Alexander the Great

I believe Alexander definitely deserved his title. To be called the Great worldwide, one must accomplish something that affected many different people and he definitely fulfilled this requirement. He conquered an astonishing amount of territory. Although all of it wasn't positive, such as how many people he killed, one can not deny that he accomplished something that very few individuals have throughout history. Added to that, he accomplished all of this at a very young age before dying at the age of 30. 

Caste and territorial sovereignty

1)      What’s McNeill’s argument?

William explains in the first selection that by the year 500 B.C.E. Indian and Greek civilizations had found entirely different ways of organizing and administering their societies. And these differences greatly affected the subsequent history of Indian and European society.

 

2)      How does McNeill define Caste? Does this match up with the textbook’s definition?

McNeill defines a Caste as a hierarchy in which societies organize and identify themselves. McNeill argues that Caste and territorial sovereignty differently affected the subsequent development of both Indian and European society

 

3)      What three feelings and thoughts helped to maintain the idea of caste:

A)    One of these was the idea of ceremonial purity. Fear of contaminating oneself by contact with a member of a lower, “unclean” caste gave Brahmans and others near the top of the pyramid strong reasons for limiting their association with low-caste persons.

 

B)    In addition, the humbler castes were often groups that had only recently emerged from primitive forest life. Other civilized societies usually persuaded or compelled newcomers to surrender their peculiar ways, and assimilated them in the course of a few generations to the civilized population as a whole. In India, on the contrary, such groups were able to retain their separate identities indefinitely by preserving their own peculiar customs within the caste framework, generation after generation.

 

C)    The third factor sustaining the caste principle was theoretical: the doctrine of reincarnation and of the term Varna. The latter declared that all men were naturally divided into four castes: the Brahmans who prayed the Kshatriyas who fought, the Vaisyas who worked, and the Sudras who performed unclean tasks. The idea of reincarnation gave logical explanation and justification to the system by explaining a caste as a divinely established institution. A caste was hereditary from father to son and it was designed to reward and punish souls for their actions in former lives. 

4. Are these convincing?

Out of the three thoughts that helped maintain the idea of caste, the most convincing one is the idea the fear of contaminating oneself by contact with a member of a lower caste. This is a thought that ties together many other thoughts with it. For example, contamination could lead to a rebirth in a lower class. These fears combined create a very convincing reason for people to follow the idea of caste.

5. Why did caste itself not cause strong political organization to form?

Everyone intensified himself first with his caste. The reason the caste did not cause strong political organization to form is because a caste ordinarily lacked both definite internal administration. While men mingled with men of other castes, they observed the necessary precautions to prevent contamination of one by the other. This undivided loyalty portrayed in the behavior of caste members could not be commanded by a king or ruler. In addition, rulers, officials, tax collectors, and soldiers were to be neglected whenever possible in order to avoid trouble.

6. What causes Indian religion to shift from deity pleasing to the act of worship itself?

The Brahmin's preoccupation with correctness of detail caused the shift from deity pleasing to deity worship.

7. How did the Upanishads change the nature of Indian religion and thus the goals of Indian society?

 The Upanishads changed the nature of the Indian religion by radically changing the ideals. First they taught that holy men strive only for an escape from the reincarnation cycle, instead of seeking riches, health, and long life. Secondly they taught that holiness and escape form the reincarnation cycle did not come from obedience to priests or observance of ceremonies. Instead, holiness and an escape from the reincarnation cycle by meditation, self-discipline, asceticism, and a withdrawal from everyday.

8. How does McNeill define “Territorial Sovereignty?”

McNeil defines “Territorial Sovereignty” as the mentality of the early Greeks towards expansion of their territory. They thought that this would enable them to expand their territory and gain wealth.  This directly corresponds with their creation of the Greek Polis.

9. Why did Greeks turn away from religion as an explanatory factor in organizing society?

Greeks turned away from religion as an explanatory factor in organizing society because it took their attention away from the matter at hand, territorial expansion.  THey would spend too much time thinking about religion and art and culture, that they wouldn't be able to spend any of their time on military expansion. 

10. 

The consequence of the Greek's rigid adherence to the polis was that the majority of people wouldn't want to hear about new discoveries or ideas if they didn't support the polis, which caused a lot of tension among members of this society. The consequence was brilliant flowering of of Classical Greek civilization.

11. Do you buy his argument? Why or why not?

I agree with McNeill's argument. Territorial sovereignty affected European society differently since by dividing power between states, they maintained a more political structure seen in Western culture today. Ultimately, this did affect how the society grew and interacted with each other. On the other hand, the caste system found in India gave way to a more social structure and interactions that were not based on territory as much as it was based on what was socially accepted. This gave way to a society more focused on social standards than the political aspects of the country.

Homework 9/31

The invention of zero added many things worldwide and was extremely significant. Zero allowed large numbers to be written in short form by place-value notation. This made previously difficult calculations quick and easy. This lead to advancement in mathematics as well as the anticipation of calculus. Overall, I assume the invention of zero helped keeping track of stock and trade more easy since the process of keeping track was far less grueling.

The teachings of the Bhagavad Gita contrast highly with the teachings of Zarathustra and Confucius because it focuses so much on what comes after this life. While the latter focus on enjoying the life we are given now. Meanwhile, the Bhagavad Gita focuses on what happens later. It even goes as far as to glorify dying since "killed, you will obtain heaven".