Andrew's Western Civ Blogs

  Since we are all getting way more time off from school than was originally planned, I can't help but think about how everyone was normal just a few weeks ago. As you mentioned, with this we all have more responsibilities with COVID-19 going around, but at least it comes with some perks too. I think that I've become more independent with work, and self control with completing it on time instead of procrastinating. I agree that with cyber school, everyone can take something from this, and hopefully come out of this with a thankfulness to be in school with all your classmates. It does make you think though how much longer we will be stuck at home, just because all the state is doing is pushing back when we go back to school. I hope we will all be able to see each other in the last part of the school year, but I guess only time can tell.

  In the year 430 BC, an epidemic hit Athens in their second year in the  Peloponnesian War. Due to their lack of knowledge of medicine, they were completely   devastated  by this plague. Compared to the plague, I'm sure COVID-19 would seem pretty harmless to them. Most of the population are expected to catch COVID-19, so in a way that is similar to the  plague. Thanks to our modern medicine and precautions though, the death rate for our new virus will not be nearly as close as it was for the city-state of Athens. They had nearly 25% of their population wiped out, and as other countries have shown, COVID-19 just won't have the same effect.  

 Today we are writing biographies on three important figures in the ancient world, Philip II, Alexander the Great, and Darius III. First we have Philip the Second who was the king of Macedonia. He ruled for 23 years until he was assassinated in an invasion. He was the one that used the military and political power to take over all of Greece. Next we have Philip's son, Alexander the Great. He was one we talked about yesterday with his loyal horse. He was the king of Macedonia just like his father, and in the battle of Issus, he battled with the massive Persian army. this army was controlled under the control of the final person today, Darius III. He was the last king in the  Achaemenid Empire in Persia, who only ruled for about 6 years. He was a bit of a coward too, as he fled after he realized that his army was going to lose. He even sent peace offerings to Alexander but they were both rejected. The reason they are similar was that they were all kings around the same time, bu...

  Today we have been assigned to write all about the relationship of Alexander the Great, and his trusty steed Bucephalus. Well as you said, he was only 13 when the two met, and this was when Ale xander stopped a few attendants who tried to take Bucephalus away for being too wild. Then the boy made a bet that he could tame it, and all the other people all laughed at him. Alexander realized something interesting that others couldn't, that the horse was afraid of it's own shadow. This was the way that Alexander was able to tame him so quickly, and the two became inseparable. Later, they fought in so many battles, ranging from the city-states, Thebes, Gaugamela, and India. They were so connected that when Bucephalus was kidnapped, Alexander said he would destroy everything, and kill everyone. It's unknown how the horse died, but Alexander loved him so much he named a city, Bucephala, in his honor. It's very impressive  how he only took one horse to ride, and used him throu...

 Well, it's finally the end of our first week of Cyber School, and I'd say it has both perks and downsides to it. One of the good things is that we don't really end up having "homework" after the class. We also get a lot more free time in our day now. Lastly, It's nice we can do each classes' work when we want to, instead of at a certain time. Unfortunately it seems like in math and in English, we get a lot more work then the other classes. I think that would be the only downside, other than not being able to see your friends each day. Anyway, thanks for letting us have a homework free weekend, see you next week!

I think that the Sophists like Socrates and Protagoras questioned traditional teachings because their whole job it to l ook at things from different perspectives. Socrates principle was always to question his society, and that was exactly what he did when people wanted the generals to be put down. Socrates also attempted to stop the madness that was going on, because he believed that his point of view was best for everyone. They show that it is always important to look at everything with two sides to every story, and take into account different circumstances of events. 

In the  Peloponnesian   War, Athens had a plan for defeating Sparta, mainly by their ships and their ability to trade. Unfortunately all of that seemed to fade away when a terrible plague hit Athens. At this point in time no citizen seemed to care about the government, trade, or even religion. This eventually killed over a third of the whole population of Athens. Even  Pericles caught this plague, and died 6 months later. He wanted to turn Athens into the greatest civilization, but all he brought to Athens was this plague. After his death, corruption was common in Athens, as citizens craved for more power. 

   Right now we are learning about Pericles, and what he planned to do for the greater good of Athens. Anyway, the statesmen Pericles was a fair man who helped lead Athens in it's highest times, the Golden Age. This man had three goals for the city-state, to strengthen their democracy, to hold/strengthen their military, and to glorify it. He also wanted a direct democracy, which is when you have a government that is completely ruled by the people. This means there are no representatives to serve for them, making Athens one of the most democratic places of all time. There was also something called Delian League. This was formed after the defeat of the Persians, and had Athens take control over most of the city-states. It also helped to strengthen Greece's security by taking money from the league's treasury, and using it to make warships. This did make enemies though, and Sparta was one of them.

Today in class we took the whole time to talk about the Coronavirus and prevention for it. At the time that I'm writing this, the public schools seem to be planning to shut down after tomorrow, so it's safe to assume we will also be staying home for a while. I'm honestly very confused how the whole "cyber work" thing is going to work, and so far it looks like there's going to be a different way to do work for each class. Only time will tell how long we will be stuck at home, just because I have a feeling they will be extending the time coming up. We talked about ways to prevent the spread of the virus, and one of the best ways is to wash your hands very frequently. I'm not too worried about my family or friends with the virus, but of course you have a greater risk for the elderly.

   Today in class we watched the second part of the Crucible of Civilization video about Greece. We saw that Athens was the ones who established democracy, and Persia started a 10 year war against them. In 490 B.C. Persia started to invade Greece, and Sparta was informed, but refused to help. Later, Athens was burned to the ground by Persia but luckily, the citizens escaped to a nearby island. There was also a battle at the Straight of Salamis, where Athens had a large win, and Persia lost badly. Since Athens was a democracy at that time, the citizens got to choose once a year who they could ostracize. Even the general of the Athenian army has been kicked out at one point. Anyway, that's all for today, see you soon!

Today I wasn't in class because I was sick.

 Today in class we had a surprise pop quiz after we had a little review thanks to the help of David. I think that I got a 80% on it, because I always get confused on the gods and goddesses. I don't really understand how these Greeks believed in such strange stories, including Athena being born from Zeus' head. Also, I'd rather take notes from the board than from the book, so the classes that we look at the power point is always better in my opinion. I also like to learn about the people and places of Greece rather than the fictional gods and goddesses. Anyway, that's all we did today, so I'll see you on Tuesday next week!

  Today in class we took notes on some slides about three philosophers in Greece, Socrates, Plato, and Aristotle. Socrates was the one who we learned a little while ago, and he made the Socratic Method. Plato was a follower and a student of Socrates He also wrote out Socrates teachings, then wrote the Republic. That explains Socrates' discussion of justice and the ideal state. Then there was Aristotle, who was the student of Plato. He fostered the idea of Athens being an intellectual destination. He also made his school The Lyceum, which focused on cooperative ideas. He also was the one, who in a way, created the ideas of the internet.   

  Today in class we took some notes on the battles between Sparta and Athens. We also saw some of the events of the war between Greece and Persia. In Sparta, there was a better infantry (soldiers on foot) and they used a technique called phalanx formation. That was where multiple soldiers would bunch up densely, armed with spears, and march up together until they broke formation. Then on the other hand, there were the Athenians who had the better navy power. They used ships called a Trieme, which was the most technological ship invented, and was also the fastest. This was used as a battering ram, and was a great way to take down the enemy's ships. That's all for now, see you soon!

Today in class we started to take some notes on the Greek gods and goddesses. They were different in than others because of the gods interaction with humans. Zeus was the leader of all of these gods and goddesses and was the god of earth and heaven. He is also the god of the sky, weather, lightning, law, and order. He was also the father of many gods and goddesses including Apollo, Athena, and Dionysus. On the other hand, Poseidon is the god of the sea, and the brother of Zeus. The Greek citizens always would blame these gods and goddesses for prosperous times, and the opposite too. Well that's all for today, see you on Wednesday!