Western Civ 1 Flashcards
What are the four questions every worldview seeks to answer?
What are the four questions every worldview seeks to answer?
- Who are we? (human nature, our tasks, our purpose)
- Where are we? (What is the nature of the world that we live in?)
- What is the problem? (What are some obstacles to achieving our perfect world?) 4.What is the solution? (How do you remove those obstacles?)
What are the four worldviews and how does each worldview answer each of the four questions?
Modern, Postmodern, Eastern, and Biblical
Modern Worldview:
Who? We are smart, beautiful, optimistic and good. Our purpose is to get stronger, smarter and more wealthy. We created ourselves. We are the measure of all things.
b. Where? This world is logical and knowable. The world is at our disposal. This world is meant to be conquered.
c. What problem? The main problem is ignorance.
D. What solution? The solution is to educate, use our intelligence, and continue to develop technology
Postmodern WV:
a. Who? We are irrational, unpredictable beings on an endless quest for meaning. We are just another life form on this planet. We do crazy, unexplainable things.
B. Where? The world is confusing, complex and contradictory. There is no such thing as absolute truth.
C. What problem? The problem is a misplaced faith human intelligence and scientific progress. The problem is acting like you have THE solution.
D. What Solution? The solution is to do whatever works for you. Rely on your feelings…go with your gut. “It’s all good.” “Live and let live. Create your own truth.
Eastern WV:
a. Who? We are part of the impersonal divine Absolute. Humans and the world around us are all one.
B. Where? The world was not created in a specific instance and it will not end in a specific instance. The world is not working toward a specific end.
C. What problem? We are a slave to our desires and cravings and continue to do wrong. By doing wrong, we decrease our chances of becoming one with the absolute. The problem is forgetting that suffering is an illusion. The problem comes in our insisting upon our individuality.
D. What Solution? The solution is to separate yourself from your individual desires and become one with the Absolute.
Biblical WV
a. Who? We are image-bearers of God, and care-takers of his world.
B. Where? This world is created, ordered, and sustained by God.
C. What problem? Sin has hindered our relationship to God, man, and the earth. It has caused the once perfect world to become corrupted.
D. What solution? The solution to our disconnection with God and the fallenness of the world is the redemptive work of Christ on the cross.
Why was the city-state such an important factor in the development of Greece?
One major reason is its geography. The country’s mountainous terrain, many isolated valleys, and numerous offshore islands encouraged the formation of many local centers of power, rather than one all-powerful capital.
A second reason is The Mediterranean Sea: Such a calm and easily navigable sea provided the Greeks with an opportunity to found new colonies in times of crisis and overpopulation.
And the final reason is The Greek aristocracy, (a form of government in which power is held by the nobility) who acted to prevent any permanent monarchies from forming.
How were Athens and Sparta different?
Sparta was ruled by two kings, who ruled until they died or were forced out of office.
Sparta seemed content to keep to itself and provide army and assistance when necessary.
Athens was ruled by archons, who were elected annually (once a year). Thus, because both parts of Athens’ government had leaders who were elected, Athens is said to have been the birthplace of democracy.
Athens wanted to control more and more of the land around them. This eventually led to war between all the Greeks.
Why was Socrates an important figure in Greek history and why was he hated by many?
Socrates was an ancient Greek philosopher considered to be the main source of Western thought.
He was famous for his Socratic method (which compelled the audience to think through a problem to a logical conclusion).
Sometimes the answer seemed so obvious, it made Socrates’ opponents look foolish.
For this, his Socratic Method was admired by some and vilified by others.
Many Athenians grew angry and felt he threatened their way of life and an uncertain future.
He was condemned to death by drinking poison hemlock juice.
Roman emperor
the ruler of Rome; Julius Caesar; Octavian (Augustus)
Roman Citizenship
was a privileged political and legal status
Roman Senate
members were appointed by the consuls, and later by the censors
Julius Caesar
Roman dictator, politician, and military general who played a critical role in the events that led to the demise of the Roman Republic and the rise of the Roman Empire.
Roman Civil War
also known as Caesar’s Civil War, was one of the last conflicts in the Roman Republic before the establishment of the Roman Empire.
Aqueducts
a channel used to transport fresh water
Colosseum
the largest amphitheater ever built at the time and held 50,000 spectators
Middle ages
the time between the fall of Imperial Rome and the beginning of the Early modern Europe
Dark Ages
Another name for Middle Ages. There was a lot of sickness, governmental unrest with tyrants (evil power hungry men) running rampant.
Why did feudalism develop and how did it work?
the people of Western Europe needed some form of a political system to defend themselves and feudalism was created. It is very much based on economic status. During the Middle ages, the Roman Empire was divided into small kingdoms. These kingdoms were ruled by Kings who instituted the Feudalism system. Feudalism was very much like a hierarchical ecosystem. Each class heavily relied on one another. The hierarchies were made up of the following: Nobles, Knights, Clergy, Tradesman, Peasants.
nobles
Nobles lived a life of luxury. They were the highest of the social class.
Peasants
usually farmers or laborers and worked in the Lords manors and for the Lord. The housing conditions were poor and tight, there was one bed for the whole family and in the winter if they owned farm animals they would come inside to live with them as well. their clothes were very rough and made of wool. The peasant childhood was rough, they didn’t have many toys and would start work at a young age. They weren’t allowed the luxury of learning to read.
Monks
Priests that would copy the books of the Bible by hand. They typically were clean shaven and also shaved a bald spot on the top of their head called a tonsure, this was to symbolize humility. They wore brown gowns with hoods and with ropes to tie them closed.
Tradesmen
provided those skills such as, blacksmith, miner, clerk, woodworker;Tradesmen were usually well educated and had more privileges than others.
Democracy
a government in which all citizens vote on rules and laws
City-state Polis
the polis was a nucleus, the central urban area that could also have controlled the surrounding countryside.
Minoans
built a large civilization on the island of Crete that flourished from around 2600 BC to 1400 BC. They built a powerful and long lasting civilization based on a strong navy and trade throughout the Mediterranean Sea.
Persian War
the conflict between Greece and Persia in the 5th century BCE which involved two invasions by the latter in 490 and 480 BCE. … The Greeks were, ultimately, victorious and their civilization preserved
Socrates
) was a classical Greek philosopher who is credited with laying the fundamentals of modern Western philosophy.
Athens
was the center of power, art, science, and philosophy in the world. … It is the birth place of democracy and the heart of the Ancient Greek civilization. Named after Athena. Athens is named after the Greek goddess Athena.
Sparta
was a warrior society in ancient Greece that reached the height of its power after defeating rival city-state Athens in the Peloponnesian War (431-404 B.C.). Spartan culture was centered on loyalty to the state and military service
Alexander the Great
He was the first great conqueror who reached Greece, Egypt, Asia Minor, and Asia. He is famous for having created ethnic fusion between the Macedonians and the Persians.
Plato
ancient Greek philosopher, student of Socrates (c. 470–399 bce), teacher of Aristotle (384–322 bce), and founder of the Academy, best known as the author of philosophical works of unparalleled influence.
Aristotle
Aristotle founded his own school, the Lyceum, in Athens, where he spent most of the rest of his life studying, teaching and writing.
Tyrant
a cruel and oppressive ruler or, in ancient Greece, a ruler who seized power unconstitutionally or inherited such power.
Bubonic Plague
An infectious disease that is caused by the bacterium Yersinia pestis and is transmitted to humans from infected rats by the oriental rat flea
Vikings
Scandinavians, who from the late 8th to late 11th centuries, raided and traded from their Northern European homelands across wide areas of Europe, and explored westwards to Iceland, Greenland, and Vinland
The Crusades
a medieval military expedition, one of a series made by Europeans to recover the Holy Land from the Muslims in the 11th, 12th, and 13th centuries.
