The Classical Era

This week’s reading focused on the Classical Era covering the time from approximately 500 BC to 500 AD.  We look at and compare certain civilizations as they develop during this time of enormous growth and change.  We examine multiple early empires and learn about the development of intricate social structures and hierarchies that in some cases, still exist today.  The overlying theme of this week’s reading seems to be that with the growth of the population in the world, the nature of the communities and civilization are bound to change, and we see it happen similarly in areas quite separated by distance.  It is interesting to observe how similar many things are in the early development of these civilizations.

Our first chapter describes the larger Eurasian Empires.  We have the Persian Empire with a single king with absolute power.  This empire sees the beginnings of coins used as currency, a canal dug to link the Red Sea with the Nile, and a system of roads used to improve travel and the ability to carry messages out to the farther territories.  This empire is short lived however, with conflicts with Greece and final devastation by Alexander the Great.

In contrast to the Persians, we have the Greeks, with their concept of city-states governed by citizen participation, and their interest in greater knowledge and culture.  This was the era in which the Parthanon was built, interest in theatre grew, and some of the earliest philosophers began to teach.  The Greeks were also very dependent on trade by way of sea, and built a large harbor to keep their enormous fleet of ships.

We then take a look at the Roman Empire.  Rome began as a small city-state with a king who was overthrown by the people who then developed a method of government where all wealthy landowners would have a say in how things were run.  Rome slowly grew a strong army and navy and began to conquer neighboring territories until they became a huge empire.  At this point, political power began to be centered in an Emperor, most of which were assassinated during their reign.   The Roman Empire grew to be very large, but was eventually too spread out to withstand the challenges of the Germanic peoples to the north of their borders.

On the other side of the continent, we have the Chinese Empire built from many small states.  The first Emperor was a military leader who executed anyone who opposed him and established a legal system involving rules and punishments that should be followed absolutely.  This early empire was responsible for a standardized system of weights and measurements, as well as the construction of the Great Wall for the protection from northern barbarians.

From here, the book moves on to discuss India.  The short-lived Mauryan Empire with a large and powerful military, was very warlike until the complete turnaround in the emperor Ashuka, who in the aftermath of a particularly bloody battle renounced all violence and became a Buddhist.  He then encouraged a philosophy of non-violence, including the end of animal sacrifies and the beginnings of a largely vegetarian society.

One interesting point that I find here, is that all of these civilizations place a large importance on growth and military power.  There is much conquering and either enslaving, killing, or assimilating other groups of people.  This theme shows up in all of these larger empires and seems to be one of the most defining aspects of their power.  It seems without this need for domination in their nature, they would not have become such super-powers.  I wonder what the world would be like now if we had all managed to remain non-violent.

Our next chapter, on Eurasian Cultural Traditions, introduces all the philosophies and religions that begin to evolve during these early empires.  We start with Confucius, who had aspirations of being a politician in Chinese government, but ended up leaving his students with a list of his ideas of morality.  His philosophies were based on a system of relationships, with the higher powered member of each relationship having a moral obligation to the lower powered member to protect and guide them, while the lower member of the relationship had the moral duty of being respectful and loyal to the higher member.  This was his recipe for peace within the family and the greater community and this philosophy has found its way into much of the Chinese culture and history. 

In India, we have the beginnings of Hinduism, which was an attempt to unite all the various religious beliefs of all the smaller communities and peoples who were gathered into the Indian Empire.  Hinduism is a very inclusive religion, and as far as I know, the only one that includes monotheism, polytheism, and atheism under the same title.  The main goal of Hindus is to achieve the enlightened state of moksha, where your soul will no longer have to be reincarnated but can relax in peace for eternity. 

We also learn a little about the beginnings of Buddhism, a similar quest for spiritual enlightenment that allows a person to transcend beyond the sufferings of everyday life, and touch upon the early Jews and the short but influential life of Jesus.  Huge topics, really, but the amount of information to be condensed into these chapters is really overwhelming!

Our next chapter talks about Eurasian Social Hierarchies, or the evolution of caste systems or class systems.  In China we have peasants, landowners, merchants, and rulers.  In India, we have people grouped also by trade specialty, but seen as parts of a divine god and unchangeable in their caste.  So, once one is born to a caste, one is forever in said caste.  We explore early slavery in all the societies we have looked at so far, and how treatment of slaves differs from civilization to civilization, including its possible ending in freedom in certain situations.  We also look at gender inequalities, and the role of women in patriarchal societies.  It’s amazing to think of how far we have come in this sort of thinking, and yet, how far we have still to go.

Our final chapter in this week’s reading assignment takes us over to the African and American continents where we look at the Civilizations that were evolving there.  We read about the Bantu language that begins to unite the small tribes of African peoples and exposed them to the principles of farming, even with the challenges that agriculture faces in the hot African climate.  There is the introduction of new crops and new breeds of animals that can be herded, which changes the way the people of Africa are able to live.  At some point, Christianity is introduced to some of these people, and then Islam.

We look at the American continents and study the Mayans of Mesoamerica.  These people enjoyed an agricultural lifestyle, with multiple gods, religious ceremonies, and a thriving economy based on trade.  The Mayans developed a calendar and a system of writing using a form of hieroglyphs.  They were one of the first peoples to change their landscape to suit their agricultural needs, and had specializations of labor that included artisans and craftsmen.

The readings this week have been fascinating, but long.  I find that there is so much going on during this part of history in each of these civilizations, that there is too much to cover.  But when we try to cover the formation of several civilizations at once, it is overwhelming and almost impossible to appreciate the complexities of each or the ways in which they are similar or different.  It is interesting to note that each of these societies has certain things in common:  They all turn to a more agricultural way of life, they all increase their populations allowing for greater specialization in trades and the need for a more formalized government, they all begin to find religious ideals that seek better life on earth and beyond, and they all find ways of categorizing their people in terms of value or worth, through caste or class systems, or specific gender roles and expectations.  I suppose it could be said that each of these civilizations follows a pattern in its formation, even though they evolve at different rates and in different places.  Enjoyable reading overall, but a LOT of information!!!

Week One - First Things First

            The book I am using during my current semester is Ways of the World, A Brief Global History by Robert W. Strayer.  The book begins with an introduction to the beginnings of human life from the very first hominids, then moving through the times of Homo habilis and Homo erectus, and finally to Homo sapiens, or mankind as we know it. 

            We begin this first chapter by learning that the earliest groups of people were hunters and gatherers who followed their food sources and spread the population across the continents.  We learn that the earliest humans came from Africa, and as they wandered in search of food and shelter they travelled through Europe, across Asia, down to Australia, and all the way over to North and South America.  It’s interesting to think about how these early groups were able to journey across mountains and water with nothing more than primitive tools and boats.  They certainly covered a lot of distance!

            One interesting aspect of the hunting and gathering life was that all chores were done by everyone; the people lived in an egalitarian society, without governments or specialized workers.  There was little need for rulers, and small groups of people lived together, much like extended families, and worked together as a unit.

            Our next chapter introduces the concept of farming in approximately 10,000 BC.  I found it very thought provoking to consider what it was that had suddenly made people notice the seeds and sprouts that could turn into crops and food.  At this same time we see the domestication or taming or animals, and the ability to keep herds or flocks of animal, thus allowing people to stay in one place and begin to provide for their own foods.  Whatever the inspiration, the act of farming forever changed the way communities of people lived.

            With these new agricultural societies came specialization of skills and trades.  Certain people were better at making tools, others at growing foods, still others at weaving textiles.  No longer did every person need to be able to excel at every task.  This was the beginning of social hierarchies, where certain skills were valued above others, and certain members of a community were determined to be of more value or less value.   Populations grew, and leaders gained power and status.  This marks the beginnings of the upper, middle, and lower classes of society.

            Chapter 3 introduces some of the early civilizations such as in the Nile River valley, in China, and in South America.  It is interesting to note that all of these societies have fairly strong social hierarchies, including an elite ruling or priestly level, an everyday skilled craftsman level, and a hard laborer/slave level.  We also see the beginnings of gender inequality, as the female members of society are relegated to the child-raising tasks while the men have greater choice in occupation.  At some point, we see women becoming the property of their husbands or fathers, a definite move down the social ladder for women from the pre-agricultural times.

            With these early civilizations comes the beginnings of writing and the recording of stories, events, and histories.  The first hieroglyphs and cuneiforms were created and used as these civilizations looked for a way to document their times.  It’s almost strange to thing that at some point in our history there was no way to write down what sort of things had happened, and then, someone figured out a way…  and the rest of their civilization learned how to read it and record their own stories in the same way! 

            This first week’s reading has given me a good introduction to the subject of World History, beginning with the earliest humans and the birth of civilization.  I found this week’s chapters to be interesting, yet I found the early civilizations to be rather disorganized.  I look forward to the complexities that future civilizations will bring!

First Class

Wow, what a class!  Poetry, personal mission statements, censoring each other's work....  What's next?  Apparently, a blog where we can each post our personal reflections on each week's reading.  It's going to be an interesting semester....