Thinking Through Sources for Ways of the World, Volume 1

 

1. THINKING THROUGH SOURCES

History Before Writing: How Do We Know?

Source 1.1: A Gathering and Hunting Woman in the Twentieth Century: Nisa: The Life and Words of a !Kung Woman: Life in the Bush, 1971

Source 1.2: Paleolithic Rock Art: A Hunting Scene: Lascaux Rock Art, ca. 15000 B.C.E.

Source 1.3: Neolithic Art: A Goddess Figure? Female Figurine from Çatalhüyük, ca. 5000 B.C.E.

Source 1.4: Otzi the Ice Man: Artist’s Reconstruction of Otzi; Otzi the Ice Man’s Preserved Body

Source 1.5: Monumental Stone Construction in the Neolithic Era: Stonehenge, ca. 1600 B.C.E.

HISTORIANS’ VOICES

The Transition to Agriculture

Voice 1.1: Jared Diamond on the Decision to Farm, 1997

Voice 1.2: Yuval Noah Harari on the Myth of Progress through Agriculture, 2015

2. THINKING THROUGH SOURCES

Social Life in the First Civilizations

Source 2.1: Law and Life in Ancient Mesopotamia: The Law Code of Hammurabi, ca. 1750 B.C.E.

Source 2.2: The Standard of Ur: Peace Panel; War Panel, ca. 2500 B.C.E.

Source 2.3: The Occupations of Old Egypt: Be a Scribe, ca. 2066–1650 B.C.E.

Source 2.4: The Social Relationships of Egyptian Agriculture: Agricultural Scenes from the Tomb of Menna, Fourteenth Century B.C.E.

Source 2.5: Social Life in Ancient China:　The Book of Songs,　ca. 1046–771 B.C.E.

Source 2.6: Socializing with Ancestors: A Ritual Food Container, ca. 1050 B.C.E.

HISTORIANS’ VOICES

Sumerian Society

Voice 2.1: Lauren Ristvet on Sumerian Specialization, 2007

Voice 2.2: Samuel Kramer on Scribes and Schools, 1956

3. THINKING THROUGH SOURCES

Political Authority in Second-Wave Civilizations

Source 3.1: The Triumphs of the Persian Emperor Darius: Behistun Inscription: The Sculpture; Opening Lines, ca. 500 B.C.E.

Source 3.2: In Praise of Athenian Democracy: Pericles: Funeral Oration, 431–430 B.C.E.

Source 3.3: Depicting the First Roman Emperor: Augustus Statue; Augustus Statue: The Breastplate, First Century B.C.E.

Source 3.4: Governing a Chinese Empire: The Writings of Master Han Fei, Third Century B.C.E.

Source 3.5: A Chinese Emperor Prepares for His Death: Qin Shihuangdi Funerary Complex; Archer; Bronze Horse-Drawn Cart, Third Century B.C.E.

Source 3.6: Governing an Indian Empire: Ashoka, The Rock Edicts, ca. 268-232 B.C.E.

HISTORIANS’ VOICES

Emperors in the Second Wave Era

Voice 3.1: Yuri Pines on the Authority and Power of a Chinese Emperor, 2012

Voice 3.2: Kevin McGeough on the First Roman Emperor, 2004

4. THINKING THROUGH SOURCES

The "Good Life" in Asian Cultural Traditions

Source 4.1: Reflections from Confucius: Confucius:　The Analects, ca. 479–221 B.C.E.

Source 4.2: Filial Piety Illustrated: Children Honoring Parents, ca. 200 B.C.E.

Source 4.3: A Daoist Perspective on the Good Life: Laozi:　Daodejing, 500 B.C.E.

Source 4.4: Reflections from the Hindu Scriptures: Bhagavad Gita, ca. Fifth to Second Century B.C.E.

Source 4.5: Reflections from Jesus: The Gospel of Matthew, ca. 70–100 C.E.

Source 4.6: Toward "Mature Manhood": Ladder of Divine Ascent, ca. Sixth or Seventh Century

HISTORIANS’ VOICES

The Historical Jesus

Voice 4.1: Reza Aslan on Jesus as Zealot, 2013

Voice 4.2: Marcus Borg on Jesus as Spirit Person, 1995

5. THINKING THROUGH SOURCES

Patriarchy and Women’s Voices

Source 5.1: A Greek Expression of Patriarchy: Aristotle: "On a Good Wife," ca. 330 B.C.E.

Source 5.2: Gravestone Image of a Greek Husband and Wife: A Greek Cemetery Sculpture, ca. 400 B.C.E.

Source 5.3: An Indian Expression of Patriarchy: The Laws of Manu, 200–400 C.E.

Source 5.4: A Chinese Woman’s Instructions to Her Daughters: Ban Zhao:　Lessons for Women, Late First Century C.E.

Source 5.5: An Alternative to Patriarchy in India: Psalms of the Sisters, First Century B.C.E.

Source 5.6: Roman Women in Protest:　Livy:　History of Rome,　Early First Century C.E.

HISTORIANS’ VOICES

Elite Greek Women in the Public Sphere

Voice 5.1: Lloyd Llewellyn-Jones on the Veil in Ancient Greece, From Aphrodite’s Tortoise: The Veiled Woman of Ancient Greece, 2003

Voice 5.2: Joan Breton Connelly on Priestesses and Public Life in Ancient Greece, From Portrait of a Priestess: Women and Ritual in Ancient Greece, 2007

6. THINKING THROUGH SOURCES

Art and the Maya Elite

Source 6.1: A Royal Couple from Yaxchilan: Stone Carving of Shield Jaguar and Lady Xok, 724 C.E.

Source 6.2: Mayan Prisoners of War and Their Captors: Mural Depicting the Presentation of Captives, 792 C.E.

Source 6.3: Nourishing the Gods: Stone Carving of a Bloodletting Ritual, 709 C.E.

Source 6.4: Sport as Recreation and Ritual: Vase Painting of a Ball Game, Seventh or Eighth Century

Source 6.5: A Maya Ruler Relaxing: Image of a Maya King at Leisure, Seventh or Eighth Century

HISTORIANS’ VOICES

Comparing the Maya with Other Civilizations

Voice 6.1: Charles C. Mann on Mayan Political Culture, From 1491: New Revelations of the Americas before Columbus, 2011

Voice 6.2: J.R. McNeill and William H. McNeill on Mayan Agriculture, From The Human Web: A Bird’s-Eye View of World History, 2003

7. THINKING THROUGH SOURCES

Life and Travel on the Silk Roads

Source 7.1: Dangers and Assistance on the Silk Roads: Cave Painting of Silk Road Merchants Encountering Bandits, Eighth Century

Source 7.2: Travel on the Silk Roads: Francesco Pegolotti: Advice for European Merchants Traveling to China, ca. 1340

Source 7.3: Stopping at a Caravanserai: Mural Depicting a Caravanserai Site, Sixth Century

Source 7.4: Buddhism on the Silk Roads: Regulations for a Community of Monks, Third Century C.E.; Faxian: A Record of the Buddhist Kingdoms, ca. 416

Source 7.5: Christianity on the Silk Roads: The Jesus Sutras, 635–1005

Source 7.6: Letters from the Silk Road: From a Soldier on Guard Duty, 103 B.C.E–40 C.E.; From an Abandoned Wife, Early Fourth Century C.E.

HISTORIANS’ VOICES

Assessing the Importance of the Silk Roads

Voice 7.1: Valerie Hansen on the Least Traveled Route, From The Silk Road: A New History, 2012

Voice 7.2: Zinru Liu on the Importance of the Silk Roads, From The Silk Roads: A Brief History with Documents, 2012

8. THINKING THROUGH SOURCES

The Making of Japanese Civilization

Source 8.1: Japanese Political Thinking: Shotoku: The Seventeen Article Constitution, 604 C.E.

Source 8.2: The Uniqueness of Japan: Kitabatake Chikafusa:　The Chronicle of the Direct Descent of Gods and Sovereigns, 1339

Source 8.3: Social Life at Court: Sei Shonagon:　Pillow Book, ca. 1000

Source 8.4: Japanese Zen Buddhism: Su Dongpo in Straw Hat and Wooden Shoes, Fifteenth Century

Source 8.5: The Way of the Warrior: Shiba Yoshimasa: Advice to Young Samurai, ca. 1400; Imagawa Ryoshun: The Imagawa Letter, 1412

Source 8.6: Samurai and the "Arts of Peace": Kojima Takanori Writing a Poem on a Cherry Tree, Fourteenth Century

HISTORIANS’ VOICES

China’s Influence in the Making of Japanese Civilization

Voice 8.1: Milton Walter Meyer on China’s Influence on Japan’s First Imperial State, From Japan: A Concise History, 2009

Voice 8.2: Matthew Stavros on China’s Influence on the Capital City of Kyoto, From Kyoto: An Urban History of Japan’s Premodern Capital, 2014

9. THINKING THROUGH SOURCES

Voices of Islam

Source 9.1: The Voice of Allah: The Quran, Seventh Century C.E.

Source 9.2: The Voice of the Prophet Muhammad: The Hadiths, Eighth and Ninth Centuries

Source 9.3: The Voice of the Law: The Sharia, Ninth Century

Source 9.4: The Voice of the Sufis: Inscription in Rumi’s Tomb, Thirteenth Century; Rumi: Divani Shamsi Tabriz, Thirteenth Century; Rumi: Mathnawi, Thirteenth Century

Source 9.5: Islamic Practice in West Africa: Ibn Battuta:　Travels in Asia and Africa, 1354

Source 9.6: Men and Women at Worship: A Painting of a Muslim Congregation in a Mosque, Thirteenth Century

HISTORIANS’ VOICES

The Significance of Sufism

Voice 9.1: John Esposito on Sufi Spirituality, From The Islamic Threat: Myth of Reality, 1992

Voice 9.2: Nile Green on Sufi Power, From Sufism: A Global History, 2012

10. THINKING THROUGH SOURCES

The Crusades as Cultural Encounter

Source 10.1: A Western Christian Perspective: Pope Urban II: Speech at Clermont, 1095

Source 10.2: Jewish Experience of the Crusades: Albert of Aix-la-Chapelle: An Account of Attacks on Jews during the First Crusade, Early to Mid-Twelfth Century

Source 10.3: Muslim Perspectives on the Crusades: Ibn al-Athir:　The Complete History, ca. 1231

Source 10.4: Jerusalem and the Crusades in European Art: The Looting of Jerusalem, 1099; How Jerusalem Was Captured by Saladin, 1187

Source 10.5: A Byzantine Perspective on the Crusades: Nicetas Choniates: The Sack of Constantinople, 1204

Source 10.6: Admiration and Accommodation across the Religious Divide: Usmah Ibn Munqidh: Christian Piety and Muslim Piety, Mid-Twelfth Century; Fulcher of Chartres: The Latins in the East, Early Twelfth Century

HISTORIANS’ VOICES

The Pope’s Agenda for the First Crusade

Voice 10.1: David Levine on Success in Reigning in Noble Violence, From At the Dawn of Modernity: Biology, Culture and Material Life in Europe after the Year 1000, 2001

Voice 10.2: Malcolm Barber on Religious Reconciliation and the First Crusade, From The Two Cities: Medieval Europe 1050-1320, 1992

11. THINKING THROUGH SOURCES

Living and Dying During the Black Death

Source 11.1: The Black Death in the Islamic World: Ibn al-Wardi: Report of the Pestilence, 1348

Source 11.2: The Black Death in Western Europe: Giovanni Boccaccio:　The Decameron, Mid-Fourteenth Century

Source 11.3: The Black Death in Byzantium: Emperor John VI of Byzantium:　Historarum, Mid- to Late Fourteenth Century

Source 11.4: Religious Responses in the Islamic World: Ibn Kathir:　The Beginning and the End: On History, ca. 1350–1351

Source 11.5: Picturing Religious Responses in the Christian World: The Flagellants, 1349; A Culture of Death, 1463

Source 11.6: The Black Death and European Jews: Jacob Von Königshofen:　About the Great Plague and the Burning of the Jews,　ca. Early Fifteenth Century

Source 11.7: A Government’s Response to the Plague: Ordinances against the Spread of Plague, Pistoia, 1348

HISTORIANS’ VOICES

Winners and Losers in Europe after the Plague

Voice 11.1 Harry Miskimin on the Rural Economy after the Plague, From The Economy of Early Renaissance Europe, 1300-1460, 1975

Voice 11.2: Mavis Mate on the Effects of the Black Death on Women, From Daughters, Wives, and Widows after the Black Death, 1998

12. THINKING THROUGH SOURCES

Early Encounters, First Impressions

Source 12.1: Cadamosto in a West African Chiefdom: Alvise da Cadamosto: On Meeting with Budomel, 1455

Source 12.2: Vasco da Gama at Calicut, India: A Journal of the First Voyage of Vasco da Gama, 1498

Source 12.3: Celebrating de Gama’s Arrival in Calicut, Tapestry Depicting the Arrival of da Gama at Calicut, Early Sixteenth Century

Source 12.4: Columbus in the Caribbean: Christopher Columbus: Letter to Ferdinand and Isabella, 1493

Source 12.5: Columbus Engraved: Columbus Arriving on Hispaniola, 1594

HISTORIANS’ VOICES

Assessing Christopher Columbus and His Legacy

Voice 12.1: 　Zvi Dor-Ner on Christopher Columbus’s Legacy, From Columbus and the Age of Discovery, 1991

Voice 12.2: Charles Mann on Remembering Columbus, From 1493: Uncovering the New World Columbus Created, 2012