Week #6 Post (Chapters 17, 18 & 20)

I especially enjoyed reading about the Atlantic Revolutions. I was unaware of the interrelatedness of the revolutions. First, and most obvious, I did not realize or remember that these revolutions took place in such a short time frame. I had in the past learned about all of these revolutions separately, but the text did a great job of identifying the underlying currents that connected these events.

I found it interesting that the "British colonists were 'republican in their manners...and their government' well before their independence from England." This notion that the American Revolution "was not accompanied by any wholesale social transformation, but rather accelerated the established democratic tendencies of the colonial societies" is enlightening to me. When I learned about the American Revolution in the early 1980s, the focus was more heavily placed on the patriots and their belief that the revolution created "a new order for the ages" and "a new and more noble course." Certainly the American Revolution had a profound impact on much of the world and inspired other revolutions, but the fact that the existing society was already revolutionary is fascinating.

I was especially intrigued by the Haitian Revolution, "the only completely successful slave revolt in world history." I would love to learn more about the aftermath of the revolution, and if there was any way that what was once "the richest colony in the world" could have avoided the instability and poverty that has gripped that country ever since. Strayer mentions that the plantation system was largely destroyed, and that "Haiti became a nation of small-scale farmers producing mostly for their own needs, with a much smaller export sector." That is probably a key point. Haiti would probably have had a hard time trading with other nations after the revolution, as external opposition persisted. Another major obstacle included "its bitter internal divisions of race, color, and class."

On a lighter note, I found it amusing that taxation played a prominent role in the American, French, and Spanish revolutions. It seems that nothing fires up the people capable of starting a revolution (the wealthiest citizens) more than taking money out of their pocket.

Week #5 Post (Chapters 14-16)

One thing that stood out to me in Chapter 14 was the demise of the nomadic way of life due to the empire building of Russia and China. I found the pastoral nomadic lifestyle fascinating. I admired their uniqueness in a world of agricultural society. Strayer states, “The incorporation of the heartland of Eurasian nomads into the Russian and Chinese empires eliminated permanently as a major actor on the historical stage the nomadic pastoralists, who had been the strongest alternative to settled agricultural society since the second millennium B.C.E.” This alternative type of society made history more interesting and less homogenous.

The Reflections section of Chapter 14 addresses the very important topic of Eurocentrism in history. Strayer uses the content and organization of this chapter to discuss the topic. He makes the point that he intentionally “places the more familiar narrative of European colonization of the Americas alongside the less well-known stories of Russian, Chinese, Mughal, and Ottoman empire building.” In general, I think Strayer does an admirable job of not being Eurocentric, and giving all peoples throughout history their due. In fact, at times he goes out of his way to highlight traditionally less prominent cultures.

Strayer defends the placement and quantity of the European story in this chapter by making some important distinctions. He believes that the Western European empires in the Americas were both “something wholly new in human history,” and “had a far heavier impact on the peoples they incorporated than did the others.” I agree with Strayer and believe that he does a fine job balancing the uniqueness of the European story with the importance of other prominent societies of the time. It is not an easy task to find that balance, and many people will disagree on this issue depending on an individual’s perspective. However, I think the most important point here is that the blind Eurocentrism of the not so distant past has decreased, and the awareness of the importance and contributions of other cultures is increasing.

Summer Solstice

On the eve of the summer solstice, here is an interesting rundown of several impressive ancient places that have ties to the solstice.

Week #4 Post (Chapters 11-13)

Chapter 11:

The most outstanding aspect of Islam to me was how extraordinarily quick it grew, both as an empire and as a religion. It is hard to believe that one man with very little political power could unify warring tribes, conquer Mecca and nearly all of Arabia, and convert most of Arabia to Islam in a little over a decade. It really makes you wonder what type of man Muhammad must have been. Certainly he must have been an extremely charismatic man, while the book also suggests that he possessed military and political savvy.

Beyond the appeal of Muhammad himself, the message of Islam certainly had broad appeal. The notion that no person was inherently superior over another "except by piety and good action" and that "every Muslim is a brother to every Muslim and that the Muslims constitute one brotherhood" almost certainly appealed to a large portion of Arabs, as well as many other peoples. This is a big reason for the equally rapid expansion of Islam even after Muhammad's death.

It was also interesting to see how some core values of a religion with a founder (such as Islam and Buddhism) quickly change after their death. The "ideal of a unified Muslim community, so important to Muhammad" broke down soon after his death. Without his leadership and knowledge, various groups tried to take control or believed that their way was the right way. In Islam this resulted in the Sunnis and the Shias. In Buddhism, this similar process resulted in the Theravada and Mahayana forms of Buddhism. On the simplest level, this type of splintering makes sense. Once the founder is gone, there is no single authority to answer questions about the religion, and that leaves a lot open to interpretation by many individuals.

Week #3 Post (Chapters 8-10)

Chapter 8:

It has become quite apparent in our reading that along with the actual goods that were exchanged during classical and postclassical era trade and commerce, so too were cultures, religions, ideas, technology and disease. However, disease seems like it is thrown in the mix as an afterthought.

Prior to this class, I had recently taken a California History class, and so had become quite familiar with the devastating consequences of imported disease for the natives of California and all of North America. I was not as familiar with the effects of disease on the classical and postclassical Eurasian societies.

After reading more specifically about the spread of disease in the text, I was struck by the massive devastation it caused and the enormous role it played in world history. The sheer number of deaths attributed to various diseases are astounding. The Black Death of the fourteenth century C.E. wiped out one-third of the population of Europe in a 5 year span. Many other civilizations experienced similarly devastating bouts with disease.

Beyond the number of deaths lies the most intriguing consequence of disease: it's effect on the direction of world history. Strayer states "Disease played an important role in preventing Byzantium from reintegrating Italy into its version of a renewed Roman Empire..." Also, "...recurrence of the disease...weakened the ability of Christendom to resist the Muslim armies..." Another example took place in the Central Asian steppes (home to many nomadic peoples including the Mongols), where disease "undermined Mongol rule and permanently altered the balance between pastoral and agricultural peoples to the advantage of settled farmers." These are crucial turning points in the history of the world.

Interestingly, Europeans exposure to so many diseases over a long period of time ended up benefitting them as they confronted peoples of the Western Hemisphere. They had built up "some degree of immunity to Eurasian diseases" of which the natives had none.

Perhaps disease is not as interesting or complex a topic as the spread of culture, technology and religion. It is certainly not a positive or fun aspect to discuss, but its importance in world history should not be overlooked, and can not be denied. Strayer sums this up by saying "...disease carried by long distance trade shaped the lives of millions and altered their historical development."

'Lost Tomb' Discovered

Here is another recent article about the discovery (or re-discovery) of a 13th century BCE tomb in Egypt. If you really look for this type of stuff (which I have been doing since this class started), it is amazing how often significant discoveries happen.

Roman Colosseum

This link is to an article about the restoration and resulting public access to the underground portion of the Colosseum. It is packed full of interesting tidbits about the productions and usage of the landmark in its heyday.