History lessons. This term suggests that we do learn from history. But we do not. Our memories are short. Our vision is blinkered. Taiwan's history is not unique. Indigenous peoples around the world have been colonised. There are often successive periods of colonisation. The liberators oppress. Seemingly inconsequential incidents unplug society's pent-up anger. Revolutions seem to happen. They may. Some re-balance may happen. People suffer. We make monuments. We tell stories. We teach "history lessons'. The last 4 pages are meant, in the physical book, to be a pull-out timeline. Both the Chinese and English texts are taken from the monument at the 228 Peace Park in Taipei.
On our first trip to Taipei, I made J go with me to all these spots that were linked to my cinema favourites. This included, of course, Gu Ling Street of Edward Yang's "A Brighter Summer Day". In the film, the protagonist's intellectual father is taken away for interrogation under this extended period of "White Terror" in Taiwan's history.
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