Friday, May 28, 2010
Wednesday, May 26, 2010
Monday, May 24, 2010
Is Shakespeare worth studying? Why?
Shakespeare is worth studying. He changed the rhythm and tone of his character’s lines to make the story more interesting to the audience. His language is hard to understand, but once a person gets used to it, they can understand it better. He also writes very interesting stories and their plots are still used today. To understand where all of these modern day plots come from, you must understand the stories they came from and the person that wrote them. If we understand Shakespeare, then we can understand today’s society and why we act the way we do.
Sunday, May 16, 2010
How does Henry VIII maintain power while breaking away from the Catholic Church and destroying monasteries and churches?
Henry made himself the supreme head of the Church. This made it very easy for him to break away from Catholicism. It all started because he wanted to divorce his wife, Catherine of Aragon, because she did not give him a boy, but a girl. The Catholic Church was against divorces and annulments, and would not let him get either. He then passed the Act of Supremacy, an act in which the King was made the complete ruler and head of the Church. He was then able to divorce Catherine and marry Anne Boleyn.
Summarize how Elizabeth rises to the throne -- from her birth to her coronation.
Elizabeth was born to King Henry’s second wife, Anne Boleyn. When her mother was killed, she became an illegitimate heir to the throne. Since Elizabeth was technically not an orphan, she still lived on the royal grounds with her older sister Mary and the rest of the King’s family. Elizabeth was fourteen and her younger brother, Edward, was just ten when their father died. Edward was too young to take the throne. Once Edward was old enough he took the throne, followed by Mary, and finally Elizabeth. Mary was trying to turn England back to Catholicism, and during her rule had Elizabeth imprisoned. Elizabeth later took the throne after overthrowing Mary and became the most beloved Queen. She ruled over England for forty-four years.
Friday, May 14, 2010
Is monarchy more or less effective than democracy?
Question: Is monarchy more or less effective than democracy?
A: Democracy is more effective than monarchy in some respects, while monarchy may be more effective in other certain situations. In a country or nation where people have the freedom of religion, the freedom of speech, and the freedom to be who you, yourself, want to be, a person will want to live there because of the freedoms that they are receiving. Monarchy can be a more effective alternative to democracy if a person prefers one person ruling over a country or other place. Democracy is a more effective alternative because the person as an individual has more of a choice in their own government and has a better chance of their voice being heard. Democracy is more effective for most people because of the religious, speech, and other freedoms that they are able to have. The people were also able to have the right to vote, which put even more power from the government into the person’s hands. Democracy gave people a lot of power and gave the people a voice in the government.
Monarchy is defined as, “supreme power or sovereignty held by a single person,” and, “a state or nation in which the supreme power is actually or nominally lodged in a monarch. Compare absolute monarchy, limited monarchy.” These definitions are basically saying that monarchy is power over a country or other place that is held by one person and one person alone. A person that leads the monarchy is called a monarch. Monarchy was a very common form of government in the Ancient times and Medieval times. There is not one single definition for monarchy. Some monarchies were run by families. Other countries were ruled by elective monarchies. Forty-four nations in the world have monarchs as the heads of state and sixteen of them recognize Queen Elizabeth II as their head of state. Britain is an example of a monarchy, along with Belgium, Denmark, Japan, Luxembourg, Morocco, Netherlands, Norway, Saudi Arabia, Spain, and Sweden. Monarchies have existed and thrived throughout the ages of the world, but is slowly disappearing from the earth. Most of these countries and nations have become republics.
Democracy is defined as, “government by the people; a form of government in which the supreme power is vested in the people and exercised directly by them or by their elected agents under a free electoral system,” and, “the common people of a community as distinguished from any privileged class; the common people with respect to their political power.” The simplest definition of democracy is, “equality and freedom.” It is about people being equal with the law and before the law. Democracy is also about people having equal access to the law. These definitions are basically saying that democracy is power that is run by the people of a certain country or place. The word democracy stems from the Greek word “dēmokratía,” meaning “rule of the people.” Dēmokratía comes from the two Greek words, “dêmos,” meaning “people” and “krátos” meaning “power.” Democracy started in the government in Ancient Greece. This was around 508 B.C.E. Other cultures and nations, such as Ancient Rome, Europe, North America, and South America, significantly contributed to the rise of democracy and the evolution of democracy. The concept of representative democracy began during the European Middle Ages and the American and French Revolutions. It is called “the last form of government.” It has also spread across the globe very rapidly. There are several varieties of democracy. Some types of democracy provide better representation and more freedoms than other types of democracy.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Democracy
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Monarchy
A: Democracy is more effective than monarchy in some respects, while monarchy may be more effective in other certain situations. In a country or nation where people have the freedom of religion, the freedom of speech, and the freedom to be who you, yourself, want to be, a person will want to live there because of the freedoms that they are receiving. Monarchy can be a more effective alternative to democracy if a person prefers one person ruling over a country or other place. Democracy is a more effective alternative because the person as an individual has more of a choice in their own government and has a better chance of their voice being heard. Democracy is more effective for most people because of the religious, speech, and other freedoms that they are able to have. The people were also able to have the right to vote, which put even more power from the government into the person’s hands. Democracy gave people a lot of power and gave the people a voice in the government.
Monarchy is defined as, “supreme power or sovereignty held by a single person,” and, “a state or nation in which the supreme power is actually or nominally lodged in a monarch. Compare absolute monarchy, limited monarchy.” These definitions are basically saying that monarchy is power over a country or other place that is held by one person and one person alone. A person that leads the monarchy is called a monarch. Monarchy was a very common form of government in the Ancient times and Medieval times. There is not one single definition for monarchy. Some monarchies were run by families. Other countries were ruled by elective monarchies. Forty-four nations in the world have monarchs as the heads of state and sixteen of them recognize Queen Elizabeth II as their head of state. Britain is an example of a monarchy, along with Belgium, Denmark, Japan, Luxembourg, Morocco, Netherlands, Norway, Saudi Arabia, Spain, and Sweden. Monarchies have existed and thrived throughout the ages of the world, but is slowly disappearing from the earth. Most of these countries and nations have become republics.
Democracy is defined as, “government by the people; a form of government in which the supreme power is vested in the people and exercised directly by them or by their elected agents under a free electoral system,” and, “the common people of a community as distinguished from any privileged class; the common people with respect to their political power.” The simplest definition of democracy is, “equality and freedom.” It is about people being equal with the law and before the law. Democracy is also about people having equal access to the law. These definitions are basically saying that democracy is power that is run by the people of a certain country or place. The word democracy stems from the Greek word “dēmokratía,” meaning “rule of the people.” Dēmokratía comes from the two Greek words, “dêmos,” meaning “people” and “krátos” meaning “power.” Democracy started in the government in Ancient Greece. This was around 508 B.C.E. Other cultures and nations, such as Ancient Rome, Europe, North America, and South America, significantly contributed to the rise of democracy and the evolution of democracy. The concept of representative democracy began during the European Middle Ages and the American and French Revolutions. It is called “the last form of government.” It has also spread across the globe very rapidly. There are several varieties of democracy. Some types of democracy provide better representation and more freedoms than other types of democracy.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Democracy
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Monarchy
Wednesday, May 12, 2010
Do you think Leonardo deserved the title "Genius"?
Genius can be interpreted many ways. Genius is defined as, “an exceptional natural capacity of intellect, especially as shown in creative and original work in science, art, music, etc.,” and, “a person having an extraordinarily high intelligence rating on a psychological test, as an iq above 140,” (http://www.dictionary.reference.com). Most people think that the definition of a genius is the second definition about mental capacity. They often forget that it can also be a person who excels in art, music, or other things. I think that, in some aspects, Leonardo da Vinci was a genius.
Friday, May 7, 2010
Is exploration a 'good' thing?
Q: Is exploration a 'good' thing?
A: Exploration can be a very good thing, or a very bad thing. It is defined as, “an act or instance of exploring or investigating; examination,” (http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/exploration). This basically means that exploration is like investigating something or someone. Exploration is also defined as, “the investigation of unknown regions,” (http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/exploration). This definition is saying that exploration is investigating unknown parts of the world. Exploration has both an inner meaning and an outer meaning. It is also defined in Merriam Webster Dictionary as, “to investigate, study, or analyze: look in to, to become familiar with by testing or experimenting,” and “to travel over (new territory) for adventure or discovery.” This is saying that exploration has both an inner meaning and an outer meaning to it. The Medici was able to prove that taking a chance with new things has its rewards, but there are also people who have tried and failed. Exploration is a very important part of any culture or civilization that wants to continue to thrive in the future.
The Medici family came from the Mugello Region, which is North of Florence, in 1230. The Medici family gained power by other elite families. They had strategic marriages, partnerships, and employment. This helped the Medici family become the center of the social network. They also had banking relationships with other elite families and people. The Medici family was very powerful; however, they were not as powerful as other elite families such as the Albizzi family or the Strozzi family. Giovani di’ Medici was the person who started the Medici family bank. He was then able to quickly become one of the richest men in Florence. He did not hold any political power; he only held the power the people gave him. The Medici family introduced a proportional taxing system and the family was able to gain popularity. Giovani’s son, Cosimo the Elder, later took over the Medici family bank and the Medici family became heads of state of the Florence Republic. All of this happened to the Medici family in 1434. This was also around the time that the Medici family was helping a pirate become a pope and putting their trust in a strange, unusual, intellectual architect. The pirate that they sponsored became Pope John the twenty-third. The strange, unusual, intellectual architect became one of the most famous architects in Europe. The architect was being socially exiled because of his odd drawings and strange way of thinking. He was not given a chance until the Medici family found him and asked him to build a new cathedral with a design that no one had seen before. The building style he used had not been used for over a thousand years. If the Medici family had not tried to explore new possibilities, than they would have never achieved the popularity and greatness that the family had.
Exploration can also be looking inside yourself to find who you truly are. Exploration is also physically investigating a place where you have never been or have not been for a while. Exploration to a specific place would be like Christopher Columbus discovering the Americas. He was able to explore new land and became a part of history. Most exploration is a positive thing, though bad things can come from good exploration. When exploring in America, the white men wanted all of the Indians dead and off of the land. The exploration was positive for America as a whole, but extremely bad for the Indians that were killed and kicked off of their own land. Exploration can be positive or negative and inner or outer, but it has, no doubt, shaped civilization.
A: Exploration can be a very good thing, or a very bad thing. It is defined as, “an act or instance of exploring or investigating; examination,” (http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/exploration). This basically means that exploration is like investigating something or someone. Exploration is also defined as, “the investigation of unknown regions,” (http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/exploration). This definition is saying that exploration is investigating unknown parts of the world. Exploration has both an inner meaning and an outer meaning. It is also defined in Merriam Webster Dictionary as, “to investigate, study, or analyze: look in to, to become familiar with by testing or experimenting,” and “to travel over (new territory) for adventure or discovery.” This is saying that exploration has both an inner meaning and an outer meaning to it. The Medici was able to prove that taking a chance with new things has its rewards, but there are also people who have tried and failed. Exploration is a very important part of any culture or civilization that wants to continue to thrive in the future.
The Medici family came from the Mugello Region, which is North of Florence, in 1230. The Medici family gained power by other elite families. They had strategic marriages, partnerships, and employment. This helped the Medici family become the center of the social network. They also had banking relationships with other elite families and people. The Medici family was very powerful; however, they were not as powerful as other elite families such as the Albizzi family or the Strozzi family. Giovani di’ Medici was the person who started the Medici family bank. He was then able to quickly become one of the richest men in Florence. He did not hold any political power; he only held the power the people gave him. The Medici family introduced a proportional taxing system and the family was able to gain popularity. Giovani’s son, Cosimo the Elder, later took over the Medici family bank and the Medici family became heads of state of the Florence Republic. All of this happened to the Medici family in 1434. This was also around the time that the Medici family was helping a pirate become a pope and putting their trust in a strange, unusual, intellectual architect. The pirate that they sponsored became Pope John the twenty-third. The strange, unusual, intellectual architect became one of the most famous architects in Europe. The architect was being socially exiled because of his odd drawings and strange way of thinking. He was not given a chance until the Medici family found him and asked him to build a new cathedral with a design that no one had seen before. The building style he used had not been used for over a thousand years. If the Medici family had not tried to explore new possibilities, than they would have never achieved the popularity and greatness that the family had.
Exploration can also be looking inside yourself to find who you truly are. Exploration is also physically investigating a place where you have never been or have not been for a while. Exploration to a specific place would be like Christopher Columbus discovering the Americas. He was able to explore new land and became a part of history. Most exploration is a positive thing, though bad things can come from good exploration. When exploring in America, the white men wanted all of the Indians dead and off of the land. The exploration was positive for America as a whole, but extremely bad for the Indians that were killed and kicked off of their own land. Exploration can be positive or negative and inner or outer, but it has, no doubt, shaped civilization.
Thursday, May 6, 2010
Medici encouraging exploration
Explain how the Medici encouraged "exploration". Why did they do it?
The Medici encouraged exploration because they were the people that first tried to explore new things. They put their trust in a pirate and a strange architect. The pirate was able to become a pope because the Medici trusted him and took a chance. The strange architect was unable to get a job until he started building for the Medici. He then became one of the best known architects in Europe. The Medici wanted to be powerful and knew that to win the reward you must take the risk.
The Medici encouraged exploration because they were the people that first tried to explore new things. They put their trust in a pirate and a strange architect. The pirate was able to become a pope because the Medici trusted him and took a chance. The strange architect was unable to get a job until he started building for the Medici. He then became one of the best known architects in Europe. The Medici wanted to be powerful and knew that to win the reward you must take the risk.
Tuesday, May 4, 2010
Don't tell the aliens we're here. Well, what do you think?
If there were aliens living on another planet, then it would not be smart to try to make contact with them. These aliens may not be kind and may only want to use Earth’s resources and then leave. They would use the resources to build more spaceships and harness and control power. They could also harness the suns power to create a wormhole. Humans would not be able to survive and aliens would be able to take over Earth.
Monday, May 3, 2010
What do you 'think'? How did people of different classes 'think' differently? Revised
Q: What do you 'think'? How did people of different classes 'think' differently?
A: Thinking is a very broad topic for a human to try and write about. It is also hard to think about thinking and the way you think. A person has an innate sense to think and how to think. Though they do not always realize, they think about things logically and use common sense. Think is defined as, “to have a conscious mind, to some extent of reasoning, remembering experiences, making rational decisions, etc,” (www.dictionary.com). This definition basically means that humans reason through things, remember things that they experienced, and make decisions based on their reasoning and experiences. It is also defined as, “to employ one's mind rationally and objectively in evaluating or dealing with a given situation,"(www.dictionary.com). This definition is saying that humans think rationally to deal with a situation. Both of these definitions are saying that humans think with common sense and knowledge of past experiences to deal with obstacles they may face now.
People of different classes sometimes think very differently and sometimes think the same way. Humans from the Middle Ages were set into strict social classes. There were knights, merchants, clergy, and peasants. The knights and other higher classes may have thought that farming was a sign of poor, oppressed people, while THE farmers had no shame in it. The peasants may have thought that the knights and other higher classes were conceited, arrogant, and thought little of THE peasants. Some of these accusations were true, while some were false. The government had a large role in the social classes along with money and family. The noble men owned their own land, while the peasants lived on the lord’s land. This visibly set them apart. The noble men looked down upon the peasants, and the peasants were taught to look up to the noble men. Each lord had a small army made up of vassals who owed him military service for their fiefs. A vassal is the weaker man and the lord is the stronger man. A fief is “usually a piece of land, although sometimes it was a right, such as the right to fish in a stream or the right to collect a toll on a certain road; a vassal could become a lord himself if he granted a piece of his fief to another man,” (http://www.mnsu.edu/emuseum/history/middleages/feudal.html). When lords made laws they used their army to enforce it. The lord was also the judge and if his vassals had trouble with one another, than the vassals could go to the lord and have the lord settle the trouble. Some peasants were freemen, but most peasants were serfs. Freemen were peasants who could “move from place to place if they did not like their master,” (http://www.mnsu.edu/emuseum/history/middlea ges/feudal.html). Serfs “belonged to the land and could not move off of it. They also could not be removed from it by their lord,” (http://www.mnsu.edu/emuseum/history/middlea ges/feudal.html). Children who were born to noble men enjoyed all of the luxuries of the time. They could also become earls, barons, and knights. Children born to peasants were likely to live at the same place their whole lives and do the same job that their parents did.
Every person in the Middle Ages was a Roman Catholic, except for the few Jews. The kings all the way to the serfs were affected by religion. The Church collected taxes and gifts such as land, crops, and even serfs. This would ensure a spot in heaven and made the Church very powerful. The Church could then influence the kings and noble men. This would make the Church even more powerful. Children were baptized only a few days after birth and from then on led a life of service to God and the Church. As the child grew they would be taught prayers and go to church every week, even if they were sick. Every person would have to follow Church laws, which included paying very large taxes to uphold the Church. The Church, in return, showed people the way to everlasting life and happiness. The Pope was, and still is, the head of the Church. He was God’s representative on Earth and had power that could influence the kings and their advisors. The Pope also had the power to excommunicate people who did not agree with the Church’s teachings. Under the Pope were Bishops. Bishops ruled over the priests like the earl ruled over his vassals. Religion was so important in the Middle Ages that some people devoted their whole lives to the Church. Parents often promised their children to the Church in return for God answering their certain prayers. Monks and nuns lived apart from the rest of society in monasteries and nunneries. They devoted their lives to prayer and vowed to stay single all of their lives.
People from the Middle Ages were set into strict social classes and thought very differently in general and about each other. They were on separate ends of the social scale and did not make any effort to change.
Information from:http://ht.ly/1F8XK
http://www.dictionary.com/
A: Thinking is a very broad topic for a human to try and write about. It is also hard to think about thinking and the way you think. A person has an innate sense to think and how to think. Though they do not always realize, they think about things logically and use common sense. Think is defined as, “to have a conscious mind, to some extent of reasoning, remembering experiences, making rational decisions, etc,” (www.dictionary.com). This definition basically means that humans reason through things, remember things that they experienced, and make decisions based on their reasoning and experiences. It is also defined as, “to employ one's mind rationally and objectively in evaluating or dealing with a given situation,"(www.dictionary.com). This definition is saying that humans think rationally to deal with a situation. Both of these definitions are saying that humans think with common sense and knowledge of past experiences to deal with obstacles they may face now.
People of different classes sometimes think very differently and sometimes think the same way. Humans from the Middle Ages were set into strict social classes. There were knights, merchants, clergy, and peasants. The knights and other higher classes may have thought that farming was a sign of poor, oppressed people, while THE farmers had no shame in it. The peasants may have thought that the knights and other higher classes were conceited, arrogant, and thought little of THE peasants. Some of these accusations were true, while some were false. The government had a large role in the social classes along with money and family. The noble men owned their own land, while the peasants lived on the lord’s land. This visibly set them apart. The noble men looked down upon the peasants, and the peasants were taught to look up to the noble men. Each lord had a small army made up of vassals who owed him military service for their fiefs. A vassal is the weaker man and the lord is the stronger man. A fief is “usually a piece of land, although sometimes it was a right, such as the right to fish in a stream or the right to collect a toll on a certain road; a vassal could become a lord himself if he granted a piece of his fief to another man,” (http://www.mnsu.edu/emuseum/history/middleages/feudal.html). When lords made laws they used their army to enforce it. The lord was also the judge and if his vassals had trouble with one another, than the vassals could go to the lord and have the lord settle the trouble. Some peasants were freemen, but most peasants were serfs. Freemen were peasants who could “move from place to place if they did not like their master,” (http://www.mnsu.edu/emuseum/history/middlea ges/feudal.html). Serfs “belonged to the land and could not move off of it. They also could not be removed from it by their lord,” (http://www.mnsu.edu/emuseum/history/middlea ges/feudal.html). Children who were born to noble men enjoyed all of the luxuries of the time. They could also become earls, barons, and knights. Children born to peasants were likely to live at the same place their whole lives and do the same job that their parents did.
Every person in the Middle Ages was a Roman Catholic, except for the few Jews. The kings all the way to the serfs were affected by religion. The Church collected taxes and gifts such as land, crops, and even serfs. This would ensure a spot in heaven and made the Church very powerful. The Church could then influence the kings and noble men. This would make the Church even more powerful. Children were baptized only a few days after birth and from then on led a life of service to God and the Church. As the child grew they would be taught prayers and go to church every week, even if they were sick. Every person would have to follow Church laws, which included paying very large taxes to uphold the Church. The Church, in return, showed people the way to everlasting life and happiness. The Pope was, and still is, the head of the Church. He was God’s representative on Earth and had power that could influence the kings and their advisors. The Pope also had the power to excommunicate people who did not agree with the Church’s teachings. Under the Pope were Bishops. Bishops ruled over the priests like the earl ruled over his vassals. Religion was so important in the Middle Ages that some people devoted their whole lives to the Church. Parents often promised their children to the Church in return for God answering their certain prayers. Monks and nuns lived apart from the rest of society in monasteries and nunneries. They devoted their lives to prayer and vowed to stay single all of their lives.
People from the Middle Ages were set into strict social classes and thought very differently in general and about each other. They were on separate ends of the social scale and did not make any effort to change.
Information from:http://ht.ly/1F8XK
http://www.dictionary.com/
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