, the author explains the forces that have made the country what it is today.

Burma/Myanmar

Burma/Myanmar PDF Author: David I. Steinberg
Publisher:
ISBN: 0195390679
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 320

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Book Description
The crises that are Burma/Myanmar -- Important residues form the Precolonial period -- The Colonial Era's importance in understanding Burma/Myanmar today -- Independence and the civilian government (1948-1962) : mixed heritages -- The military coup, the Socialist Period (1962-1988), and the perpetuation of military rule -- The SLORC/SPDC Era (1988-present) : continuation of military power -- The nature of Burmese politics -- Issues in Myanmar's future.

Nationalism as Political Paranoia in Burma

Nationalism as Political Paranoia in Burma PDF Author: Mikael Gravers
Publisher: Psychology Press
ISBN: 9780700709809
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 188

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Book Description
This study examines the complex relationship between nationalism, violence and Buddhism in nineteenth- and twentieth-century Burma, bringing us to present-day Burma and the struggle by Aung San Suu Kyi for a new Burmese identity.

Myanmar

Myanmar PDF Author: N Ganesan
Publisher: Institute of Southeast Asian Studies
ISBN: 9812304347
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 323

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Book Description
Covers issues of historical influence and political considerations that have shaped the dominant thinking within the state and the military. Examines the three major ethnic groups in the country - Karen, Kachin, and Shan. Deals with how the various ethnic groups are trying to cope with decades of conflict and reconstruct their communities.