Civilization Era Essays Examples

Civilization is a state of state human society that has well developed urban systems, social classes, with a very developed culture and way of life. The monks in the 14th century had played a significant role in the civilization most importantly, of the western countries. Although the purpose of a monk retiring to be a monastery involved the cultivation of a more disciplined spiritual life, his role has proven to be substantial in the development of a civilized society. Their work as the Benedictines have been remarkable and have been appreciated since it has been a crucial part of the western civilization. These contributions are on the basis of social, political and economic aspect of life The monks contributed socially to the civilization through their practical arts with a very important example in agriculture. During the 14th century, agriculture as in a very bad state and this was when the monks prove to be very important in agricultural development because they converted the wilderness into a cultivatable land. After making the wilderness into cultivatable land, the monks introduce crop cultivation and cattle breeding and provided labor by the work of their hands. They took up for the work that as difficult and unattractive aiming at channeling grace and mortification of the flesh. The monks also made agricultural lands from damp and swampy area and at the same time eradicating some diseases as the swamps were sources of diseases. The monks did charitable work most especially to the people around them. They built and repaired roads ridges and among other features in the infrastructure of the medieval era. These were meant to benefit people in their environs. They made a contribution in the education sector of the society as they wrote scriptural commentaries and stored them in libraries. The monks also preserved, studied and taught the works of the ancients in the churches. They had knowledge in medicine and other disciplines, and this steered to the formation of institutions. In the schools sciences and languages were offered as subjects of the instructions to the young monks and outside scholars. The monks especially those from the catholic church played an important role in western civilization since they provided social services like schooling and medical care; inspired the western art, culture and philosophy; and influential play in politics and religion. It has affected the western attitudes to the vice and virtue in the diverse fields. Educational work and development of literature was the responsibility of the Benedictine monks. Parents used to take their children to the monastery schools where they were taught by the monks. Such children were dedicated to the service of God. Older universities in European countries developed out of the monastic schools such as Cambridge, oxford among others. Politically, they had contributed greatly in the ruling of the people. The monks had influenced the way people are treated women by condemning oppression of the women which had a higher contribution from the governing body especially. The monks had been peace advocators in political rivalry and also advocated human rights and welfare measures provided by the government through their religious teaching such as the parable of the Good Samaritan. Human right and the welfare measures that are commonly the responsibility of the governments in the West are as a result of the Catholic education on sexuality and matrimony which have been influential but controversial in the present times. Catholicism advocated the neglect of some practices including slavery, polygamy, human sacrifice, and infanticide. Generally, Christianity influenced the status and the image of women through condemnation of infanticide (which was mainly aimed at killing the female children) abortion, marital disloyalty, polygamy, divorce among other practices which were used as tools for the oppression of the women. The monks used to offer teaching about the male and female equality and difference for complementary. These gave women an opportunity to participate in civilization especially in education and medicine. The teachings about the female characters of the society were very influential due to the status of the Virgin Mary on whom notations were made on maternal virtue and compassion. The political contributions of the monk include the forms of government. The Benedictines had a democratic structure of government that followed Benedictine rule. However, women were excluded from politics and trade life except those involved in the leadership of the church. The rulers were very powerful figures, and they were treated like kings, lords or bishops. They attended all national and religious functions. Political and cultural traditions relate to ideas of class relations, institutions, and international affairs which affect political and social development. The period of the monastic scholar was characterized by written and printed manuscripts recording the political, religious and social matters. The monks carefully paid attention to punctuation and layout of texts, to enhance their readability and made sure that the meaning was clear in every sentence for proper interpretation. It is a very influential feature in the civilization of the developing countries where communication is very crucial. Written records are widely used for communication and storage of important factual information. Therefore, clarity of written materials is necessary because they are used in the preservation and transmission of culture. The Islamic civilization is based on the value of education that both the Qur’an and the prophet stressed. Islamic philosophy inborn an Arab philosophy born in the desert; it has a verbal custom based on the diffusion of culture through poetry and story. Development of written record had the greatest impact on civilization. It is also based on religious and scientific developments that were based in the same institutions. The monks used meditation alongside mortification of some practices to make the world a perfect place to live in through abandoning the physical emphasizing on the spirit. It includes self-denial with a main purpose to give services to the poor. Such practices can be important in the modern day to influence civilization where the class differences would be addressed. It requires that the upper class consider other classes in terms of possessions to neutralize the differences that exist among the various classes. During the 14th century, agriculture was practiced for food production purposes. The monks carried out agricultural activities to save the masses from starvation hence agriculture can be seen as a subsistent practice in the period. However, to enhance modern civilization, people need to practice agriculture widely to ensure enough production to support the growing population. It can be enhanced through the use of intensive agricultural techniques such as artificial fertilization, irrigation and crop rotation to improve agricultural production. The 14th century Benedictine monk civilization was characterized by practices in agriculture, religion, and politics. These practices molded the some aspects of the western civilization leading to well developed and organized present-day western society.