School Killings in China: Anthropological

School Killings in China: Anthropological Review

The article written by Steinmuller and Fei (2011), "School Killings in China: Society or Wilderness?" provided insightful information as to the atrocities that transpired in 2010. The article provides an overview of the numerous children that were slain at the hands of multiple unrelated killers, with analysis and hypothesis as to the nature of the killings. Moreover, the authors provide some comparative analysis as to these slayings compared to those in other countries; as well as comparative analysis of the killers themselves. In addition, the authors offer a critical look at how the media impacted the government's response to these atrocities, and insight into citizen reaction to the widespread media coverage these incidents obtained.

The review of the social and political implications of the school killings and the look at contemporary China was the most engaging part of the article. Many attribute the killings to fast social changes, unemployment, and personal insecurity on the part of the killers as well as inequalities. Still others view the killings as an indicator of a pending moral crisis in China (Steinmueller & Fen, 2011). This is purportedly in response to how the government has attempted to characterize China as a harmonious state, with the government acting as a parental authority to all of its citizens. There is significant disagreement as to this assertion by the government in that several of the killers articulate acute levels of distrust of the governments' intentions as well as blamed the government for the actions that they subsequently took. Although the government cannot be held directly liable for the killers' actions, as personal accountability is certainly warranted, it does cause one to consider the implications posited by this argument.

The examination of the three cases Steinmueller and Fei offered provided increased insight as to the possible connectivity between the actions taken by those responsible for the school killings. The psychological and cognitive implications were most intriguing and provided some insight into the murderers thought processes. What was found most disturbing about the fact that children were targeted in these slayings is the backdrop of the one child per family rule that governs procreation in China. Although the loss of any child is devastating to parents, when all you are allowed to have is one, and that one is summarily and so violently taken from you, the implications from that are even more catastrophic; particularly in light of the hopes and dreams, and often economic survival the one child may have represented for the families.