The establishment of Indian National Congress in 1885 by a large group of nationalist due to unfair treatment by Britain was the first sign of Asian nationalism. According to Murphy, Nationalist movements did not peak until 1919, which saw the success of the Russian revolution and US president Woodrow Wilson’s ideal of national self-determination. During that year, the Amritsar massacre on April 13th in India solidified India’s view of colonialism as unacceptable and prominent figures of China’s mass demonstration on May 4th later founded the Communist party in 1921. According to a passage on page 372, on March 1st, 1919 Koreans were also inspired to demonstrate against Japanese oppression, although it was quickly crushed after brutal Japanese crackdown.
Although nationalism was in full effect since 1919, many nations lacked a huge base since most nationalist were intellectuals in countries mostly comprised of peasants. In addition to that, disorganized parties such as Sun Yat-Sen KMT, Mao ZeDong CCP and Warlords in China hindered the nationalist movement in China for several years. India’s complications were due to many religions and finding a way to bring the masses together in a revolt against Britain for independence. This would later change by Mohandas Gandhi in India and Mao ZeDong in China.
Gandhi, whom was also western educated, led India’s nationalist movement through non-violence organizations and protests. Murphy’s interpretation of Gandhi’s success were “He simply used traditional methods and symbols to appeal to the Indian people, most of whom were not intellectuals, giving them a sense of pride in their