Chapter 5 Documents.

The first reading by Ben Zhao "Lessons for Women" really irritated me because women are not only god for serving their husband or cooking or cleaning. It angers me because women are just as equal as men. I think it is very sad that men during this time and some still today think women are not as capable as they are. The part I did enjoy reading was in the section "Womanly Qualifications"; I believe women are or should carry themselves in a sophisticated manner, and that they should speak with grace at all time.
I do not understand how women can live without wearing any jewelry at all or be told how much jewelry to own and what to wear in public. So when I read "Roman Woman in Protest"I was so shocked and felt bad for these women. I believe jewelry is what adds to a woman's beauty, it is what helps a woman feel sexy or even helps them stand out. I love jewelry and clothes; and have tons of jewelry and clothes I cannot imagine being told how much jewelry to own or what to wear due to a war. It really bothered me when I came to the part when Marcus Porcius Cato spoke in favor of the law. He speaks as if women did not matter at all in this world and that their want and needs do not matter. When he said "As soon as they begin to be your equals, they will have become your superior..."  it made me laugh because we are equal and if women were so "weak" as he tries to describe them he would not worry about them at all. If something or someone is weak you do not have to worry about them trying to become your superior unless you feel less than them.

Chapter 4 Documents

After reading and discussing chapter 4 in class it made me views things very differently, and it made me question some of my beliefs I thought were "right".  Although I don't believe there is only one way a person should live. Reading these documents sparked up a conversation with my roommates about our beliefs and upbringings. We were all raised in a Catholic family, however I was the only one out of the four who hardly went to church. They were really stunned, but my argument was I feel like a hypocrite when I go because I don't really pay attention to the priest during the mass. I also don't regret what I did the night before so I'm not going to pray for forgiveness. But most importantly, if we observe the church during mass you'll find a lot of people who are smacking their gum, texting, paying attention to the toddler who is throwing a tantrum, and criticizing how people look. So no, I prefer to pray at my own house, thank God on my own time and that's that. As I read the documents I came upon the reading of "The Gospel of Mathew" where it said "And when you pray, do not be like the hypocrites, for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the street corners to be seen by men...But when you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray to your Father, who is unseen" which reminded me of what I do. My friends agreed with my position because they too sometimes lose focus during the mass and get distracted by the examples I gave in the beginning.

Another reading I enjoyed from the documents that made me really sit and think was "Apology" by Socrates. I loved this reading because Socrates stood his ground even if everyone was against his beliefs. He didn't like the materialistic lifestyle the men of his time were focused on. To him he looked at the men as a joke because their appearance didn't mean anything to him "I found that the men most in repute were all but the most foolish; and that some inferior men were really wiser and better..." This also sparked another conversation between my roommates and I because it is true looks aren't everything. Our society has made many people believe that if you're from "the hood" you will not make it out and you'll always have a low education or drop out; and if you're from a nice neighborhood you'll go far in life. However that's wrong because it's not true you can dress with inexpensive clothing and look a little shaggier than a person with a nice suit and well-groomed and be much smarter than that person. 

From The Epic of Gilgamesh

The reading was different than what we usually read. I found it pretty funny, yet a little sexist. Sexist because how they use Shamhat (a woman) to capture Enkidu's attention and keep him from his ways. Sadly Shamhat cannot do much but just go along with what Enkidu wants to do for the next couple of days. Towards the end of the reading it says "He put on some clothing and became like a warrior" he needed to have intercourse with the harlot in order to go to the Holy Temple and be taught all of these "warrior" like things. Basically, the woman had to use her body to make him change. It made me think of teenage boys' when they are going through puberty and they are becoming curious of a teenage girls' body. How at that age they are seen as "cool" if they have any sexual activity with girls and in their mind they are now "men" and can't act like little boys any longer. It is crazy to believe what if this is really how they thought back then as well.

Chapt. 1; Part 1.

As in my previous blog I realized I like to question the reading, many questions come to mind, and also many doubts. In the first section it says that the homo sapiens first emerged in Africa; however, I do not believe this because when Columbus said he had discovered the New World there were already people here in the Americas. So in reality he did not discover the New World, he had discovered that there were other people living in this place. I believe homo sapiens were all over and did not only start in Africa.
The new technology that the homo sapiens had created is what really surprises me. How they decided to make spear throwers and how maybe that is how the bow and arrow were invented. These are the sort of things that catch my attention from history the inventions they make. The art they created, the colors they used, what I'd like to know is how they made these colors. They are the ones who basically invented the color scheme if you really think about it.

PROLOGUE

As I begin to read the Prologue, I find it very boring. Not interesting whatsoever, yet I still want to read it. What I find interesting is the findings of these geologists, how they come up with these beliefs. I also begin to question, what if this isn't true? What if they're completely wrong or right? Questions like that begin to race through my head. What really caught my attention is how much the human kind has evolved as mentioned on page lvii "Thus we have moved from stone axes to lasers, from spears to nuclear weapons, from 'talking drums' to the Internet, from grass huts to the to the pyramids of Egypt and Taj Mahal of India." This is what I find fascinating how much we've changed over time and how we continue to change with time.