Week 19 Review- short essay

1) What do you learn about Islam from the Koran selections you read?

2) What kind of person emerges from the Procopius portrayal of Justinian?

1. The religion of Islam is a solely monotheistic religion. Above everything and everyone, Allah is to be revered and respected no matter what. Under no circumstances is any follower of Islam to disgrace the name of their god, or to lose faith in him. Allah is seen as all-knowing and aware of every daily activity of his followers. Nothing slips past his omnipotent eye, and he is swift to punish those who dishonor him. He is also quick to reward men who are loyal and convert the "lost'

to the way of Allah. It is strongly emphasized that Islam is the only true,benefical religion to adopt. It is also the primary goal of every Islamic believer to further the cause of spreading their creed. They are expected to give money and time up for the purpose of charity. This is one of the fundamental pillars of Islamic tradition, that of "giving in charity"

Another core block in the foundation is the supremacy of Allah over the entire earth. In the mind of Muslims, the existence of other gods does not occur to them. Muhammad, the founder of Islam delivered the Koran from the very mouth of Allah, as his messenger. It was directly dictated to him and is considered the only legitimate source of truth, the full embodiment 

of Allah's teaching. Muslims shape their lives around the Koran and abide strictly by it's precepts and standards of morality. 

They don't dare rebel against Allah, as this would surely result in severe punishment and eternal damnation. Yet Allah will bestow generous blessings and provisions in the afterlife, to those who keep true to the path. For those who go astray or lead others to do so, they can be assured of their demise. It is permissible also for Muslims to personally assist in the murder of such traitors, as evidenced in Surah(chapter) 47:5.

The self-redemption of a soul by good works is the final point I will touch on. Sins can be abolished if one will simply perform small acts of penance, so that Allah will save them. Repentance is another journey to forgiveness from transgressions as well."Righteous deeds" are definitely deemed an acceptable method to the efficient removal of evil from the heart of a human being.

2. Procopius's paints a picture of a lawless, inhuman man in the form of the Byzantine emperor Justinian I. Although his outward appearance is shown positively, inwardly he was a villain and a monster. He dealt harshly as an emperor with unfair measures, handing out cruel punishments without a fair trial to his subjects. He would take anything a person said against another and run with it, to the point of execution or imprisonment. Justinian was a professional liar, notorious for being dishonest and not upholding the veracity. He was also very fickle and undependable, never in the same frame of mind for a given amount of time. He was prone to lash out at someone he had only recently applauded. Eager to kill and annihilate, Justinian would plunder cities, take prisoners, and enslave persons for no valid reason. It seems probable that perhaps he found some warped amusement from the torture & pain of other humans. He never considered the outright scandalous nature of his behavior, or felt any guilt about how he treated anyone.

He exemplified, or rather was the epitome of a man who took advantage of his prestige and position. He was heedless and impulsive, creating chaos in his empire. While his intention was to bring order, his acts and laws were instead stepping-stones to mayhem. Under his dominion, there were inevitable riots and revolts, because of his horrible decisions. He outraged many in his kingdom, and soon had a reputation for being strongly disliked.

 Justinian I

Lesson 90 - Week 18 Review

1) What was the Carolingian Renaissance, and why was it significant?

The Carolingian Renaissance was a period of "rebirth" and reconstruction during the reign of Charlemagne. This great king of the Franks made many tireless efforts to rebuild his empire to an orderly and honorable estate. His goal was that the realm no longer be uncivilized and undivided, rampaged by Barbarians. He was passionate for education, establishing many schools at monasteries and abbeys. Primarily, he sought for the proper tutelage of the clergy and laity. But it was his desire that an education should be a accessible resource, both for the rich and the poor. Charlemagne was a Christian and wanted the Germanic groups under his control to convert to this faith. Yet he also desired to retain ancient Roman literature and architecture in his endeavors, without cherishing their pagan beliefs. This was the heart of this revival, to renew Rome's timeless, classic and beautiful works. Their Latin language was kept alive, thanks to the masterly reprinting of it by philosophers/scholars. Namely, Alcuin of York and Paul the Deacon offered their services, copying out manuscripts for Charlemagne. He found monks who might complete the task of finding/writing out the most accurate Biblical texts.

Carolingian "minuscule" was also an enormous achievement, because it created a much more intelligible form of writing. Before it's creation, most documents were very painful and difficult to read. They were oftentimes composed all in capital letters, or without spaces between words! One can imagine that people had little motivation to read such things.Afterward, however, there was a integrated system of writing style that everyone in Europe came to employ. Scholars could better comprehend each other's translations, even if they came from different parts of the kingdom.

Charlemagne also had an impact with Carolingian architecture, when he built a court chapel, the Palace of Aechen. With the help of talented artists, this chapel was modeled and constructed after the style of the old Byzantine Empire. This palace still exists today and is the finest relic of Carolingian architecture. 

3) Who was the Venerable Bede, and why was he significant?

St. Bede was a Roman Catholic and English monk, born in 673. He was trained at the early age of 7, at the Benedictine monastery of St.Peter. He is largely renown because he wrote the Ecclesiastical History of the English People. This was an impressive account of Christian churches in Britain, which Bede published when he was 59. It would come to be a popular,reliable reference on the Anglo-Saxon history and make Bede the "Father of English history". 

The Venerable Bede opened people's eyes to a time period in English history that they'd been ignorant of before. He translated more than forty books, spanning topics like nature, astronomy, and poetry. The first "martyrology" was the brain-child of Bede's, a retelling of the lives of saints. 

English Paper: James Fenimore Cooper, "The Deerslayer"

500 words: "How fair was Twain's critique of Cooper's literary style?""

The Deerslayer story was flat out the most boring, confusing, and strange story that I've ever read. It was very difficult to decipher what on the earth the point of the story was, or why anything was taking place. There wasn't any clearly defined plot, or basis for the story whatsoever. As far as good writing goes, it was certainly not a page-turner that would ignite any excitement in readers at all. There isn't so much as a glimmer of purpose in this short novel, that would make someone keep on reading. Usually in a book, there is some figurative "mountain" to be climbed, or obstacle to be conquered. This gives the tale drive and grounds. A talented writer knows how to captivate and hold his readers attention, by employing such an effective method. 

James Fenimore Cooper is the last person I would think of, in terms of a gifted and skilled author. His novel made little to no sense, and is not remotely appealing. It blows my mind that people actually paid to read this appalling work. I can't for the life of me understand what piqued their interest in Cooper's series of Leatherstocking Tales. Yet, bizarre as it is, they continued to buy each accompanying book in the series. Without fail, his devoted fans would devour what they probably thought were masterpieces. 

I am definitely on the side of Mark Twain, in his harsh and rather amusing criticisms of Cooper's awful writing. He is adamant and clear about the negative opinion he harbored towards this god-awful specimen. I would agree whole-heartedly, with the proof he offers as to the horrible state of this book. He professes that in order to compose an excellent novel, there needs to be straightforwardness. It should be obvious what the idea behind the story is, which is for sure not the case. As he says, quote, "A tale should accomplish something or arrive somewhere." It's just two men,Hurry and Deerslayer, wandering in the woods, completely isolated from the civilized world. James doesn't even imply why they are out there, hunting and trapping in Indian territory. He does say that Hurry is intent on visiting Tom Hutter and hopes to marry his beautiful daughter, Judith. This is mainly because this strong, proud man hopes to inherit some of Hutter's land, in this wilderness. 

So this could perhaps be the hint of a sort of "plot", with a possible romance between Judith and Hurry. But, again, nothing in the story is simple or easy to understand. If anything, the theme of Deerslayer should be vagueness. Another specific criticism that Twain has of Cooper is how poorly constructed the characters are. There is little in their personalities that can be related to, or that a person could identify with. It's also not clear who's the good and bad guys are, or who we should be "rooting" for. The people in the story are dull and undeveloped and have no plausible reason for existing.

Twain points out these and many other flaws in the story, calling them Cooper's "literary offenses". He humorously jokes that of 115 possible rules, James Fenimore has broken 114 of them. Obviously, this is an exaggeration he's making in trying to get his intentions across. 
Basically, he's sarcastically proclaiming that the book is terrible and not worth reading at all. 

Western Civilization Short Essay: Two Topics

1) Discuss the shift in power from the Merovingians to the Carolingians. Why did it occur, and how?

(2) What was the significance of the Papal-Frankish Alliance? What were two factors that helped make the alliance possible?

1.  The Merovingians were extremely incompetent in ruling the Kingdom of the Franks, lacking ambition and drive to accomplish anything. They fought constantly amongst themselves and could not be relied upon to be good leaders.There was an epidemic of brothers and cousins murdering each other in cold blood, chaos that ensued with the death of Clovis(their king).In the seventh century the Frankish army even committed the atrocity of sacrificing women and children to appease the spirits of battle. In addition, many of the Merovingian Dynasty rulers were incapable mental defectives and children!

The Carolingian Dynasty's members had the prominent office of "mayor of the palace". This position was a lot like prime minister, or executive over governmental affairs. The Carolingians were frustrated, because they were in essence doing almost all the King's work. He was only holding his title in theory, without any power. The Merovingian kings were only performing their ceremonial duties. Pepin, a member of the dynasty, eventually decided to appeal to a higher authority for assistance. This was because he couldn't directly claim the rights, without being accused of stealing them illegally. He went to Pope Stephen and inquired if the role of king might be handed over to him and to the Carolingians. His premise was that his peers were far more deserving of control of the kingdom.The pope was gracious in bestowing his blessing, and agreed to grant Pepin's request. 

The Frankish kingdom was then handed over to the Carolingian Dynasty, which brought peace and order to Europe. Pepin the Short was crowned king by Pope Stephen II in 751, which ushered in the monarchy of the Carolingians.

2. The Papal-Frankish alliance was a deal made between the papacy(the popes) and the kingdom of the Franks.The Franks were a note-worthy group of people, because they were the only Barbarian group who converted instantly to the Catholic faith. Other Barbarian groups became followers of the Arian religion, later changing to Catholicism.

 The popes were in dire need of protection from their enemies, The Lombards. The rulers of the Eastern Byzantine Empire couldn't be depended on for security any longer. The Byzantine emperors also made the popes lives miserable, by meddling in affairs of the church. In their desperation, the popes turned to the Western Frankish kingdom for help.The Franks agreed to do so, in exchange for the popes help in another matter. Pepin wanted to make the Carolingians the legitimate kings of the Kingdom of Franks. It was impossible for him to achieve this unless he procured the popes guidance. So, there was an exchange made between the Franks and the popes. Pepin was victorious in defeating the Lombards, winning over their territory which he gave to the papacy. This land would later be referred to as the "papal states". Pope Stephen was eager to give his permission, in order for Pepin to gain control of the Frankish empire. In this way, both parties lended a hand to the others, and were equally rewarded in their individual pursuits.

English Essay: 1.10.17

Writing assignment: 500 words on this topic: "Were the detailed descriptions of the people around the two main characters equally important in the two stories?"



Washington Irving wrote two very entertaining and magical compositions, in the form of "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow" and ''Rip Van Winkle". He is a master and professional at making these stories seem real, even though they are obviously fiction.  Irving had a impressive ability to lead people into the story, by his vivid descriptions and perfect imagery. His characters and scenes come alive, and you feel like you're actually experiencing the events taking place. Both tales draw you into a dream world, with interesting but very simple characters. 

Rip Van Winkle is a plain, rather lazy man who just wants to get away from his wife. She is an aggravating, pesky sort of woman, who is always on his case about something. His home life is an absolute nightmare, from which he is always trying to escape. His farm is also a mess, because he does a poor job of upkeep. The only freedom he gets from it is his daily walks in the woods, to hunt for rabbits with his dog. It's on one of these saunters that he discovers a man carrying a keg of liquor. Farther on atop a high mountain, they find men playing nine-pins. Rip and his companion drink the liquor, which forces him into a deep sleep. Upon waking, he finds his way back to the small Dutch community he lives in. 

To his confusion and despair, he realizes it is completely changed while he was asleep. It eventually occurs to him that he time-traveled while he napped, and it is now 20 years later! The world has been completely revolutionized and now it is no longer King George, but George Washington who is charge of America. He is accused of being a Tory, when he makes clear his allegiance to the late King George.Rip meets his daughter, now grown up, married and with a child of her own. It's from her lips that he is surprised (and truth be told, delighted) to see that his bothersome wife recently died.The source of all his misery now gone, he is at last able to happily live out his life contentedly. He becomes a celebrity in his town, sitting around and telling his classic story with the older men.



The Legend of Sleepy Hollow is a magical, mystical story, one of tragedy and mystery. It tells the story of Ichabod Crane, an odd, ugly teacher who falls for a pretty heiress, Katrina Van Tassel. The entire story is about his attempts to win her affections, despite the obstacles in his way. He is in competition with a much more attractive, popular man, Brom Van Brunt. It's somewhat laughable to compare them, as they are at completely opposite ends of the spectrum from each other. Ichabod Crane is an awkward, clumsy fellow, with huge ears and long legs. There is little that is appealing about him, when it comes to looks. Brom Van Brunt is a surely, muscular fellow who is handsome and known as the strongest man in Sleepy Hollow. He is also intent on gaining the fair Katrina's hand in marriage, and inheriting some of her money.


Naturally, he is jealous when he finds Ichabod is set on Katrina as well. Unfortunately, she is a big flirt and invites both of them to a fine dinner at her prestigious father's home. Ichabod is beside himself with excitement, at being invited to the fair maiden's house. He spends an  evening dancing,eating and listening to stories told by Brom and his comrades. However, he fails in securing Katrina's heart as he had wished and proposing to her. Heartbroken, he sets out on a lonely dark night to return home from the harvest party. His mind begins to play tricks on him, because of scary ghost stories Brom had told him. He comes upon a a rider disguised in a cloak, right on the edge of a swamp. 

This man looms over him with enormous size and his head is on his saddle, instead of being on his head! At this point, Ichabod is terrified to death and tries to run away from his opponent. He furiously rides away on his horse, trying to cross a bridge and get away from this hideous creature. But the headless horseman of old myth catches up with him, countering him and spooking his heart. Ichabod is thrown to the ground by his poor animal ,and the ghostly man throws his head in Crane's direction. 

By the next morning, Ichabod Crane is nowhere to be found, having disappeared from sight altogether. All that remains of him is his hat, horse, and saddle in the woods. The real person behind the headless horseman is never revealed, although many are sure it is Brom Van Brunt. The Dutch wives of Sleepy Hollow hold to their superstition that Crane's departure is because of supernatural interference. 


In light of both of these stories, I would say that the descriptions of the characters is definitely crucial in both of them. It is the in-depth and thorough portraits Irving gives that make these stories so fascinating and hard to put down. He doesn't fail to deliver quality literature that is engaging and unique. 

Western Civilization -Paper. 1/9/17

1:What was the significance of Rome in relation to Western Civilization?
2:What was St. Augustine's significance in relation to Christianity?



1.Rome contributed greatly in tremendous ways to the development of Western Civilization. Literature-wise, there was a number of powerful documents written by Roman writers. For one, the Ieniad was the most significant piece of Latin literature ever written. The infamous Stoic philosopher, Seneca composed tragedies that influenced Elizabethan drama. For instance, epic playwright Shakespeare's tragedy "Macbeth" was strongly affected by Seneca. There were also other French tragedians whose works were impacted dramatically, namely Jean Racine and Pierre Corneille.

The traditional Latin language spoken in Rome is what many of the romance languages are derived from, such as French and Spanish. A considerable portion of the words in our own English language(sixty percent to be exact) also stem from Latin. Another enormous contribution Rome made to Western Civilization was that of the republican form of government. It was the Romans who first created this type of system, where the fellow people or citizens elect their leaders to office. The founding fathers modeled this republican government, when the United States was born.

Finally, Rome played a key role in the spreading of Christianity. The Emperor Constantine was in favor of Christianity and made it the official religion of Rome in 380 B.C. From then on, Christians were no longer persecuted and Christianity was very prosperous and popular.





2.St.Augustine was a crucial figure and is still renown today, by many Christians. He wrote the most celebrated and well-known biography in Western history, ''The Confessions" and many other books/texts on Christian doctrine. During his early life, he was a very immoral, sinful person who caused his mother a lot of grief.  He visited prostitutes and indulged heavily in sexual immorality. His mother was a devout believer and was very upset and concerned for her son's spiritual well-being. She regularly prayed and sought God, on behalf of him for his salvation. Throughout his teens and early twenties, St. Augustine dabbled in many different religions to try to fill the hole in his heart. He was a follower of Manichaeism for a time and also a Skeptic. Manichaeism was the belief that there is both a good and an evil God. In order to explain evil in the world, this method was thought to be effective and reasonable. The evil God was to be blamed when something terrible happened, as he was the reason behind it. The core foundation of this religion was that there was constantly a battle between light and darkness, or the good and evil Gods.

Augustine then transitioned towards becoming a Skeptic, in which he didn't believe anything could be known for certain. It took him many years of pain, uncertainty, and emptiness before he really discovered God and was born again. It happened as he was relaxing in his garden, when a voice commanded him to read a passage of the Bible. The selection was from Romans and caused him to come to a turning point in his broken life. He accepted Christ and was baptized, to the relief and joy of his mother, shortly before she passed away. Once this took place, St. Augustine of Hippo was changed forever and determined to devote his whole life to God. He became a monk and a priest and pledged lifelong celibacy, abandoning his old life of drunkenness and rebellion. He also sold his late father's estate and gave the profits to the poor.

After his conversion, he made it his goal to try to convert as many people as possible to the faith. He was an advocate in the defense of Christianity. Many believed that it was the primary cause of the fall of the Roman empire. Augustine argued against this thesis, as he said that the Roman empire had already been weak and unstable beforehand. It was not because of his peace-loving religion that this once strong, impenetrable nation had collapsed. There had been social and political issues that hadn't been resolved and Rome's decay was inevitable.

The concept of original sin was started with St. Augustine. He said that all human beings suffer the consequences of sin and suffer, because they descended from Adam. As mortals, we are prone to evil and are naturally drawn towards transgression. Sorrow was a result of sin and the only way we could be saved was through Jesus's grace. He wrote the book, "City of God, in which he compared a virtual City of God vs. City of Man. In the city of God, men are continually after God and heavenly pursuits. In the earthly City of Man, everyone is only concerned about the temporary pleasures of this world, and have no love for God.
It was Augustine's firm conviction that the salvation of souls was ultimately what mattered, in the end. Everyone around him was concerned with the fall of the great empire of Rome, he claimed that we should focus on eternal matters. He is known for his legendary prayer that implies one can only find true solace in God alone. " My heart is restless, O God, till it rests in you." it reads.

English Essay: Lesson 75

Write 500 words on this: "How believable is this book?"


Parson's Weems's Life of Washington is certainly a most interesting, descriptive and compelling tale. As to it's believability, there is a lot of stories that are fictional and have no evidence to them. Parson weaves a intricate loom of Washington's life through some personal accounts from fellow acquaintances and friends. He tells of Washington's youth and how he was a hard-working, honest child, with admirable character. Washington's father instilled in him the virtues of integrity,morality and the love and fear of God. Augustine Washington died when his son was only 11, but he spent his time wisely instructing and guiding him though life. 

Weems portrays Washington in a very exaggerated light of immorality and perfection, that is rather biased.. This work holds continual praise for him, and all the wonderful, note-worthy things he accomplished in 67 years. As a general, soldier, statesman, and president, he played many different roles in his life. Weems particularly emphasizes the fact that our our 1st president never sat around idle, with nothing to occupy himself. He was constantly making improvements and doing work, in spite of his achievements. There are examples of other famous rulers, such as David, who fell into sin and temptation because they were wasting time. 

This was never an issue for Washington, who didn't have time for evil distractions.He was always keeping himself busy with some useful, practical task that needed tending. He was a courageous leader of his army, who never shirked his duty whatsoever. He was even willing to abandon his work as a businessman, to serve his nation in the war. He lost a considerable amount of money when he left, with no one managing his wife's property. But to him this was a small price to pay, in regards to his commitment  to his country. 

Certainly no one could question that George Washington was a hard-working, industrious individual. He was indeed an excellent role-model for children/teenagers to look up to. They could model their beloved president,definitely in his characteristics of diligence and perseverance. In everything he had to do, he applied himself with zeal and poured his whole heart into it. 
Naturally parents would want their children to exemplify such a fine life-style, which would lead to a very successful life. Regardless of their wealth or social position, there was nothing that couldn't be achieved by simple hard work. Weems even claims that they could one day be as prominent as Washington, if they would just learn to be productive and labor as tirelessly as he did. Of course he also gave instances of George as a child, such as the cherry tree story. This was a classic illustration of Washington's commendable attributes even from a young age. This happened when he was only six and was gifted with a small hatchet. He was thrilled with his gift, until he accidentally cut down one of his father's precious cherry trees. 


When questioned about it later on, he instantly admitted he was to blame for the unfortunate incident. Many a child his age would have lied, but he was quick to humbly confess what he had done. His contrite, remorseful spirit was the ideal attitude to have as a response to the situation. Yet there is no verification from any reliable source that shows this event ever took place. There is a number of such fabrications that were never confirmed by historians or writers. Of course, at the time there was no effective system of book reviews. No one thought to question Weems on his facts, or had the resources to do so. George Washington had been dead less than a year, when this was published. Not a single person had of yet had documented his long, prosperous.existence. 

So all the American population knew of their beloved leader was the information being fed them by this book agent. Like any author, his sole intent was to generate a lot of copies and make money from his writings. He was well-aware that the relevant topic of Washington would be sure to attract people's attention. The public would be eager to glean as much as possible about the life of such a powerful man,now that he had passed. They would be even more willing to purchase it, because it was advertised at a low price.

In conclusion, I would say most of the stories aren't believable and are embellished to a ridiculous extreme.
  

Lesson 75: Writing Assignment

1) In what ways did Christianity represent a departure from the ideals and practices of ancient Greece and Rome?

2) Discuss the relationship between Rome and the Visigoths.

1. Christianity was definitely very different, in the aspect of charity and good deeds. The Greeks and Romans thought that if one took the time to do something extra for another person, they should be commended publicly for it. It was shocking to them that that the Christians were generous and giving of themselves, without expecting anything in return for it. But the Christians created whole organizations for the purpose of supporting widows, orphans, and the homeless. They sacrificed their time and energy selflessly, to feed the hungry, clothe the poor, and share the gospel. The Greeks and Romans, on the other hand, would only take up these actions if they had to, as a mere duty. They would never consider it the norm to act in this manner all the time. 

Also, Christians valued human life more preciously than the pagans. For example, the Stoic religion justified committing suicide and the Romans practiced the killing of weak infants. The Stoics would say that you should have complete control over your life, even having the liberty to choose when it should end. This was their sick and twisted way of even making the horrendous act of suicide acceptable. Christians would never believe that these awful practices were okay or excusable whatsoever. 

2.The Visigoths were a Germanic tribe, that was trying to escape the wrath of the vicious Huns tribe. In the year 376 B.C., the Roman emperor Valen permitted them to enter the city, if they gave up their weapons and their youths as hostages. The Romans did not treat them well, forcing them to live in awful conditions and starving them. This eventually led to their revolt and a war that they won  against Rome,in Adrionople. The year 392 brought the reign of a new emperor, Theodosius I. He attempted to make up for the severe mistreatment of the Visgoths, by granting them money. Yet upon his death, the emperor Arcades took away these subsidies.
Furious, the Visigoth leader, Alaric attacked Italy, taking a ton of loot with him. Rome had no choice but to leave the area of the river Rhine. Other Germanic tribes then proceeded to move into the region. There was plenty of chaos caused by these tribes for ten years, until they left for Spain and Gaul.  At last they were content to stay in these cities, and didn't come back to Rome for well over 200 years.