Question 1
Rome started off as a minor city state but she grew up to become a major factor in Mediterranean civilization. Her political and commercial clout surpassed that that was had by the Greeks in both durability and organization. The Roman Empire combined many Greek features in the making of a stronger empire that would span many continents in her heyday. They built upon the Greek alphabet to form their version in Latin. Early on their property was acquired according to class and as a result the aristocrats were able to control the most important positions. Written laws were put in place to reduce strife but the aristocrats had more clout and controlled the bigger estates while the much smaller holdings were allocated farmers who were free citizens. Citizenship was granted based off the subjugation of the elites.
Social tensions that came about as a result of expansion began to widen the gap between the haves and the have nots and in turn weakening the constitutional balance between classes. One of the greatest gifts Rome gave the world was the development of legal codes. The women were not as oppressed here as they were in Greece or even china as some of them were able to receive education and even appear freely in public. During the latter empire though there became a growing inequality between the sexes. Like the Greeks they also had slaves.
India
India’s classical period is different from that of china and many of those differences have remained. India’s focus during her classical era was both social and religious and although politics was structured, it wasn’t as finely structured as the other countries that have been mentioned in this essay. Majority of the people at that time were farmers who farmed for their family’s survival and this created a type of localist flavour to the life at that time. Like with the other civilizations, the men were able to own property but the women were often treated as property themselves. The political practice of India at that time was not as structured as that of Greece or Rome or even China and she practiced regionalism. The Guptas for example claimed they were ordained by god to rule and they did not create any lasting bureaucracy and imposed no specific language. Question 2
The earliest recorded American civilizations are that of the Olmecs and the Chavins with the former being in Central America and the latter being in the Andes. These cultures focussed on the development of large towns that were centred on their temples. They built these temples with heads that depicted their rulers and their rule was of the authoritarian variety. People still do not know what caused their fall and in this instance they are different from other Mediterranean and early civilizations. However while they may be remembered for different things than their counterparts today, they would be remembered for the maize plant, human rituals and the calendar. The Chavins are another sect of the early Americas that was popular from 900 BCE to 300 BCE when they were completely vanquished.
Similarities and Differences
- Greece, Rome and China all put emphasis on secular and not religious culture but many of the early Americas were more religious in their culture
- They all had a definite social hierarchy
- Greece and Rome depended more on slave labor but these Chavins and Olmecs were farmers and sculptors
- While Greece and Rome allowed wealthy people to rise in status, it was difficult from people that were not from aristocratic families to become bureaucrats
- All three civilizations had instances of social unrest and this was similar with the early Americas as well
The Mediterranean civilization left a lot for the world today as we have them to be thankful for with regards political theories, definition of citizenship, science and other elements of life. However their treatment of women was not one of such benefitsQuestion 3
Greece
The Greek empire is one that spanned many other empires and is still studied today because many of her achievements are still valid after all these years. Most of those influences came from Athens as they produced some of the greatest thinkers and placed so much emphasis on philosophy and the use of logic. They also could be credited with an enduring form of government. While it must be noted that they did not create government and politics as we know it today. What they did is fine tune the practice of government and that model is still seen to be a back bone to many of the political thoughts of today. They were a very religious group of people but they worshipped many gods and some of these gods were given distinct human qualities.
Going back to their governing styles their two most popular states practiced different types of government with Sparta being a predominantly military state and Athens being a state that practiced democracy for their adult males. They grew in strength and established different colonies around the Mediterranean. The practice of slavery was the norm and women were seen as separate from men. The women were encouraged to stay healthy to enable them give birth to healthy sons that could fight their wars. There were social strata in Greece as the men were seen as higher than the women and slaves and were not permitted to participate in politics. For the men though their social status was dependent on their cultural sophistication and the amount of land they owned.
China
The great wall was first constructed as a solution to threats from the nomads who came from the south and the west. Confucianism dominated the social and political terrain of China. The Han era was a golden age that came about through inventions like the water mill, the calculation of the calendar year and trade along the Silk Road. At the time of her popularity the Xi’an capital was probably the most diverse and sophisticated city in the world. The politics was determined by the Confucian values with the emperor seen as the mandate from heaven. In the Han era he was supported by learned men or the educated shi who obtained their positions through exams of civil service.
For the Chinese of that time they measured their wealth through their acquisition of land and the emergence of the scholar gentry. Because most of the wealth was concentrated in the cities there was a large social divide between the urban and the rural with the merchants seen as a bit lower than the bureaucratic society. Although slavery existed it was nothing compared to what was practiced in Rome or Greece.
References
n.p. “The Asian World 400-1500.” Chapter 8. pp. 262-299. Web. 10 Dec. 2013. http://www.stjoe.k12.in.us/ourpages/auto/2013/8/13/47965368/Ch%208%20world%20history%20text.pdf
Chen, Song. “Native Incumbency and Elite Networks in Song Dynasty Sichuan: Evidence of the Turn of the Mid-Eleventh Century from China Biographical Database (CBDB). Dec. 2007. Web. 10 Dec. 2013. http://www.humanities.uci.edu/eastasian/SungYuan/Downloads/Warwick/ChenSong.pdf
Garcia, John, D. “Civilization and Ethics.” Chapter 4. 1991. Web. 10 Dec. 2013. http://www.see.org/garcia/e-ct-4.htm
Sansal, Burak. “The Ottoman Harem.” n.d. Web. 10 Dec. 2013. http://www.allaboutturkey.com/harem.htm
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n.p. “Common Features of Classical Civilization.” n.d. Web. 10 Dec. 2013. http://www.historyhaven.com/COMPARISON%20%20OF%20CLASSICAL%20CIVILIZATIONS.htm
Pearson. “World Civilizations: The Global Experience.” Chapter 4 Classical Civilization in the Mediterranean: Greece and Rome. n.d. Web. 10 Dec. 2013. http://wps.ablongman.com/long_stearns_wcap_4/18/4646/1189584.cw/index.html
n.p. “Classical Civilization: India.” Chapter 3. pp. 48-64. n.d. Web. 10 Dec. 2013. http://cyfair3.schoolwires.net/194920511192439493/lib/194920511192439493/_Files/Ch_3_Classical_Civilization_India.pdf
n.p. “Rome and its Empire.” Chapter 7. n.d. Web. 10 Dec. 2013. http://occawlonline.pearsoned.com/bookbind/pubbooks/stearns_awl/medialib/IM/ch07.pdf
n.p. “Early Societies in the Americas and Oceania.” Chapter 6. n.d. Web. 10 Dec. 2013. http://www.tanqueverdeschools.org/Downloads/TheAmericas.pdf
