Blog #2 Second Wave of Civilization

               The second wave of civilization from approximately (500 B.C.E to 500 C.E.) progressed into socially and politically organized city-states, which ultimately led to empires. Empirical rule provided more opportunities for individuals, but it also led to taxes and inequality of wealth.  Individuals whether it is of the Persian or Roman Empire, soon learned new technologies that allowed for more trade and productivity, but it also created a more competitive environment; individuals began to recognize the benefits of ownership which created territorialism. Empires provided more tools and better infrastructure to produce more goods, but people were also taxed more. The Chinese and Roman empires also improved roads and bridges to serve own needs, it enabled their beefed-up military. The empires need for acquiring more territory did benefit the trade industry, but the intentions were just as military as it was for the good of trade.  We see the good and bad with empires, although there was ample opportunity to acquire more wealth, there was also much more warfare. The aim of the Roman and Chinese empires was to become universal, like a scary movie when you hear of the villain wanting to take over the world.

                It seems that for every step forward in civilization with more production, increased communication among nations, and greater wealth, there was also a decline in autonomy and self-reliance. People learned they had to pay taxes to pay for better infrastructure, but these taxes also led to greed and corruption in the leadership. There was greater wealth at the top, where it remained. So this leads me to our current political environment; is this inevitable? My first reaction to our current election was “is this chaos is meant to be”; there can be no explanation for what is happening with our current political situation. The disarray in the White House is going to lead us to where we need to be; many people who were apathetic have woken up and realized we all have a responsibility as to who we put in power.

               What I am learning by studying these different eras is that civilizations are birthed not only from a natural evolution but also from a need for change; and then this eventually dies. The author constructs each era as change, comparison, and connection. We begin with the cosmos, which creates our planet, and next move into agriculture, which moves people from survival to abundance of goods, this leads us to city/states which creates a political arena. With organized leadership, communication is improved which opens up the door for trade and commerce, but also creates greed and corruption. It is fascinating how one era that grows and ultimately dies out gives birth to a new era, bringing with it new culture, by integrating many nations. I guess this is all part of evolution, beginning with the dying or destruction of one type of society to trigger a need for something different. A crumbling leadership will lead to a desire for order, and a search for a better way. The decline of the Roman Empire led people to search for a greater purpose, and spirituality. With the decline of the empires, people began to search for something larger than themselves. What emerged was a new culture of spiritualism, philosophy, and religion.

               Around 551 B.C.E people began to search for order, and a greater sense of purpose, and one of the greatest teachers of China came to the scene, Confucius. He had a deep belief that an ethical, moral example was the way to lead a nation. If leaders, whether it is political or head of household, led with great moral character, there would be social order. The author points out that family were primarily patriarchal, and the male should be of strong moral conviction and treat his family and wife with respect, but the women was certainly submissive to the man. There was definite accountability in this culture; if there was disarray, it fell on the shoulders of the leader. This certainly eliminates confusion and brings order, but it was legalistic and rigid. His teachings were held in the readings of the Analects, though not written by Confucius himself. Later we see the rise of Buddhism throughout India. This too was a patriarchal society, but Buddha taught all could achieve enlightenment. Next onto the stage came Greek philosophers, their teachings have withstood the test of time. Universities still study Socrates and Aristotle to this day. Socrates taught rational logic and hopefully this is instrumental in most of our scientific researchers who challenge conventional wisdom to bring about new innovations. Although brilliant, they were not all-inclusive. The Greek philosophers believed society should be ruled by very highly educated men; this was not an exclusive group by any means.

               Christianity was introduced and one of the greatest teachers was Jesus. He was brought about a much more inclusive society. Jesus embraced women, the poor, and the outcast of society. I love that the author included the story of Perpetua, the Christian martyr.  We heard this story in our women’s spirituality class, and I was struck by the symbolism Perpetua. She seemed to intentionally bring visibility to expose the cruelty the Christians were experiencing at the hands of the Roman rulers. Perpetua embraced Christianity refusing to back down, and was ultimately sentenced to death. You see her struggles between the role as a mother and that of a martyr, but in the end she was willing to die for her beliefs. One of the greatest symbols of the story was when Perpetua refused to wear the robes to appear as pagan priests. Perpetua wanted a shock value for the onlookers, she wanted them to witness women be put to death by large beasts.  Because she did not immediately die from the beast’ attack, the gladiator was to finish the job, but even he could not bring himself to strike a woman down. Perpetua recognized his hesitation, and drew the sword to her own killing. It was an amazing story of a stoic woman who not only had to assist a gladiator to her death, but also had to choose a role between mother and martyr. I am struck that the author included this story, he definitely informs the reader of the status women played in each era.

               Our current political situation seemed so parallel to the rise and fall of the Roman Empire that it seemed to jump out of the pages. I think we are in such definitive times, this is history in the making.