Social practices, women’s rights, medical practices and art are only a few areas that contributed to the way daily modern life unfolds for people all over the world. Ancient Egypt must have been spectacular for the senses. That is, if one was lucky enough to be born into an upper class family. As a member of the upper class, one would have access to and enjoy quite a superb array of foods. The diet of the rich would include a variety of meats such as beef, goat, pork, goose, fish and pigeon (Spielvogel 29).
The latter doesn’t really sound very appetizing, but maybe they knew how to cook pigeon just right.
The upper class of Egyptians also enjoyed hunting waterfowl by the Nile. The poor Egyptian was not so fortunate. Their diet mainly consisted of bread, beer made from barley, and onions (Spielvogel 29).
Both classes enjoyed fruits and vegetables, but the figs, dates and grapes were mainly consumed by the rich. One would guess that the bread was the most important part of the diet for poor Egyptians. They made bread daily from the grains that they harvested. Keep in mind that most of the poor Egyptians considered were indeed slaves.
When we think of Ancient Greece, Alexander the Great is a great example of the powerful rulers through Greece’s history. He became king of Macedonia when his father, King Philip II died in 336 B. C. E. He was only twenty when he became king, but Alexander’s father groomed him well for his future kingship. He quickly became revered in his country for his bravery and success in battle and became known at Alexander the Great. He had excellent military tactic and engineering skills. In the battle of the Hydaspes River, Alexander the Great made a friend of an enemy.
The Essay on Contrast And Compare Nubian And Egyptian Societies
The Nubians defined social status according to wealth and power. Those with great wealth became a higher social class. In early China, marked social status was given to the wise and knowledgeable. The rulers of China had connections with the religious aspects of the Chinese culture. In both cultures, the wise and powerful were given great social status, and were able to control the ways of the ...
Arrian, biographer for Alexander, recorded details of this battle. The Indian king Porus was apparently a strong adversary on the battle field. Although Alexander defeated King Porus, he was very impressed with King Porus and respected him because he showed such courage in the face of conquest. The two kings met on the battle field and Alexander admired the physical stature of Porus being so dignified, even after battle. Alexander asked Porus if he had a request and Porus replied, “Treat me as a king ought” (Spielvogel 94).
Alexander asked him again, “But is there not something you would wish for yourself? and King Porus replied, “Everything is contained in this one request” (Spielvogel 94).
Alexander was so impressed that he allowed Porus to continue ruling over his territory and even went so far as to grant him other surrounding territory to rule in his sovereignty. Three years later, Alexander the Great died a young man but is still admired today. In years to come, wars continued and Rome was preoccupied with building an empire. In 195 B. C. E. , the Second of the Punic Wars was ongoing. During this time, a law had been passed that placed a limit on the amount of gold that a woman could own and the way she dressed was controlled.
The Roman women, of course, attempted an appeal and basically protested in the streets, much like one would see today when civil rights are violated. Roman women of the upper class at that time were given more respect and freedom than Athenian women. Even so, Roman women were not allowed to participate in public or political matters. According to Livy, a Roman historian, the day the Roman women gathered and protested in the Forum, Cato the Elder official also spoke against them. The idea of a woman speaking her mind and demanding rights, in public, was abhorred.
The Essay on Women and men
Non violence is a philosophy that has been used as a strategy to bring change. It follows a line which rejects the path of violence. This method of using an alternate to aggression and armed struggle against oppression has been preached and practiced from time immemorial. In recent times, non violence has been used as a means for getting India independence from British rule. This movement was ...
Cato was angry that women had already been allowed more freedoms than their ancestors had permitted. He was livid that the men of Rome had even allowed these changes to happen, in the first place. He blamed the men for not controlling their women. In “The History of Rome”, Livy recorded Cato’s plea, “If you suffer them to seize these bonds one by one and wrench themselves free and finally to be placed on a parity with their husbands, do you think you will be able to endure them? The moment they begin to be your equals, they will be your superiors… (Spielvogel 132)”.
In other words, he was saying if women are allowed to have more freedom, they will continue to advance until they have more power than the men. That certainly would have changed things! The world has come a long way since Ancient Rome, but unfortunately women are still fighting for equal rights. A perfect example would be equal compensation for employment. Even in a country so advanced such as The United States of America, a woman as president has not come to pass. Are our citizens still so ancient minded? Other changes have flourished and become very precise in some areas.
One of the world’s biggest accomplishments has been the advancement of medical practice. However, in the Middle Ages, the practice of medicine was quite horrific in some cases. Bloodletting was a common practice and was basically a cure all for diseases. Physicians advised their patients to wear amulets and charms to ward off diseases. Their ideas and practice of medicine carried over from pagan times (Spielvogel 224).
They believed in the use of herbs as a main source of cures. Of course, people didn’t live into a ripe old age in those times.
Medical manuscripts from Anglo-Saxon England were discovered and are now shared for the world to marvel at with humor. The remedies are quite comical, considering medical technology today. For example, a cure for a man going bald is featured as, “In a case a man’s hair falls out, take juice of the plant which one names nasturtium and by another name, cress, put it on the nose, the hair shall grow” (Spielvogel 224).
If one could only find out exactly how to grow “nasturtium” or “cress”, he or she would be very wealthy and famous in today’s world.
One would assume that baldness and being vain was an issue in the Middle Ages, just as it is today. Some things never change. Through all the years of human existence, there is a constant theme in life that all men and women of all ages and times never tire of. That theme is art. From the first paintings found on walls in caves in Africa to the modern artist in a posh New York City studio, art has always been an obsession of human nature and will always be. One of the best times in our world for creation of beautiful paintings and carved statues was during the Renaissance.
The Term Paper on Boys And Girls Brain Women Men
Yes, men's and women's brains are different. But new research upends the old myths about who's good at what. A tour of the ever changing brain THERE WAS SOMETHING SELF-DESTRUCTIVE ABOUT Harvard University President Larry Summers's peach on gender disparities in January. In his first sentence, he said his goal was 'provocation' (rarely a wise strategy at a diversity conference).He called for ' ...
A favorite painting of millions of people that has been closely scrutinized for its true meaning is “The Last Supper” by Leonardo da Vinci. A true masterpiece! This painting represents a realistic portrayal of the human figure as well as showing the character and feelings of each person at the table. Jesus has just announced that he knows someone will betray him on that very night. Imagine the guilt and curiosity of all those around him! (Spielvogel 361).
Contributions of Ancient Western Civilization can still be recognized today.
Religious, intellectual, scientific, political, military, economic and last but not least, art are all things that make the world go around. Beginning five thousand or so years ago and into the future these aspects of life will continue to evolve and improve. Perhaps some will not improve, but crumble instead. Through the efforts of all mankind, hopefully hundreds of years from now, people will talk about what contributions were made by this current age of technology. Work Cited Spielvogel, Jackson J. Western Civilization, Eighth Edition. Boston: Wadsworth Cengage Learning, 2012, 2009, 2006. Text.
