Monday, December 19, 2011

Jeopardy

Trouble with:
1st game
Government 100, 200, 300, 400, 500
Agriculture 300
Religion philosophy 400, 500
Technology 400, 500
Social structure 400, 500
3rd game
Politics and government 100
Social structure 200

WRONG ANSWERS IN GAME
Where were two places India developed an extensive trade with ?
What is The subcontinent and on the ocean to the south.
No name
http://jeopardylabs.com/play/enter-title57017
The Indian Ocean Basin and China
P. 412

Tuesday, December 6, 2011

Bhakdi Poets

I feel that these poems did represent Indian society. All of the poems seemed to have some religious influence in them like losing your faith or not knowing how to worship God. There is also one that has to do with a woman trying to break the bariers of the caste system, and she is kind of encouraged to do it in a way. I feel like there was some encouragement in India to break away from what is normal due to this poem. I also feel like religion and God was very important in Indian society. I did not really like these poems, but I have never been a big fan of poetryso I am not a reliable critic of these poems.

Sunday, November 13, 2011

Christian Conversions

Both Prince Vladimir and Constantine converted their empires to Christianity. This had a large impact on not only both empires, but Christianity itself. Both conversions were a large part of the spread of Christianity. Prince Vladimir believed that he needed to use religion to keep his people tame so he sent out people to test all religions around his empire. He believed Christianity was the best choice because he did not disagree with any major points of it like he did with other religions. Constantine declared himself a Christian at age 42 although he was introduced to it as a child. He believed that Christianity and God brought him success and thought it would do the same for the empire.

Tuesday, November 8, 2011

Byzantine Architecture

I found a pattern in the architecture of all of these religious buildings of many large and decorative styles. All of the churches or monasteries were large, and most were decorated, but there was one or two that looked very plain. I feel like the size was used as a function for holding many people at once. I feel like the decoration was just to make it look nice or just to promote religion.

Monday, November 7, 2011

Constantinople Documents

I found that document 1 is the most credible due to all of the information it gives. It was written by Rabbi Benjamin of Tudela for people that were visiting Constantinople. Document 2 was written by Robert of Clari in an attempt to attract people to Constantinople by glorifying it. Document 3 was written by Nicetas Choniates who described the Latins as barbarians for destroying artwork in Constantinople. Document 4 is by an artist that can not be identified and seems too simple of a map to be valid. Document 5 is also by an unknown photographer and it shows the importance of church to people of Constantinople. Document 6 is by George Acropolites for people later in history promoting religion and prayer. Document 7 is by Chrysobull and is an informative document to the public about how the Venetians have helped the people of Constantinople.

Wednesday, October 19, 2011

Jesus vs. All

Jesus's beliefs:
One god.
God created everything.
Poor are blessed.
The good are blessed.
People seeking righteousness are blessed.
Pure hearted people are bleessed.
Reward for these people is heaven.
An eye for an eye.
Be good to even the people you hate.
Other Philosophies (Zoroastrian, Confucian, Daoist, Buddhist, Hindu, Socratic):
one main god (Z)
Battle between good and evil (z)
god created everything (z)
Polytheism (z)
Humans are good by natute (z)
Strive for harmony (c)
Men are all made the same, but their surroundings effect their actions (c)
Learning and applying that knowledge is key (c)
Peace and harmony with nature (d)
Selflessness (d)
Plain and modest lifestyle (d)
Not upsetting the balance of nature (d)
Kindness to all creatures (b)
Honesty is key (b)
No misusing sex (b)
No alcohol or drugs (b)
One superior god that created all things (h)
Universe undergoes endless cycles of creation (h)
Karma- eye for an eye basically (h)
Reincarnation (h)
All life is sacred (h)
Proper study for philosophy is man (s)
Ethics based on human reason (s)
Highest good for man is happiness (s)
Knowledge is key (s)

Wednesday, October 12, 2011

Caste duties according to the Bhagavad Gita

The Bhagavad Gita contrats the ideas of Zarathustra and Confucious in the aspect of self control. Zarathustra and Confucious thought that a man has the ability to better himself and make changes to his life. The Bhagavad Gita basically states that one can not change his destiny and his future self is already set in stone. These groups all had the same thoughts about people doing good, itbis just that the Bhagavad Gita says that one has to do good, and Confucious and Zarathustra say to do good for a purpose.

Thursday, October 6, 2011

Blog Post Assessment

I think that the criteria for grading a blog post should be based on grammar and quality.  I do not feel that the length of the post has to do with the grading as long as the post gets the point across.  A 3 should be for a person who got the point completely across with strong points / examples and no grammar mistakes.  A 2 should be a well written post, but lacking some examples or specific details and contains a few grammar mistakes.  A 1 is for someone who did not back up any points or made incorrect points or had many grammar mistakes that ruined the flow of the post.  In my opinion a person can get a zero but only if they do not post anything.  Both you and fellow students could comment on the blog posts to get good debates going and help people see where they are at with regards to the rest of the class.

Wednesday, September 28, 2011

Alexander The Great

Alxander The Great was truely an extraordinary hman being. He defeated the Persian empire and took over all of their land. At the time the Persians were the largest nation around and Alexander led a group of drunk soldiers into battle and came out victorious despite being heavily outnumbered as well. Once conquering the Persians Alexander still wanted more and expanded Greece to India. Alexander was even believed to be the son of Zeus. He even made a bridge using his own naval ships to cross a straight and get revenge on the Persians. He was the man who mastered the military strategy of Phalanx. To make thi gs even better for Alexander, at a young age he was able to tame the horse Bucephalus, who was supposed to be untameable by any man, and he did it as a boy. Being an ordinary American high school student I would say that Alexander The Great was extraordinary, especially due to the fact that he did all of this by age 33.