Conflict Analysis - Amanda A.

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12/09/10

Name of conflict: Punic Wars

Time Period: 264-146 BCE

Type of conflict: War

Underlying causes: Roman expansion and conquest of new territories

Immediate causes: Rome fought with armies of Carthage, a Phoenician city

Turning points/Important events: bloody defeat of the invading forces of the Carthaginian general, Hannibal

Ending events: Romans spread salt around Carthage so agriculture wouldn’t survive

End result: Rome seized entire western Mediterranean and Greece and Egypt

Short-term effects: expansion of Roman Empire

Long-term effects: Northern Africa in contact with Europe

Image Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Punic_Wars

Leader Analysis - David A.

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12/09/10

Name of Leader:
Gaius Julius Caesar

Lifespan:
100 BCE - 44 ACE

Titles:
Emperor of Rome, “Dictator in perpetuity”, General

Country/Region:
Roman Republic

Years in Power:
Dictator between 48 BCE - 44 BCE,

Political, social and economic conditions prior to leader gaining power:
Rome was a Republic with Dictators serving a term rather than indefinitely ruling. Economic stagnation, a number of slave revolts and dissension within the military were common issues of the day. Caesar had recently gone on a campaign to conquer a variety of new lands. First triumvirate created to split Rome between 3 major factions: Caesar, Pompey and Crassus.

Ideology, motivation, goals:
Was forced into the position when ordered to be relieved of command.

Significant actions and events during term of power:
Crossed the Rubicon effectively waging war on Rome and sparking a civil war. Took power and declared himself “Dictator in Perpetuity”.

Short-term effects:
Caesar's death resulted in another civil war in Rome. More political turmoil.

Long-term effects:
The creation of Rome as a unified empire under one central ruler. The later success of Octavius (Augustus Caesar).

Image Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Julius_caesar


People Analysis - Jessika L.

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12/09/10

Name of group: Ancient Romans

Time period: Foundations - 600 C.E.

Location: Rome

Important neighbors: Greece, Persia and its remnants

Strengths: They had a superb military. One of their biggest ingenuities was their law system. For each law broken, there was a specific punishment, deterring people from being unruly and rebelling against the state. It was a major source for the empire's overall stability. They also established great communication within the empire by creating roads which linked trading routes.

Weaknesses: The empire's size was a big factor in its decline. Protecting its borders became increasingly difficult as they spread towards turbulent zones that didn't want to become a part of the empire. They spread their military too thin. Corrupt officials with a greedy outlook created unstability withing the empire's political structure. Some of the governing leaders overtaxed the Roman citizens. This led to many disputes between the state and its citizens. The people weren't united by a common cause and their loyalty to the state was more forced than voluntary. Rome had become less democratic and more power was vested in the emperor, which were often times very greedy. Plagues killed half of the Roman population, including those in positions of power. Famines were rampant as the population grew and land became scarce.The gradual destruction of the West was another contributing factor to Rome's decline along with Germanic tribe invasions. All of these factors led to Rome's ultimate collapse.

Impact on neighbors: Their technological and structural innovations spread across Rome's borders. They had many significant wars with Persia which left the East and Persia very vulnerable. They conquered many Greek states that had fallen apart after Greek's collapse. 

Legacy: The Romans created the greatest empire ever known. They were also the first to induct foreigners to Roman citizenship with a promise of loyalty to the state much like we see in the naturalization process for the United States. They created roads which were a major breakthrough in trading and everyday life. Their justice and government system has endured throughout time. We base our own government off of the Roman empire.

Document Analysis - Sara A.

12/09/10

Document Analysis/APParts

Rome and a Values Crisis

Document: Pro Archia Poeta

Author: Cicero, a leading politician in the Senate and a major Latin writer.

Place and Time: Rome in 1st century B.C.E.

Prior Knowledge: Cicero defends Greek literature while conservatives argued that Greek learning would corrupt Roman virtue. He used Hellenistic justifications of beauty and utility to justify his beliefs. Rome was experiencing increasing contact with the eastern Mediterranean world. People at this time were debating about the effects this would have on Roman culture. Cicero played a major role in popularizing Greek culture and reflected on the concerns that this new way of life inspired a source of change.

Audience: The citizens of Rome

Reason: Cicero enjoyed sharing what books taught him, and thought it was a shame not to share what he had learned from them. He strongly believed all literature contains something important for everyone to gain. He spent his free time reading literature and advocated that reading should become a normal thing to do in everyone’s leisure times as well.

Main Idea: Cicero believed that Greek writing was just as important, if not better, than Latin literature. He points out that Greek literature is read by people in almost all of the nations around the world, while Latin writing is only read in its confined boundaries of Rome and a few other places.

Significance: This document helped many people who once thought that Greek writing was inferior to Latin writing open their eyes to the truth of the matter.

Change Analysis - Emillio M.

12/09/10

Society: Roman

Time Period: Foundations to 600 C.E.

Significant events during the time period: Punic wards

Characteristics at the beginning of the period Characteristics at the end of the period

Political: Republic Empire

Social: Senatorial class, equestrian class, Emperor, senatorial, equestrian,

commoners, slaves, social status commoners, slaves

Economic: Agriculture, trade, slavery. Agriculture, trade, slavery.

Artistic: Drama, poetry, sculptures, architecture. No change

Religious: Tolerated all but Christianity. Tolerated all if they put the Empire first, attacked Christianity.

Intellectual: Psycology, philosophy, arithmatic, Mathematics, psycology, biology

biology.

Geographic: Peninsula was divide by mountain ranges. Same.

Women's Status: Depends on status of father-in-law. Same.

Causes & impact of change: No longer remained city-states and became an autonomy. Senate became meaningless forum of debates and the officers in the roman army held more political power of that of the Emperor.

Societal Comparison - Lauren Gl.

12/09/10

Time Period: 1000 B.C.E. - 500 C.E.

Societies: Greece and Rome

Greece

Political: ruled by aristocrats, introduced some democratic elements, direct democracy, Polis = city state

Religion: no major religion

Economy: trade, slavery, and commercial agriculture

Society: patriarchical family, philosophy, science, and art

Women's Status: used for farming, artisan families, traditionally seen as inferior, female babies were killed if there was a surplus of population, active in business


Rome

Political: introduced some democratic elements, senates

Religion: no major religion

Economy: trade, slavery, commercial agriculture, farming

Society: patriarchical family, philosophy, science, and art

Women's Status: commanded great power in household, less severe than China, seen as inferior, female babies were killed if there was a surplus of population, active in business