Essay: The history of challenge and response

“Egypt is a gift from the Nile,” said Greek historian Herodotus. The annual flooding of the Nile has resulted in the development of solar power, geometry, architecture and astronomy. This principle was explained by the British historian Arnold J. Toynbee as ‘the principle of challenge and response’. Toynbee states, “History in the objective meaning of the word, is the process of change”. In other words, the human response to the challenges of nature is the basis for the development of civilization and history in human society.
Arnold J. Toynbee, the greatest historian of the century, describes human history as the law of challenge and response in his masterpiece, “A Study of History”. By giving light to the repeatability of history, which has since declined since Greece, the basis of history has been ‘civilization,’ discovering the philosophical dynamic between ancient and modern times. Civilization itself captured as an organism and saw its destruction as a history, which periodically repeated the process of regularity by examining these civilizations in the order of occurrence, growth, decline, and dissolution, they excluded all the legends of “civilism” and “racialism.” Taking the historical facts into account, it has been proved that only civilization, which was able to respond properly to this challenge, has survived and grew up in both the natural and the humanistic aspects. There have been numerous civilizations in the history of mankind. While the Inca civilization, the Mayan civilization, and the Mesopotamian civilization disappeared without a trace, the study found that the Far East civilization, the Indian civilization, and the Egyptian civilization centered on China still exist, and that the civilization that was not challenged by natural disasters or foreign invasions has been developed to a great extent.
The history of challenge and response has continued without a break in the course of world history. The relationship between challenge and response arises from an imbalance of power or an extension of power among the peoples. The world history also shows that a nation or state that has not been able to cope with the challenge has been wiped out naturally. For example, Yellow River Civilization, the birthplace of the world’s civilization, describes the process by which human beings are more diligent than any other region as they settle down to overcome their natural conditions and create numerous methods. Think about Africa, they don’t have to work hard because there are fruits and other food that are stretched everywhere, even though the natural conditions are not very diligent. So it’s particularly backward, because of its lack of natural laziness and cultural development.
What is the meaning of the challenge and response that our people have made in this context? South Korea have a painful history of chanting, continuing to be a homogeneous nation for thousands of years. This may be the geopolitical destiny of the Korean people, where they have lived and are surrounded by powerful powers. It is not too much to say that the history of Su Dynasty and Tang Dynasty’s invasion and falling into the hole of the Japanese Empire, or that the survival of our people from the seas, such as Japan’s annexation of Korea in modern times, is a result of geopolitical change in our lives.
In this way, it is rare to see such a series of challenges and challenges as well. The middle-of-the-court settlement of the Goryeo Dynasty blossomed as the challenge and the challenge of the three kingdoms led to the epicenter of the Three Kingdoms. The challenge to Mongolia resulted in the 15th century King Sejong culture, and the splendid culture of the 18th century was the result of the challenge to the Qing Dynasty. And it seems that our era, which is opening the 21st century with a passionate roar, is a fierce battle to overcome the harsh challenges of Japan.
Then, where did the power of the fight come from? The fruit of our civilization, which we have won in return for combat, is uniformly ‘creative by subjectivity’. This is the case with ‘Hunminjeongeum,’ the flower of Sejong’s civilization, as well as Yeongjeongjo’s actual learning. “Creative power by subject” is captured through a memory device called history. So, in the age of great civilization, there was always a lively sense of history and a compilation of history.
Our hot coals have surprised the world again through the 2002 World Cup. Form is soccer, but its meaning is understandable. Technology was taught by Westerners, but the mind was ours. Guus Hiddink himself must have been surprised by the enthusiasm of the Korean players and the public, so he must have worked harder. Considering the fact that he has chosen players and focused on building basic physical strength apart from delays and ties, Western values are not the only thing. These are values that our ancestors have been pursuing. In this sense, the success of the World Cup can be said to be an expression of “creativity by subjectivity.”
What sets Joseon’s civilization apart from that of Goryeo was its advanced policy of using human resources, and as the basis of civilization, it encouraged basic studies of humanities to study abroad. It is true that too much focus on basic studies hindered industrialization and slowed modernization, but now the knowledge and information age is opening up and the tradition of basic studies is reviving positively.
If you stare at a Japanese occupation in the history of civilization of view, humanities on, be respect to Western civilization of the fundamental studies of Korean culture technology in Japan. It was a natural result in the industrial age. But history is like a spinning a wheel. Technology is still important. However, future technologies that pursue beauty and complex functions will develop in a country where the basic sciences that nourish the imagination will be developed. With such a civilized tradition, we are more likely to succeed in the fight.
Now, the Korean people’s ability to engage in combat has been confirmed through the World Cup. It was not just an inferiority complex against Japan, but also an opportunity to shed the Western complex. This is a very valuable experience. If August 15 brought a lightening from Japan, wouldn’t the World Cup bring a lightening from the West? In fact, the Kwangbok from Japan is complete by the liberation from the West. This is because Japan’s harsh colonial rule itself is a joint work of Japanese and Western civilizations.
Our concerns are in the dual structure of belief in the average person and distrust in the political leadership. The “subject creativity” that has been flowing too far throughout history and the “smart challenge” are overflowing with average person, but the most unfortunate reality is that the creativity and the responses are not politically converging. Through history, one can predict the past and future plans and events, and it is also a way to get closer to culture and ideas, knowing the history of the country and region. Considering the wisdom of the mediation that has been accumulated in thousands of years in the nation’s affairs, Toynbee’s approach to history is very significant.