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
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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.