History of Western Civilisation - Wednesday 5th Period: Discussion 1: Introduction and Sumeria

[prof-methos.livejournal.com]

All right, then. I bet you all thought that I wasn't going to make you do the stand-up-and-introduce-yourselves bit. Sorry.

Since this section of the class is all about discussion and sharing ideas, I think we first should share our names. I'm not going to ask why you're taking this class, since I imagine most of you are taking it because History 101 is something of a basic requirement. Instead, tell me what period of history has some meaning for you. A different time than your own, please, if you are historically displaced or from somewhere other than Earth. If you know nothing about another period in history... make something up. Please.

Then we're going to spend the hour talking.

Optional reading I totally gave you all yesterday:
Sumerian Language Page -- http://www.sumerian.org/
Wikipedia Entry on Sumer -- http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sumeria
The Electronic Text Corpus of Sumerian Literature -- http://www-etcsl.orient.ox.ac.uk/

[[OCD Threads up. Comment away!]]

Comments

Re: DISCUSSION

[janet_fraiser]

"Doesn't it typically refer to European culture, a large portion of which is derived from Greek and Roman society?" asked Janet. "Though much of that has been transferred to North America, as a large portion of the population of this continent is of European descent." She frowned, going over some of the reading from yesterday, and the discussion. "Other influences would be Islamic, wouldn't it? And Mesopotamian as well. If writing originated there and spread throughout the globe, I'd imagine other cultural aspects would have also had to."

Re: DISCUSSION

[suzotchka.livejournal.com]

Ivanova listens and nods, trying to keep her eyes open. It isn't the professor or the subject matter, which she finds very interesting. She's just really, really tired today. "I've always been taught that Western civilisation is, as Janet says, European. And mostly Western European, too, until one gets into the nineteenth and twentieth centuries." Not that she's bitter or anything. "And over-use the appelation of 'the Dark Ages' while the Islamic world was in a golden age of advancement." There. Words, formed by your lips. Impressive, Ivanova. Now just keep your eyes open.

Re: DISCUSSION

[prof-methos.livejournal.com]

"Then I'm sure you were delighted by the syllabus, which devotes an entire week each to the Islamic Golden Age and to the Byzantine Empire. I am trying to figure out where I can squeeze a section on one of the most influential and forgotten cultures in Western Europe as well: the urban Jewish communities that flourished in every big city.