...that reigned in history. These empires, Imperial Rome from 31 B.C.E.-476 C.E. and Han China from 206 B.C.E.-220 C.E., had many similarities, but they also had many differences. The techniques of imperial administration in both Han China and Imperial Rome contained strong central governments. In contrast, after the downfall of these Empires, Han China was able to rebuild their imperial model by their set conduct of life, while Rome was never able to completely reunify because of weak political organization through their religion. The Roman Empire and Han China both had strong central governments. Rulers in both empires secured power by taking over former rulers and their...
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...People talk about the fall of Rome as if the Romans were completely helpless when the evil barbarians struck. That the perfect society of Rome could do nothing under the grasp of this great evil. But no one ever talks about Rome’s part in it’s own falling, and there a quite a few things Rome did wrong that lead to it’s own downfall. Let’s go back to 5th century, CE. Rome was bombarded with armies from many different places. But was the really the downfall of Rome? Many people who lived during that time would say no. They would say the main reasons for the downfall was Rome’s own laziness, overconfidence, and slowly corrupting governmental system. There are many varying opinions on why exactly why Rome fell, but a topic that shows up fairly frequently is how lazy the Romans grew. Rome was once a great society, but as it grew, it’s army grew lazier. They no longer enforced wearing armor. As if this wasn’t bad enough, they also stopped recruiting enough warriors for their army (Doc B). So, as their army grew lazier, neighboring countries began to notice this weakness. They assaulted Rome’s cities with all they,and due to...
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...Julius Caesar, set in Rome in 44 B.C, focuses on the character of Julius Caesar and his gruesome assassination by the members of the Roman Senate. Mark Antony, Caesar’s best friend, plots his revenge and incites a riot, causing the exile of the conspirators and their impending defeat. The tragic hero with a tragic flaw can be found in the character of Julius Caesar, an example of this being Caesar’s prominence in society as well as his fatal flaw of hubris. Another example is Caesar’s recognition of his fatal flaw following his betrayal and downfall. A third example is Caesar’s redemption, when his death is fully grasped by Marcus Brutus, who was once Caesar’s friend but betrayed him. The tragic hero is Julius Caesar because of his fatal flaw of hubris, his recognition of his flaw in his...
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...The Decline of Rome In the beginning of the Roman Empire they had a strong, powerful, huge community. There military was amazing with defense, which helped keep Rome stable. But overtime this empire started to gradually decline, and it was just a matter of time before they would fall. The people were getting out of hand and making it much harder to communicate with other countries, keep a stable government, and get along with others. Military, political, and economic factors contributed greatly to the fall of the Roman Empire. One reason why Rome fell is because of it’s economic factors. Rome had an unstable economy, and over time it started falling apart. As Rome expanded, wealthy Patricians used the latifundia for their own land, a place they could have absolute power. They used slaves on these great estates, which eventually grew to unemployment for the people who became their slaves. The empire grew poor, which made not enough money for food or everyday things. People started to starve and disease and hunger spread throughout the community. Due to the Plebeians not having...
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...dreadful decisions Antony makes which directly lead to his downfall and Octavius’s victory. The beginning of the play begins with Philo and Demetrius’s conversation, which demonstrates the theme of duty vs. pleasure. For instance, Antony states “There’s not a minute of our lives should stretch without some pleasure now. What sport tonight?” (Act 1, scene 1, page 7). In this quote Antony is telling Cleopatra that they should not just waste time instead they should have a romantic time together. This quote specifically focuses on the theme of pleasure and further signifies how Antony is avoiding his duties towards Rome. Antony presents his carefree attitude when he says “not a minute of our lives should stretch” the readers can easily elaborate upon his downfall as he does not put any focus towards Rome. The words “not a minute” elaborate how all Antony wants is pleasure and Cleopatra by his side. Also, the quote creates a romantic tone as Antony is showcasing his love for Cleopatra. This quote contribute to Antony’s downfall because it highlights Antony’s lack of care towards Rome and how Cleopatra holds so much importance for him. Even tough, Antony is exposed as a carefree man, after Fulvia’s death he has a quick realization of his duties as a husband and as a member of the triumvirate. For example, he states “For not alone the death of Fulvia, with more urgent touches, but the letters too of many our contriving friends in Rome Petition us at...
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...Han China and Classical Rome When comparing Han China and Classical Rome, many political, geographical, and religious similarities can be found, though many differences are also prevalent. Though Roman and Han political structures both emphasized bureaucracies, they came to them quite differently. Through copious amounts of expansion, both societies spread culture and earned money, though expansion was eventually their downfalls. Their religions differed immensely, with Rome emphasizing polytheism and Han China focusing on Confucianism. The differences and similarities between these two civilizations are to be discussed in this essay. Though both Rome and the Han dynasty were bureaucracies, both respective bureaucracies were quite different. For example, Han China had a centralized emperor (best know was Wu Ti) who set forth a certain curriculum that each bureaucrat would have to adhere to to become a leader. This curriculum was taught at specialized schools for the rich, though sometimes poor, and talented young men that one day wanted to become a bureaucrat. These bureaucrats carried out the laws of the emperor, so the people had very little say so. On the other hand, Classical Rome had a quite different system. Starting out as a local monarchy, Rome changed to a republic quite early in its expansion. they had a Senate of aristocrats that would make laws. From this Senate, two consuls were elected to be its leader. A dictator of Rome was only elected during times of emergency...
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...The United States and The Fall of Rome a Looking Similar Rome had many downfalls to lead towards its demise like political corruption, military spending and greed. You would think those things don’t exist in the great nation of the United States, but if you thought that then you are clearly ignorant. There are plenty of similarities between the downfall of Rome and the United States, which are economic instability, spreading the military too thin and inflation. The Decline of Rome was due to numerous items such as economic instability, taxation, military dissipation and political corruption. During the years of the downfall Rome began to rely on imports from other countries such as Egypt. Rome imported more then they exported which was a deficiency in income. Once Caesar obtained power he then started to acquire more and more land, which was filled with greed. He wanted people to perceive him to be higher then the gods they people celebrated. This became a problem across Rome and so diversity among religions was considered, “ against the rules.” Caesar began to have relations with Cleopatra. This then turned into a rule of lovers, which they wanted to take over the eastern hemisphere. With the military spread to thin, sickness and zero surplus of food the nation crumbled. Without a military to defend them Rome would easily be invaded and dismissed as a civilization. Though the United States may not be the Fall of Rome, both civilizations had copious things in common. Such...
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...faded away little by little. The seemingly unstoppable city began to lose its dominance over surrounding city-states. Because of their power and control, the citizens thought the decline of Rome was unheard of. That was until the city made many poor decisions that had a vast affect on the city itself, which eventually led to the fall of the empire. The political instability, economic crisis, and resilience of outside forces resulting from a weak military were the major factors that led to the fall of Rome's giant empire. The first factor that my essay will address is the weakening of Rome's military. As we know, Rome was known for having the strongest military mostly because of their discipline. However, once the control slipped, soldiers became lazy, negligent, and drills were abandoned. An example of this is shown in document #2 where the text explains how soldiers became lazier and chose not to wear equipment while...
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...Social factors deal with the living in a society like social classes, cultures religions, customs, and more. Social classes were a big factor in the downfall of Rome. The higher class got more privileges than the lower class. According to Roman Ambassador to the Huns 449, a wealthy lawbreaker would face no punishment for his crime while a poor lawbreaker would have a legal penalty and punished as seemed fit (Document 2). This document helped point out the causes of the fall because this time of peace was worse than war. Innocent men were being hurt for no reason by other, and not following the spiritual tradition was ruining the state. Another example of the social factors causing the fall of Rome is how the people of Rome could not organize themselves. In The Course of Civilization by Strayer, Gatzke, “the majority of the population had been systematically excluded from political responsibilities” (Document 1). Since the people were excluded from political responsibilities, they could not organize themselves. This problem led to more problems because of the people could not get organized then they could not protect themselves. They were not able to organize an army to protect themselves against the germanic tribes invading them. Social factors played a big role in the downfall of...
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...#12 Mr. Knerr Western Civilization (H) 4 30 October, 2015 Live for the Eternal Things What many people think of as the greatest empire in history proved to be finite, and this fact is one that has prompted many scholars to wonder if any empire, possibly America, could ever prove to be the real eternal city on Earth. In 410 AD, Visigoth leader Alaric and his armies sacked Rome. This defeat was a momentous event in Rome’s downfall, as it put an end to the “Eternal” Roman Empire. Christian convert and author Augustine wrote City of God, which described his reaction to the fall of Rome and his view of Rome being a corrupted city, when compared to the infinite and eternal City of God. While Augustine believed that the City of God and City of Man were independent of each other, his former pupil, Orosius, believed that the City of God worked within the City of Man. Orosius, although he was taught by Augustine, held a different view than his teacher. Orosius viewed Rome to be an eternal city that was favored by the City of God and he believed that the City of God and City of Man were connected. Augustine's ideas...
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...Rome, the most powerful empire Europe has ever seen- collapsed. The Roman Empire was very powerful, having borders as far North as Scotland, extending as far south into Northern Africa. Consisting of 2.3 million square miles, with a population of 80 million people. With each opportunity to conquer lands, the empire took it. Gaining power with each conquest, perhaps becoming too powerful. Correspondingly, the rise and fall of Rome began with it’s establishment, emperors, and actions. Moreover, the Roman Empire’s rise began with the establishment of Rome. Roman origins began during 1000-500 BCE, its earliest settlements on Palatine Hill. These settlements then turned into a republic, forming during 509-31 BCE. As a result of the Battle of Actium, the republic ended beginning the Roman Empire. Likewise, within the empire, there were two classes of people, the plebeians and patricians. Yet within these two classes of people order was needed. Laws, also known as the Twelve Tables, were written. Furthermore, along with a “new collection” of laws, the Roman empire gained control...
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...The saying “Rome was not built in a day,” is very common when devoting time towards a greater goal, but no one ever says “Rome did not fall in a day.” Rome decline lasted about 250 years and one of the major factors of its decline was Christianity’s influence on Rome. Although, Christianity was ultimately Rome’s demise, preceded by it was Christianity’s lasting mark of being Rome’s greatest invention. It left this mark mostly through education, while downfall can be represented by political revolution and the division of loyalty in Rome between the Empire and The Messiah. Most people during this time were illiterate. Rome used Christianity to expand its education and bring about literacy to a higher percent of the population. Of course the teachers showing Rome’s citizens were members of the Church so that the sole purpose of teaching these people how to read was to convert them...
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...Like a garden, the Roman empire grew and expanded until the point came that it could no longer be maintained, so slowly it died. The great city of Rome began in around 750 BCE and survived until the 5th century, taking over the entire Mediterranean world. As the huge empire made its way into its third century, it slowly began to decline as people got lazy. Rome grew so big that after barely surviving through the third, fourth, and fifth century, it was eventually defeated in 5 CE, ending one of the greatest empires of all time. Some of the contributing factors to the end of the Roman empire are conflict, citizenship, and laziness. To start off, conflict is a major reason the Roman empire fell because it caused instability. According to Roman Emperors, a chart compiled from various sources, “Within the years 235-285 CE, 13 emperors were assassinated” (Doc A). With rulers constantly assassinated, conflict between citizens and emperors caused political instability. Conflict had a large impact on the collapse of the Roman Empire because it gave Rome an unsteady government. The lack of citizenship from soldiers during the ending of the Roman empire made it much easier for invaders to attack. “But when, because of negligence and...
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...Between the years 376 to 476 A.D., the Roman Empire in the west “saw the political Germanization of the western empire,” and the Roman Empire in the west had declined and collapsed. The Roman Empire did not particularly collapse solely because of the barbarians who invaded, but rather a variety of factors influenced her downfall. While there were certainly barbarian tribes who raided and sacked Rome and quickened the decline, there were also other barbaric tribes that actually helped Roman civilization from completely dying out. There was more of a series of causes that led to the decline of Rome. One other appropriate note to make is to say that Rome did not fall, like the fall of Carthage for instance, but rather simply changed. During...
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...Ancient Rome Introduction: What civilization endured for nearly a millennium; whose history is shrouded in mystery, and was a time of great reform? What culture other than Ancient Rome? Rome’s unique geography, politics, economics, religion, social structure, and major conflicts are the basis of many useful innovations and ideas we could not think of living without today. However, its’ history is also filled grave mistakes we can learn from. So take a dive into the past; into the history of the Romans - a diverse culture that is the foundation for society today. Geography: Though the Roman empire’s territory was vast, the capital and most important location was the city of Rome and the surrounding areas. Rome and the surrounding areas...
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