Cultural Differences that led to conflict:
Religious differences plays a big role in the Boxer Rebellion. This can be seen as Luella Miner describes tens of thousands of Boxers and Chinese civilians massing and yelling,"Kill the foreign devils (Christians)! Kill! Kill! Kill!" She also describes them looting and destroying various churches around the city. Since the mid-19th century when the Society of Righteous and Harmonious Fists formed, the boxers blamed Chinese Christians for anything unfortunate that happened, such as natural disasters and even the widespread opium addiction. Their preferred method of solving such problems was beheading, as shown in the picture to the left.
Another minor difference was the technological differences. It's not that the Boxers didn't have access to armor or things like that, they were deluded into thinking that they had a supernatural invulnerability to bullets and cannonballs. This obviously isn't true based on the number of Boxers that were killed compared to the westerners. Luella Miner recounts that about 30 Americans and Russians went and "killed 70 Boxers, and captured about 10 more".
How the Chinese were viewed:
Luella Miner never explicitly says what she thought about the Boxers, but it is obvious in her tone and choice of words that she doesn't view them very positively. They were quite distinctly viewed as the enemy. Many times in the interview, she mentions killing the Boxers, from when the incident started, to when they were finally liberated.
However, the Boxers weren't the only Chinese people mentioned in the interview. Chinese Christians were also spoken about, and in a more positive light than the Boxers. The Chinese Christians even helped stand guard and protect the church where people were taking refuge.
How the Foreigners were viewed:
The westerners that we see in the document are viewed in a favorable light, as Luella is a westerner herself. This fact is not only evident in that way, but is also portrayed by the joy they have when the relief forces come through the city and finally liberate them, and also the hostility that others showed to the Boxers. "At last our ears have heard the sweet music for which we have been listening for two months - the cannonading of the relief army - so plainly that we know that intense desire and imagination are not deceiving us, as so many times before."
Religious differences plays a big role in the Boxer Rebellion. This can be seen as Luella Miner describes tens of thousands of Boxers and Chinese civilians massing and yelling,"Kill the foreign devils (Christians)! Kill! Kill! Kill!" She also describes them looting and destroying various churches around the city. Since the mid-19th century when the Society of Righteous and Harmonious Fists formed, the boxers blamed Chinese Christians for anything unfortunate that happened, such as natural disasters and even the widespread opium addiction. Their preferred method of solving such problems was beheading, as shown in the picture to the left.
Another minor difference was the technological differences. It's not that the Boxers didn't have access to armor or things like that, they were deluded into thinking that they had a supernatural invulnerability to bullets and cannonballs. This obviously isn't true based on the number of Boxers that were killed compared to the westerners. Luella Miner recounts that about 30 Americans and Russians went and "killed 70 Boxers, and captured about 10 more".
How the Chinese were viewed:
Luella Miner never explicitly says what she thought about the Boxers, but it is obvious in her tone and choice of words that she doesn't view them very positively. They were quite distinctly viewed as the enemy. Many times in the interview, she mentions killing the Boxers, from when the incident started, to when they were finally liberated.
However, the Boxers weren't the only Chinese people mentioned in the interview. Chinese Christians were also spoken about, and in a more positive light than the Boxers. The Chinese Christians even helped stand guard and protect the church where people were taking refuge.
How the Foreigners were viewed:
The westerners that we see in the document are viewed in a favorable light, as Luella is a westerner herself. This fact is not only evident in that way, but is also portrayed by the joy they have when the relief forces come through the city and finally liberate them, and also the hostility that others showed to the Boxers. "At last our ears have heard the sweet music for which we have been listening for two months - the cannonading of the relief army - so plainly that we know that intense desire and imagination are not deceiving us, as so many times before."