Quiz 1

1. What were some of the long-term strengths of Paleolithic societies?

Paleolithic societies actually seemed to be more desirable than our current ones in many ways because of the highly functional social systems. Women and men were treated as equals, worked equals amounts (men hunted, women gathered) and had plenty of time for recreation in between their travels.  There was less oppression than in any other human society known to historians, and that is possibly in part to the lack of material objects they had. Without differences in class and wealth people were able to enjoy life as equals. Because these people had to keep moving in order to keep with nature’s resources they did not own very much at all, and only kept with them what they absolutely needed. They weren’t wasteful and were resourceful and observant of the seasons and the environment.

2. What was the significance of the Neolithic Revolution?

This was the period in time in which primary hunting and gathering communities began making agricultural innovations and therefore becoming more attached to certain locations. They began to travel less and put their roots in a certain place where they could begin to really develop agricultural technology. Once they were rooted, their populations began to slowly increase starting the first civilizations.

3) What characterized the transition to “civilized” human societies in the Ancient world?

 When people began to settle down they began to mold the land to their will and build small societies. As these cities grew, technologies advanced, and the people started to be considered civilized. The small groups of people grew to become large ones, and as the population and wealth grew so did the way of living. With bigger communities meant more competition, and competition spurned the start of social classes.

4.) What were the major ancient civilizations and approximately when did they thrive?

Mesopotamia, and Egypt were two of the largest, most well known civilizations in ancient times. Both were centered on the dependency of their water sources.


5) What is the importance of leisure in the development of early civilizations?

During the paleolithic era there was a lot more time for it because people worked fProxy-Connection: keep-alive
Cache-Control: max-age=0

what they needed and nothing more. Therefore people seemed to live more happy, carefree lives, albeit short.


6) What can you tell about a civilization from reading its creation story?

The creation stories say a lot about the moral and ethical intents of each society. As societies evolved, so did their stories, changing subtly over time to better suit the expectations of society. For example, in more ancient creation stories female goddess were much more prominent than in more recent ones. This is probably because patriarchy began to emerge with the founding of civilizations.

WW: Chapter 9: China and the World --wip

Ways of the World: Chapter 9

China and the World

East Asian Connections

China has always been a huge country, dominating Eastern Asia with it's massive population, booming economy and innovations. Despite the collapse of the Han dynasty in 220 C.E, the result of three centuries of political dysfunction, China was able to pick itself back onto it's feet, and regained a sense of unity under tne new Sui dynasty in 589. The following dynasties were the Tang and the Song, and established a period in China known as the 'golden age' of arts and literature for it's high standards of poetry, literature and arts.

The golden age in China, was not exactly the best time for individuals within the society.  The Song dynastyh was the start of the brutal tradition of foot binding. The girls feet were essentially broken and reshaped in order to restrict mobility and therefore give them men even more power over them. It was also seen as a symbol of beauty and eroticism and even though the procedure was dangerous (and sometimes deadly), women would go to lengths to put their daughters through the binding process as it symbolized a higher class.

WW: Chapter 8: Commerce and Culture

Ways of the World: Chapter 8

Commerce and Culture

Origins of economic globalization lie deep in the past, the exchange of goods to different geographical settings reoccurs throughout history and is an important part of the globalization and evolution of society. 

It has also been a vital part in shaping economic and social structures. Long distant trade is not only the link between goods but between people and societies. It altered lifestyles even for the people not directly involved in the trading process -- for example it altered consumption in West African societies that did not have access to salt and were therefore unable to preserve their food. With the benefits of trading this could be changed. Trade diminished the need for a self sufficient economy within smaller communities -- it was much easier to sustain communities with less than desirable geographic settings with the use of trade.

Traders even became a social group of it's own. Though their reputation varied in meaning throughout different societies, their work affected each society greatly. Traders were often looked down upon for being greedy -- but at other times looked upon as knowledgeable because of their travels, experiences and wealth.

Political life was greatly transformed because of trade as trade helped sustain and transform states, not only by bringing in resources but by the influence of religion and people.  Trade became a vehicle for religious ideas and innovations as well as a way to transport innovations, intellect and technology. Even more so than that, plants, animals and even epidemics could be transferred via trade, which greatly transformed the world. (Not always intentionally, of course)

The Silk Roads were land based route that were responsible for much of the unity and coherence to Eurasian history.  Large, powerful states provided an anchor point for commerce. Most of the goods came through camel caravans and were luxury items. Silk was the main symbol of this trade system partially because the Chinese began to monopolize it. The demand for silk drained the wealth of many Roman countries.  Silk was also a general symbol of status and wealth in central asia. While the trading of silk did not directly make an impact on most people, there were definite social and economical consequences. For example, many people who would generally have jobs as farmers or peasant, gave this up to produce luxury produces such as silk, paper, porcelain and iron tools.

The Silk road traded much more than just silk however, and by that I don't just refer to material goods but the trade of culture. The spread of Buddhism is due in huge part to the activity of merchants. Merchants seemed to favor Buddhism over Hinduism due to it's accessibility. Traders and priests brought the religion to the trans-Eurasian trade routes, spreading the religion far and wide.

With the spread of Buddhism, also came the evolution of it. Trade had influence on the original faith, by bringing the material into the faith. Buddhism also picked up elements of other cultures during its journey along the trade route.

All of the above seem to be positive results of trade, however, trade also resulted in consequences as well as benefits. For example, disease also traveled -- and often had deadly repercussions.  ' Communities exposed to new diseases often had little to no immunity to them. One example of the affect this had on a country was the spread of a disease from Egypt to Athens that resulted in 25% of it's army being killed and largely affecting the city state.

One of the most famous of these occurrences was that of the spread of the Black Death from China to Europe. Over one-third of the population perished from the plague.

The Silk Roads were by land, however other trade took part on the sea. The Indian Ocean experienced a large traffic from trade, representing the largest network of seaborne trade. The reason for trade stemmed with the desire for goods not available at home -- such as spices, cotton, pepper, ivory and gold.

Indian traders used the seasonal monsoons to plan and direct their trade routes. Just like on the land routes, seas routes were a catalyst for change. This change seemed to have a huge affect on Southeast Asia and East Africa. Both were influenced by political and religious changes.

The third major trade roads were across the dessert.  What made traveling across the harsh dessert possible, was the use of the camel. This animal was able to go ten days without water, and made crossing the Sahara more possible than ever before. Ivory, koala nuts and slaves were traded for horse, cloth, dates, salt and gold.  The journey was taken mostly at night to avoid the intense heat, and took about seventy days, covering 25 miles per day. Slaves were mostly sold to Islamic wealthy in North Africa, however a few made their way to Europe.

WW: Chapter 7: Classical Era Variations

Ways of the World : Chapter 7

Classical Era Variations

Africa and the Americans

Africa during the classical era  =  the land mass, rather than the cultural identity. Africa was home to many different societies, cultures & civilizations. Many of the differences stemmed from the different climates. As the climates varied so did the people.

Africans location was ideal for trade with Eurasia and Arabia. East Africa became a port for Egyptain, Roman and Arab merchants.

Meroë was a country neighboring Egypt.They borrowed many ideas from Egypt but remained a separate entity. They were ruled by a king and the dead were buried with human sacrifices. Unlike Egypt, they didn't have to rely on a river as their only water source as they often got rainfall.

Axum was the start of a new way of African civilization. It was founded on a plow based farming system. The other major difference between this civilizations was the introduction of christianity to a Islam dominate society. Christianity was introduced through the Red Sea trade and connections with the roman. King Ezana adopted the new religion. Although Christianity would always be the minority, it did remain a dominate part of modern day ethiopia. Azum's decline was brought about due to  enviormental changes. They eventually imreged into a smaller country.

Niger River:
Along the niger river emerged small urban artisan communities, independent of a higher government. They were essentially cities without states. Because of this they were free from an unfair social system. These were clusters of specialized settlements, each city focusing on a specifiic trade, i.e. iron, weaving, farmers. These middle Niger cities were alternatives to living under a states rule. West African commerce helped stimulate the economy. Supplies from even as far as 200 miles away could be traded.

Mesoamerica: 

Mesoamericans had less influence from neighboring countries, in part because there wasn't as much around them. They were at a disadvantage in many ways because they didn't have large domestic animals or iron technology. However, despite all this, they still managed to give birth to very advanced civilizations. The region itself was very diverse and bound together by a strong sense of common culture.

The Maya:
Dated back to 2000 BCE and the intellects developed a complex mathematical systems including the number zero as a place holder. They used math to calculate the solar year, plot the cycles of the planets and construct calenders. They were also responsible for creating an elaborate writing system, that kept records of nearly everything.

Their landscapes were an engineered one, molded to reap the land's full benefits. This included drained swamps, terraced hillsides, flattened ridge tops as well as a complex irrigation system. Their culture flourished, rich with agriculture and intellect. It's no surprise that scholars originally believed Mayan society to be a peaceful one.

We now know that this was not the case. Their government was highly dysfunctional with no central authority, and the act of human sacrifice took place. Each city-state was ruled by a king, but there was no  stable connection between these city-states and thus a unified Mayan empire seemed far from possible. After a long term drought, the civilization rapidly felt -- fanime, epidemic and warfare brought 85 percent of the Mayan empire to the grave. The great cities were deserted and all art and intellectual work abandoned.

Teotihuacán: America's Greatest City
Existing around the same time of the Maya, was Teotihuacán, which stood in the North Valley of what is modern day Mexico. It was one the largest city of it's time period with an occupation around 100,000 - 200,000 people. However, not much about Teotihuacán is actually known other than what is to be find in historical remnants and not even the original name is known.

The city itself was extensive, with large boulevards, plazas, marketplaces, temples , drainage systems, murals and even slums.  The homes of the elite were located on the Street of the Dead, along with a series of temples and two giant pyramids. One of them is the Temple of the Sun and was supposedly the birth pllace of the sun and the moon. The other is the Temple of the Feathered Serpent, which seemed to be the location of a great human sacrifice of over 200 (unwilling) victims.

The art of Teotihuacán, unlike the Mayan art was not self serving, and did not say much about actual people or events. 

WW: Chapter 11: Worlds of Islam

Ways of the World : Chapter 11

The Worlds of Islam

Afro-Eurasian Connections

The new religion was started by Muhammad  Abdullah who was born in Mecca. Like Jesus and Buddha, Muhammad had a spiritual experience that convinced him he was Allah's messenger to the Arabs. His revelations were recorded in the Quran and delivered through Muhammad. Allah was the only God, the all powerful, and God was good. Muhammad claimed to be the final messenger of God. The Quran called for social justice. This was a very good thing for the country considering Arab society was so prone to violence and social injustice.

The Islamic community quickly became a huge empire. Muhammad exercised a great amount of political and military power making it much easier for him to implement his visions.

In a short period of time, 20 years, a new religion had been born. This society became the model for future Islamic communities.  

The Islamic faith even spread quickly throughout Egypt, Persia, Mesopotamia and India and even beyond.

Becoming Muslim was often a profound spiritual and psychological transformation but it was also a social conversion.

The central elements of Islam -- monotheism, ritual praying, fasting, divine revelation, heaven, hell and the final judgment were all key elements in Judism as well. The community was heavily encouraged to convert albeit conversion wasn't easy.


After Muhammad's death disputes over who should be the successor as political leader. This rift eventually would be the cause of a great division in the political world of Islam.

The two types of Muslims were the Sunni and the Shia. Sunni muslims believed that caliphs were the rightful political and military leaders chosen by the Islamic community Shia muslims felt the leaders should derive from line of Ali, the blood relatives of Muhammad. This split became very signifigant and remains so even in our time.

Sunni religious authority emerged from a larProxy-Connection: keep-alive
Cache-Control: max-age=0

oxy-Connection: keep-alive
Cache-Control: max-age=0

r community -- from the religious scholars known as ulama.

Shia leaders were imams with a religious authority that caloph's lacked. They could reveal the true meaning of the Quran. The shias were the minorities in their eyes, they called themselves the "defenders of the opressed" Sunni's were advocates of established order. Shia's started revolting and failed

Women & Men:
Quran viewed women as inferior and subordinate. "Good women are obedient," There were many protections and restrictions on women. Arab practice of female infanticide was forbidden. Women were expected to be sexually satisfied -- if they went without sex for more than four months they were allowed to sue for divorce. (This meant divorce was possible for both parties) Men could however have multiple wives, but this was limited to four. Men could also have sex with female slaves with consent only.

Islam and Cultural Encounter: A Four-Way Comparison

India:
Islam found a permanent place in South Asia because of invasions by Turks. However it only covered about 25% of the population.

Anatolia:
Anatolia was also victim of Turkish invasion, however Muslims made a more prominent place in the culture, with 90% of the population converting.

Why was so much more of Anatolia converted than of India?

Probably because the conversion was a lot smoother from Christianity to Muslim because of the common monotheism and respect for Jesus. Anatolia was also far more disrupted by the invasion, and therefore their culture was more weakened. Turks took over and welcomed converts by granting them with rewards and oppurtonites.

Despite the Islamization, the Turks still kept to their culture. For example, Turk women were still held in high respect -- and they were even more dignified than the men.

West Africa:
Rather than being carried with invaders, Islam came with Muslim traders. The new religion was welcomed in the urban centers of West African empires. Islam offered comfort to people via it's single God. Because of this Islam became prominent in many West African cities.


Spain:
Islam did not overtake Christianity the way it did in Anatolia, instead Muslim Spain was a harmonious place for Muslims, Jews and Christians. Arabized Christians were not accepted amongst Muslim culture The peaceful age soon ended as intolerance increased. Christians and Muslims soon became segregated and many Muslims became forced oout of Spain.


The World of Islam as a New Civilization:
Ulama was most important part of transmitting these beliefs to other groups. The ulama were not priests in that they did not stand between God and the people, rather they served as judges and reciters of the Quran.

Sufis also emerged as religious teachers and spread their ideas throughout the Muslim world. Islamic trade greatly influenced the exhange of religious ideas. Muslim merchants were some of the dominate traders in the Afro-Euroasia trade route.

WW: Chapter 6 : Eurasian Social Hierarchies

Ways of the World : Chapter 6 

Eurasian Social Hierarchies

Little social mobility in both China and India
Inequalities characterized daily social life
Religons and cultural traditions defined these social inequalities as natural.


The social system in China:
China was one of the few societies in the ancient world that shaped their actions by the state. 


The officials were on top, and were highly educated at an imperial academy where they were trained as scholars, immersed in literature and followed Confucius teachings. Private schools allowed lower class people into the examination system but most of them were too poor to afford the education required to even pass the exams to move up rankings. So while this system claimed to be open to everyone it favored the wealthy. Officials came from wealthy families -- who were usually the land owners.


Peasants were the majority of the population in China. Some owned enough land to support their families and do relatively alright -- but others could barely survive. They were very vulnerable to loosing the little they did have do to natural disasters and state authorities who demanded tax payments.


The social system in India: 


The caste system - caste derives from the world casta :: race or purity of blood

At the top were the Brahmins, who served as teachers or priests. After them were the Ksatriya's who served as warrior and rulers. They were followed by the Vaisaya class, the commoners who cultivated land. These three top classes were all considered "twice born", and considered descendants of the pure born aryan classes. Below these were the Sudras, native people  placed in very subordinate positions. They were considered as servants of their social betters.


Even below them were the "untouchables" who weren't even considered a part of the Vedas. Their responsibilities were polluted labor, such as dealing with death and (cremations, executions, skinning of animals, etc)


In India it was near impossible to get out of a lowly social status in this life. Hindu notions of rebirth were reflected within the caste system. Someone born into a lower class meant they had bad karma in a previous life, likewise being born into a good class meant good karma from a previous life. Prior actions determined status.  The only way one could move up in social ranking was by faithful performance of one's caste duties in their current life. These teachings only contributed to the social inequalities. India's social system gave priority to those of religious status (the Brahmins) where as China put political officials on top. 


Patriarchies:
The chinese women was always under that of the male figures in her life. Even from her day of birth she was placed below the bed to show her place as "lowly and weak". The best way for a women to get any power was by birthing sons -- the rule of mother in law was actually one of significant authority (at least over the life of her son's wife)


Daoism offered new images of femininity -- encouraging more passive feminine virtues. Dao was referred to as "mother" many women sought out Daoist sects to be priests or nuns rather than the more patriarch family life. 



In Athens & Sparta:
Though Athens has inspired Western democracy -- it's view on women was very restrictive. Even great greek thinkers provided ideas that justified women as subordinate to men. Aristotle said, " a women is, as it were, an infertile male. She is female in the fact on account of a kind of inadequacy"


I can't help but see that is as reflected in more modern views. While women have come a long way in America, it seems that we are still ultimately considered inferior. 


The inadequecy that Aristotle refers to is that women are unable to produce sperm, which were considered to contain the soul of a new human being. Because of this the women's role in reproduction was a passive one. Women were often seen as being associated with instinct and passion that lacked rationality -- such as a child or an animal might act, and were therefore unable to take part in publci life. "It is best for all tame animals to be ruled by human beings," states Aristotle, "For this is how they are kept alive. In the same way, the raltionship between the male and female is by nature such that the male is higher, the female lower, that the  male rules and the female is ruled,"


A good Greek women were expected to remain inside the home, and were not allowed to be educated. 


In Sparta, the role of a man was to be a warrior, and the role of a man was to produce sons to grow up and become these warriors. Because of this militaristic system, women were offered much more freedoms than in Athens. In order to strengthen their bodies for child birth they were greatly encouraged to take place in sporting events. Spartan women married men around their age, and took care of the affairs of the household while her husband was off in war. Because of this, they had much more authority in the family then in Athens. 


Sparta was more restrictive on one more thing -- which was sexuality. They prohibited homosexuality, while most other cultures at the time found homoerotic relationships to be fairly common.


Efforts of men and women were given the same amount of respect in Sparta. Death in childbirth was considered as honorable as death in battle since both acts contributing to the defense of Sparta. Despite Athens being so well known for it's democracy and philosophy they give little to their women, while Sparta, so often condemned for it's militarism provided a much better life to the women in their society.

WW: Chapter 5: Eurasian Cultural Traditions

Ways of the World :: Chapter 5

Eurasian Cultural Traditions

China: 
Legalists had a pessimistic out look on man kind, according to Han Feizi, "if rewards are high, then what the ruler wants will be quickly effected; if punishments are heavy, what he does not want will be swiftly prevented." They believed that people were dim-witted and unable to see things long term. Farmers and soldiers were the only two groups that preformed functions essential to society. Artisans, merchants, aristocrats, scholars, etc were all deemed useless. Legalism was quickly discredited and replaced with Confucianism.


Confucius wanted to become a political figure and believed he could solve China's disorder problems. However, he instead became a philosopher and a teacher, inspiring Chinese culture even after his death. His teachings and ideas were put together into Confucianism. "Moral example of superiors" was key to social harmony. Human relationships were unequal -- Father superior to son; husband to the wife, older brother to youngest; and ruler to subject. Superiors acted well, and the inferiors would be motivated to act as well.


"The relationship between superiors and inferiors is like that between the wind and the grass. The grass must bend when the wind blows across it." -- Confucius


Confucius believed education was key to moral betterment. Broad liberal arts education applied to practical problems. Confucianism became official ideology of China, become the center of the education system. Family became model for political life, like a smaller version of the state. The teaching of history was also prevalent. Confucianism did not deny the presence of spiritual beings, however, it was more focused on worldy and practical issues. Confucius stated, "that because we do not fully understand this life, we cannot possibly know anything about the life beyond."


Daoist thinking was somewhat opposite of Confucianist thinking. Rather than placing emphasis on importance of education and morality, Daoists urged people to be spontaneous, individualistic and natural. Confucianism focused on human relationship, and Daoists on nature and it's immensity. Dao = notion that refers to the way of nature and what governs all natural phenomena. According to the Daodejing, the dao, "moves around and around but does not on this account suffer. All life comes from it. It wraps everything with its love as in a garment, and yet it claims no honor, for it does not demand to be lord. I do not know its name and so I call it the Dao, the Way, and I rejoice in it's power,"


limited government, and abandonment of education (reminds me of the 60's & free love )


Many people saw it as a compliment to Confucianism ideas. Reflective of Yin and Yang, unity of opposites.


India:
Indian culture embraced the divine
Hindiusm was shaped over time rather than founded by one person. Sacred texts known as the vedas, were collections of poems and hymns made my the priests called Brahmans  for religious practices.


The final quest of humankind was union with the Brahman.


Buddhism was a simplified and more accessible version of Hinduism. It rejected the religious authorities of the brahmins, deeming their rituals as irrelevant to the dealing of self suffering as they do not directly accomplish nirvana.


Buddhism also found the unequal hindu caste system to be unfair. Their religion of one of self effort. Buddhism gave many Indian's a sense of freedom and independence. Buddhism was an easily accessible language as it was taught in many different languages. Buddha was originally depicted as a wise teacher (not someone divine) It was a more psychological approach to religion following practices rather than beliefs.


Hinduism text "the laws of Manu" declared women as always under men
Buddhist nuns allowed freedom
Buddhism appealed more so lower caste groups & women


Buddhism died out as it's own religious practice, becoming part of an updated version of Hinduism.
New Hinduism was more accessible  (perhaps a response to Buddhism's popularity) and affired that ordinary people could in fact make spiritual progress.


Monotheism was a cultural innovation at the time. Common theme of one deity against the forces of evil started with Zoroastrian belief system. Those who sided with evil received eternal punishment (sound familiar) Jews were very influenced by these beliefs of God vs. an evil counterpart. Other Judaism beliefs derived from Zoroastrian belief systems, i.e last judgment, belief in defeat of evil, arrival of the savior and the remaking of the world.


Concepts of heaven and hell prominent in it's successors; Judaism Christianity and Islam.


Judaism born of Hebrews, Jewish God Yahweh was a powerful & Jealous deity who wanted the Hebrews full loyalty. Jews were often tempted to worship neighboring goddesses, but in the end Yahweh triumphed.


In return for complete devoution, Yahweh would consider Jews the chosen people. Mesopotamia and Greek Gods were associated with nature while Yahweh was set far above the world he had created.


Greek gods were unpredictable, quarreling and lustful Gods that were a lot more human than Yahweh. However, because of this the Greeks were much more willing to abandon their mythological framework in pursue of science and philosophy. Science was for the most part separated from religion.


There was much confidence in human reason, and wisdom and virtues triumphed wealth and power.


Jesus of Nazareth and Buddha shared many similarities. Both were teachers that were transformed by followers into Gods. Neither of them expected to be the start of religions, and both of them started their path with a vision of sorts.

DGP: Chapter 3: Art

DGP: Chapter 3

Representing the Human Form

Art as historical evidence can explain a variety of things about a culture; technological, ecological, aesthetics, & culture


Understanding artistic skill may be difficult because of the lack of a cultural context. Ideas must be understood in order for the artists purpose to be fully understood. Whether we 'like' or 'dislike' a work of art is irrelevant, in order for it to be used as historical evidence we need information on the culture.  One of the common subjects for art throughout human history is the human form.


How do these cultures depict the human form? What do these depictions tell us about the values of these cultures? 


I turned to the evidence pages prior to reading the background information, as the book suggested. I tried to be observant of the style, and use this to determine what each culture may consider to be aesthetically pleasing, starting with Egypt.


The Egyptian's seem to favor the profile of the human face. The art is very stylized, and detailed, especially when it comes to depicting jewelry, hair and headpieces and nature. The people have very long fingers, and slender bodies. The eyes are big, dark and almond shaped. In the jewelry and backgrounds there are often reoccurring shapes and patterns.  In ancient Greece, the bodies have a bit more shape to them than the Egyptians. The eyes are smaller, and it seems that they prefer very strong, angular noses. In their sculptures the human form is very accurately portrayed, and there is much attention to detail and texture. In India, the women are pictured as very voluptuous, and again the eyes and ears seem to be a bit exaggerated. There is great detail put into the attire as well.


Background Notes::

• In ancient Egypt, statue of a deceased person in tomb was a home for his ka, the spirit or immortal alter ego
• Egyptian artists attempted to portray scenes or figures not as they appeared to the eye, but as they actually were, what we might call a depiction of their essence. aspective rather than perspective, basing size of figures on their importance in the social hierarchy (similar to Plato's philosophy on art)
• Greek statues erected in memory of individuals -- they started very stylistically, somewhat akin to the Egyptians and then over the years became more accurate representations of the human figure
• Plato viewed the world as a microcosm of the universe, a universe that was itself a living creature. Soul is immortal, as is the perfect form of the universe and all that exists within it.
• Plato thought the chief purpose of art was to represent eternal forms as understood by the soul, not to imitate fleeting external appearances. 
• Purpose of sculpture in Indian religion is to give concrete shape to an invisible spirit within the body. Indian sculpture does not aim to record the appearance or structure of the body, but instead to express the awareness of life within the body, of the breath that sustains and moves the body.
• Sculptures achieve this, not by looking at other bodies as models, but by feeling the breath and pulse of life within their own bodies and by meditating or contemplating.
• Buddhist teachings built on these ideas
• In Mayan culture large scale art was produced to record actions and deeds of rulers
• Writing and art depicted gruesome blood letting rituals
• Much of Nigerian art came from royal courts, and professional artists
• The portraits from Ile-Ife are extremely individualized
• Obalufon sculptures were idealized like Egyptian art was except they were also still slightly individualized like the Ile-Ife art
• Artists in Benin more concerned with providing information about life and events, using detailed clothing and symbols rather than facial features as identification.
• Benin figures appear shown from the front, usually standing
• Heads often enlarged -- Yoruba people of Ile-Ife and the Edo people regarded head as the site of a person's nature and life force; & the purpose of representing the body was to make these living principles within the body visible.

DGP: Chapter 2: Writing

 DGP: Chapter 2 

Writing & Power:

Defining World-Views

Writing gave people a way to bind people together through shared cosmology and history. writing seemed to possess a greater power than oral traditions. Written communication was a form of conveying messages as well as expression. Forms of communication (such as cave paintings) are as old as human kind itself. Writing is divided into two systems :: ideographic and phonetic. 


Ideographic writing is symbolic, using pictures to represent objects or thoughts. Takes lots of memorization but can be understood by a wide number of people.


Phonetic writing uses signs that represent sounds that are then put together to create a variety of words.


Whoever mastered the skills of writing wielded great power and respect. Many societies only taught royalty or high class citizens how to read and write. "This was because those in power quickly realized that those who could write possessed the capacity to shape the thoughts of those who could not."


Excerpts from Atra-hasis: 
Notes:Three senior gods (Anu of heaven, Enlil of earth & Enki of water beneath the earth) 
Junior gods revolted, birth goddess decides to create workers to serve the gods
"Let the birth-goddess create offspring,
and let man bear the toil of the gods,"


Themes: Men as servants to Gods.

Excerpts from Book 10 of the Rig Veda:

Excerpts from the First Book of Moses, called Genesis

Notes:God separated the light from the darkness called it "night"

"Let us make man in our image, after our likeness. They shall rule the fish of the sea, the birds of the sky, the cattle, the whole earth, and all the creeping things that creep on earth."  27.]and God created man in His image, the image of God.

28.]God blessed them and Gd sadi to them, "Be fertile and increase, fill the earth and master it; and rule the fish of the sea, the birds of the sky, and all the living things that creep on earth,"

"Of every tree of the garden you are free to eat; but as for the tree of knowledge of good and bad, you must not eat of it; for as soon as you eat of it, you shall die," [Or rather, lose your immortality]

Themes: Knowledge causes corruption. Men is the superior being to animals. God is superior over man. 

Excerpts from Yijeng, Commentary on the Appended Judgments

Notes: "Heaven is high, the earth is low; In correspondence with this difference between low and high, inferior and superior places are established."

Reflection: I didn't understand most of this, perhaps the translation was awkward or I needed some further background information on what the hexagrams were exactly.  Common themes from the prior two are shared, such as the high and lows. However, Yijing seems to be more of a explanation for the world's workings rather than a creation story.

From Popol Vuh, "The Book of the People,"

Notes: This is the first account. There was only sky and sea. 

"Thus let it be done!" Let the emptiness be filled!

Animals were made, but could not speak the names of their creators -- thus it was decided that because these creatures could not praise and worship their creators, they would be condemned to be eaten. It was then decided that a man would be created. Earth & mud made human flesh.  However, it failed. They tried again with wood. This did not work well either.  These people were destroyed in a flood and their descendants became monkeys. The few people who survived did praise the gods and became true human beings.

Reflection: Reoccurring theme of sky and sea as a unit, coming before life forms, in an incredible calm. Creation compared to a cloud of dust.

Why did God decide to create humans? What was their purpose? What materials were used? 

God creates humans for a variety of reasons. In some cosmology, it is to serve to Gods, or to worship them. In the case of Genesis it is because God is creating all things good and he creates men in his image. It seems that a reoccurring theme is for people to come from the earth, or else natural substances such as mud, clay or wood. 

DGP: Chapter 1: Water

DGP: CH1: The Need for Water in Ancient Societies 

• civilization comes from the word "civis" meaning "resident of a city, or citizen,"
• what defines a civilization is the presence of cities = defined as a place where more than five thousand people live
• the implication of a city is that the presence of culture, technological advances & government

How did the need for a steady supply of water affect the technological, economical, political and legal development of ancient societies? 


The need for water often becomes a need for technological advances, depending on various factors such as natural resources. Without a steady supply of water, a civilization is simply unable to survive. Depending on available resources and the amount of labour required to distribute water, government is able to come up with the necessary methods


Thus, it is no surprise that the earliest ancient civilizations were erected around naturally existing water resources. Mesopotamia developed around the Tigris and Euphrates river, Egypt around the Nile, China around the Yellow River and Rome around the Tiber. Because each city depended heavily on their main source of water, the main priority was maintaining and exploiting the rivers to their maximum benefit. Labor and technology necessities surrounding the rivers depended heavily on a factor as unpredictable as nature itself. To Egypt's benefit, the Nile had a fairly predictable flooding cycle, and Egyptians had a much easier time with irrigation because of it. Their calendar was based on the rising and falling cycles of the river. Using basic basin irrigation, crops could be watered with ease. They also had waterways and water lifting machine for long term irrigation. Using technology and recorded observation the Egyptians were able to reap the full benefits of the nile One of the pictures (source 10) depicts the Pharaoh constructing an irrigation system, this is obviously a direct correlation to the Egyptians' belief that the king is of equal status to that of the God. The stability of the Nile contributed greatly to the Pharaoh's credibility and status.


Not all civilizations had such good luck with irrigation as the Egyptians. The Tigres and Euphrates rivers were a bit more unpredictable, and the fast flowing water carried heavy amounts of soil in it.  This was good for creating rich soil, however, it also meant irrigation ditches had to be cleaned out on a regular basis. Different parts of Mesopotamia used different forms of irrigation. Basin and perennial irrigation was used as well as water channels. Since Mesopotamia saw much more rainfall than Egypt they were less dependent of their rivers, however, the Tigris and Euphrates were key factors in the civilizations success and survival.




The violent and unpredictable nature of China's Yellow River was a much more difficult  power to harness. Dramatic changes in the river were often the cause of conflict in Chinese civilization. Enemies would often use the waterway as a weapon -- flooding the land of rivals by destroying dikes. Like the violence of the river, China too saw much violent based around their water supply.


Rome had the most extensive irrigation system of all, building aqueducts to bring water from freshwater lakes and springs into cities. There were over 300 miles of aqueducts and the building of a system so expansive surely elevated the employment rate in Rome. Engineers had to carefully map out the systems and laborers had to make these plans a reality.


People throughout history have always been attracted to power and some will go incredible lengths just to obtain it. It is no surprise that waterways have been used as one method of obtaining power throughout history. Source 9 is a clear example of this, and tried to deceive King Chhin to use time, money and resources on the making of a canal, this way they would not feel the need to start expanding and possibly attack Han.


In general however, the developing of irrigation systems seemed to be above all a benefit to the growth of early civilizations. The care and maintaining of them required technological advances and kept jobs flowing, Waterways were a source of transportation to other lands, making trade easier and helping to boost the economy. The water as a natural entity often inspired folklore and religion -- an important binding part of each civilization. Water dispersion was monitored by laws, keeping the government intact. Above all, the need for water in early societies created the need for so much more, and these needs paved way for further progression

Chapter 4

Chapter 4: Eurasian Empire

Cities, States and Unequal Societies

500 B.C.E - 500 C.E

Empires & Civilizations in Collision: The Persians and the Greeks

The Persian empire was inspired by Babylonian and Assyrian empires, but went above and beyond their greatness. Located on the Persian Gulf, the Indo-European empire expanded from Egypt to India, quickly reaching 35 million people. Ruled by an absolute monarchy, the Persians were rich in culture and strong con questers. The government helped hold the empire together, as the King could not run such a large empire entirely alone. He had his imperial spies as his "eyes and ears", as well as lower level officials known as satraps. Persian society greatly valued and respected other religions which helped them gain further support. "there is no nation which so readily adopts foreign customs. They have taken the dress of the medes and in war they wear the Egyptian breastplate. As soon as they hear of any luxury they instantly make it their own," (100). 

Greece greatly contrasted Persia in every way possible. Rather than being a large and impenetrable, Greece was composed of small groups of city-states, and governed by the people. Greek civilization was composed of just 2 - 3 million and built on a small peninsula composed of hundreds of city-states.  Each city-state was independent of the next, however, they were linked by their common language and religion. These city-states were constantly feuding, however, every 4 years they would establish a truce to hold the Olympic Games. Rather than expanding by conquest the way the Persians did, the Greeks extended in small colonies along the Mediterranean and the Black Sea. The political life of the Greeks was the greatest contrast from the Persians of all. Citizens actively participated in government and eventually almost all the social classes were granted citizenships, and therefore able to participate in state wide decision making. In Athens, a democracy was formed, with the help of leader Solon. This democracy excluded women, slaves & foreigners.

Collision: The Greco-Persian Wars

• 
  

Chapter 3: First Civilizations

Chapter 3: First Civilizations

Cities, States and Unequal Societies

35oo B.C.E. - 500 B.C.E

"Urge to escape from civilization has long been a central feature in modern life, ... 
The ancient Chinese teachers of Daoism, likewise,  urged their followers to abandon the structured and demanding world of urban and civilized life and emerege themselves in the eternal patterns of the natural order. Its a strange paradox that we count the creation of civilization among the major achievements of humankind and yet people within these civilizations have often sought to escape the constraints, artificiality, hierarchies and other discontents of city living," (55).

Something New : The Emergence of Civilizations

• Civilization was global phenomenon much like agriculture, showing up in six different locations around the world, slowly extending across the world

Introducing the First Civilizations

• First civilizations emerged from 35oo B.C.E - 3ooo B.C.E in three places 
• Mesopotamia (Present day Iraq)
• Egypt
• Norte Chico (costal Peru)
• Later, three additional civilizations appeared
• Indus Valley
• China
• Olmec

The Question of Origins 

• How did it start? 
• Originated with the Agricultural Revolution
• Roots in Chiefdoms where social ranking had already developed
• Though not all agricultural societies and Chiefdoms developed into civilizations which leaves other questions 
• Large scale irrigation projects might have been stimulus for early civilizations
• Warfare, trade and population density are other possible contributing factors
• Dense population increased need for competition
• Strong organized states won wars, and losers would be lower class
• First civilizations represented something much different than societies that came before

An Urban Revolution

• Agricultural resources made cities possible
• Teotihuacan housed 2oo,ooo people 
• Urban society was impersonal b/c it wss impossible to know everybody
• relationships based on class were as important (if not more important) than villiage loyalty
• heavy degree of inequality began to develop

The Erosion of Equality

• Wealth, status and power brought inequalities
• As technology grew so did inequalities
• The greater wealth that was accumulated didn't necessarily spread it -- rather it clumped together
• Upper Class enjoyed a wealthy lifestyle with little physical labour
• Commoners represented the majority 
• included artisans
• lower level officials
• soldiers
• police
• servants
• farmers
• Their surplus production was
• Bottom of social hierarchy EVERYWHERE was slaves
• In all of the first civilizations were slaves -- prisoners of war, criminals and debtors, available for sale

Hierarchies of Gender

• As first civilizations arouse, patriarchy emerged
• But why? 
• women more involved in secondary tasks
• women identified with home and nature -- women now associated with inferior dimension of human life (nature)? 
• warfare? military services restricted to men
• Female sexuality became limited
• Male had rights over women -- female slaves, concubines and wives were exchanged

Patriarchy in Practice

• "A wife caught sleeping with another man might be drowned at her husband's discretion, whereas he was permitted to enjoy sexual relations with his female servants."
• "Rape was a serious offense, but the injured party was primarily the husband of the victim rather than the violeted woman herself" 
• Easier for men to get divorces than females
• Female goddess' became less significant as male creation gods became more important
• Patriarchy not the same everywhere
• In Egypt, women had greater opportunities than women in most of the world
• Were legal equals to men, able to sign their own marriage contracts, get divorces, sell land, own property and even have political power

The Rise of the State

• State solved many widely shared problems among the population
• However -- it also served to protect the privileges of the upper classes and demand commoners to work on large public projects
• State had the ability to force obedience
• Symbols of kingship associated with divine power
• Egypt, China, Mesopotamia all had kings that held sort of divine religious powers -- "gods established monarchy"
• A further support of state authority was the invention of writing 
• Writing served as a method of organization, accounting and communication
• Gave rise to literature, philosophy, astronomy, math and history
• Writing became major arena for social and political conflict
• Kings, high officials and their families lived in luxury ; attended by endless servants
• Elaborate burials, monumental palaces and pyramids conveyed the powers of the elite 

Comparing mesopotamia and Egypt

• Both civilizations grew in river valleys, depended on the rivers to sustain their lands
• Egypt depended on Nile "that green gash of teeming life" which nurtured a rich agriculture
• The Tigris and Euphrates river supported Mesopotamian civilization but was "unpredictable" and often resulted in flooded crops
• Mesopotamia was more vunerable to  invasion
• Egypt was protected by the surrounding land and enjoyed a free security
• Culture was very reflective of their environment 
• Mesopotamian outlook on life viewed mankind as "caught in a disorderly world, subject to whims of capricious and quarreling gods, and facing death without much hope of a life beyond," 
• Egypt produced a more optimistic outlook rebirth of the sun daily, and river yearly assured Egyptians that life prevailed over death

Cities and States

• Mesopotamian civilization known as Sumer, organized in twelve + city-states, each ruled by a king
• Frequent warfare amongst these city-states
• Led to environmental devastation and vulnerability to outside forces
• Egyptian civilization began in 31oo B.C.E with the merge of several early states and chiefdoms into united territory 1,ooo miles along the nile
• For 3,ooo years they managed unity and independance
• Focus resided with Pharaoh 'god in human form"
• When changes of weather resulted in inconsistency with the Nile in 22oo the Pharaoh's lost credit and Egypt's strength slowly dissolved 
• Pharaohs never regained their power

Interaction and Exchange

• Interacted with one another 
• Step pyramids and writing system may have been inspired by Sumerian Models 
• Did long distance trade with one another
• Trading goods also caused cultural influences 
• Nubia borrowed many of Egyptian's religious and cultural practices
• In the Mediterranean egyptian influence is clear in the art, and greek culture drew heavily upon Egyptian influence as well
• Egypt and Mesopotamia were also influenced by neighbors -- the domesticated horse can from what is now Russia 
• Chariot technology was also borrowed