Tuesday, September 3, 2013
Choosing your Civilization
We've now had the chance to consider nearly all of the different River Valley and Early Civilizations. Clearly, there are definitive advantages and disadvantages to living in each of these societies. So, which one of the major four would you choose to live in if you could or had to? (The four choices: Mesopotamia, Egypt, Indus River Valley -- Ganges, China -- Yellow and Yangtze Rivers) Please offer a careful and thoughtful response that is well written and offers at least 3 facts from lecture or the text as well as personal reflection. The response should be at least 10 sentences. You can choose whichever social status you would like to have. However, you can't choose to be the ruler/King of any civilization or in the royal family. You must essentially choose noble, merchant, craftsmen, or peasant.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
I would want to be a noble in Mesopotamia. First off, the Minoan people of Mesopotamia were athletic, and I like sports, so it would be fun to live there. They had writing and medicine, so if you got sick, they were more advanced than some other civilizations. Despite limited natural resources, people of Mesopotamia dug irrigation ditches to bring water to them, so you would have that. The flooding wasn't as dangerous as on, say, the Huang He, where it could devour your entire village. I also like that Hammurabi enforced his laws, so there wasn't as much crime in Mesopotamia as there may have been elsewhere. I would be happy if I were a crime victim that the government would compensate me if a criminal for the crime wasn't caught. I also like that Sumerian ideas stayed even after Mesopotamia was ruled by others. I tend to like most of their values. For all these reasons, I think this stands above all others as the place to live in these times.
ReplyDelete- J��rdan Valdés #3
Living in Egypt is beautiful. We are blessed with the Egyptian gift: the Nile River. Farmers can catch fresh fish and grow an abundance of crops. The Nile has consistent flooding every year. It deposits silt which contributes to the nutrients in the wheat and barley fields. Egypt is surrounded by vast deserts that prohibit intruders from controlling our empire. I am a lady merchant. Here in Egypt, I feel free. My job brings me money and I have as many rights as men! The Nile is a good source of transportation and it helps me move my goods from one city to another. Merchants have many connections: Because I sell and trade many of my works to nobles, I have access to power. I also sell my goods to many people below my class. I am a merchant who lives in the beautiful Egypt and has access to money and power.
ReplyDeleteIf I could or had to I would choose to live in Egypt as a craftsman.I believe creating art in that time would be creating history. Mainly I’m interested to see how Narma,the king for the Upper Egypt United Egypt into one empire. I want to be able to feel and experience if it was a true peaceful unification between the two empires.I admire the Egyptians strength to build pyramids and fascinated in their beliefs of the afterlife.I like the fact that Egyptians are successful farmers and have the gift of the Nile. The location of Egypt protected them from outsiders and the Nile helped them create a mailing system, and provide successful cropping and etc. I also like the fact that woman were respected and had rights.
ReplyDeleteI would choose to live in Mesopotamia. First of all, they had advance technology, including irrigation systems, the first literature and advanced laws (Hammurabi's Code). Hammurabi's code was a good system of laws, with some minor problems, but better than most civilizations at the time. They also were the most equal, allowing people to work to attain higher classes. They had some natural problems, but solved most of them through trade or organization. For example, they built walls to protect themselves, despite having no natural borders. They were also very intelligent, with all of the upper classes having the ability to read. They had many scribes and recorded history. They also had good trading systems in place, so they were able to get anything they did not have naturally.
ReplyDeleteI would be a merchant in the Old Kingdom of Egypt. Being a merchant would allow me to travel the Nile for a living, and I'd write in hieroglyphics to trade. In Egypt, women could own property, trade, and even divorce. If I were in another civilization, China, for instance, I would be considered practically worthless. Medicine had begun to develop in Egypt; they could check heart rate and fix broken bones. Some surgeries were even possible. Egyptians also had recreational activities, and I could play games like senet when I wasn't working. 5 days out of the year, I'd be able to partake in holidays and feasting. Most importantly, I might have been able to aid in the construction of the pyramids. I would have been able to help create a landmark that would last for centuries.
ReplyDeleteI would probably choose to live in the Indus River valley. I know that there are some draw backs from this civilization like the monsoons and the floods the rivers sometimes changed course and the wet and dry seasons were unpredictable. though I really like how the people of the Indus River valley faced those issues. They built strong earthen walls to keep flood water out of the city and if that was not enough they built Human-made islands to raise the city above possible floodwaters. One of the most remarkable achievements of this city is there advanced city planning, and sophisticated plumbing system. I love architecture and that is one of the things that drew me in. The uniformity in the cities planning and construction suggested that they also had a strong government. They had a system of writing, they traded pottery and tools. I also love that they do not have much social devisions. There was not much war or conflict and child's toys made from clay or wood were also found that suggested a relatively prosperous society that could afford to produce non essential goods. I love animals and animals seemed to play an important role in culture. They also conducted a thriving trade with the people's go the region.
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteI would want to be a merchant in China. I would be a wealthy merchant with a big family, with at least 6 children. I would never have to be worried about war, or conflict unless a rebellion happened within the community, because of the natural barriers surrounding my home. Mountains, deserts, etc. I could live my life peacefully, traveling the roads and canals making money and spending money, always having enough to support my family. I would sell many different things that China provides, rice, iron, among many other goods. Peace and prosperity would be the making of my life and the dynasty would have Mandate of Heaven. My family and community would be one in the same, as we would share when we'd have to, and have fun with one another. I would be a successful business man within my own community and land. Life would be perfect, because I work hard and hard work gives you success, especially in Egypt. Egypt would be the place where I'd live and trade goods through the roads and canals as a merchant.
ReplyDeleteIf I had to choose one of the river valley civilizations to live in I think I would have chosen Egypt. My primary reason for choosing Egypt is the fact that Egypt has probably the best natural defenses against enemy attack. Another reason I would have liked to live in Egypt was the cultural unity. There was a smaller chance that it would have turned inward and destroyed its self. China was also fairly unified, but it did not have the natural defenses. I also would have lived in Egypt because it was so easy to move from one part of it to another. The river offered easy transportation from Upper to Lower Egypt and from Lower to Upper Egypt. The wind could take you along the river in one direction, and the flow of the river could take you in the other. If I had lived in this society I probably would not have wanted to be peasant. I would have wanted to be a craftsman. I would have wanted to help design some of Egypt’s amazing buildings. These would include, but would not be limited to, the pyramids.
ReplyDeleteI believe that I would choose to live in the Old Kingdom of Egypt. The Nile River is said to be ‘more predictable’ than the rivers around Mesopotamia, despite its dangers. One thing I think I would have liked living in this time would have been the unification between the two empires. I wonder how I would have felt about the theocracy in that time (not being incredibly religious myself) but having grown up with it as my culture, how would I have felt about it? I actually think that the idea of a ka and having many gods to believe is actually a pretty neat idea, and I like the intricacy with which the pyramids and tombs were built to ‘preserve’ the bodies of the pharaohs so that they would be pleased in the afterlife. Right now, I like the idea of such a strong community where there is good enough organization and teamwork to build something as magnificent as a pyramid. I am also very interested in language and wonder what I would have thought of hieroglyphics (they fascinate me). I believe that I would have liked to be an artisan. I think that that would have been a very interesting thing to do for a living, and may have been fun. In addition to that, I also wonder what it would have been like to be a peasant or laborer in that time. I also do like the idea of more women’s rights compared to those in the Chinese civilizations.
ReplyDeleteMarisa
I would like to live in the Egyptian Empire mainly because there was little risk of being taken over, and Egypt is such a lovely place. There are 3 main reasons why I would rather live in Egypt: The science is very advanced in Egypt, meaning I am better off, the risk of being taken over was very little, and its geographical downsides are much more moderate than other civilization’s. Egypt’s science and math was a benefit to all. As a noble (who wouldn’t want to be one) scribes that know geometry can mark my property after the floods have gone down, also the doctors were very advanced so many ailments could be fixed. As a noble I would have very little risk of my lands being overrun. Except for one stint when the Hyskos over took Egypt from 1630-1523BC, the Egyptians were untouched for 3000 years. Lastly the geographical downsides weren’t very harsh. The problem with the river over flooding or not flooding enough could be measured by Egyptian superior technology, even though the flooding stayed fairly consistent. Then the brute of the famine caused by the flooding could be absorbed until the next year because they knew it was coming. The desert on either side of the Nile forced the Egyptians to use only a sliver of land and reduced contact with outside peoples wasn’t bad, because they didn’t needs the trade and the harsh desert made it difficult to invade Egypt. Also it might have been fun to live in Egypt (as a noble anyway)! As a noble I could have free access to big game sports such as hunting. I could sit under a giant leaf being held by servants while looking at the beautiful Nile River. Now why would you turn that down for short lived success in other war waging countries.
ReplyDeleteIf I were to choose, I would choose to live in China during that time as a wealthy merchant. The main reason I choose this is because it reminds me of the legends and folklore of ancient India. I would have a nice family of about 5 people (Me, my wife, my two daughters, and my son.). I really would never have to be worried about constantly migrating around China, or moving to different places near the Yangtze, because the natural defenses around China would close us off from people who would ever attempt to invade us. Not only that, I wouldn't have to move around the Yellow and the Yangtze because there would never be a really severe drought. However, e only reason I would not want to live there is because the excess of precipitation could surely cause floods of epic proportions. And even then, the amount of flooding would be exponentially greater due to the fact that there are TWO rivers, not just one like the Egyptians and the Indus Valley people. But lets keep going. I would live a very peaceful life, trading whatever China specialized in at the time, like rice, millet, iron, etc. I would enjoy living in my big bungalow.. I could also potentially get to see the world through the trading channels and canals. Heck, I could take my family on a trading vacation! It would seem that the Chinese were very content with what they had, so that was a plus. I would live my life in accordance with the teachings of the Buddha, and live with prosperity in my life. We as a community would be very close. It would also seem that the subjects of the Xia and Shang Dynasty were never really abused, so I would not really expect a community revolt, and I wouldnt expect to find a reason to start a rebellion. So my life in China would be one big fortune cookie. Cool.
ReplyDeleteI would like to live in Egypt out of all the early civilizations. One of the main reasons was because women in Egypt had many of the same rights as the men. I would like to be in the middle class. I would also like to live in Egypt because they had developed a calendar and could predict when the Nile flooded, which made life much safer. I would also like to have lived in Egypt because their culture was so unique. They made a lot of technological and scientific advances. I also liked the freedom in the social classes of Egypt. Lower ranked Egyptians could gain higher class through hard work or marriage. I think it would be very interesting to live in a city that was so important to the modern development of today. I would also like to learn the language, reading and writing in Egypt, and because of the gender equality in Egypt I could. As opposed to Chinese society where I would be degraded.
ReplyDelete