roman and han technology

Comparison Essay Nikhil Mahalanobis 9-14-13 Period 3

Throughout history there have been many, many empires that have risen and fallen throughout time. Starting with the small civilization of Sumer, all the way to our modern countries today, many have conquered and lost and grown. But no two civilizations are alike more than the civilization of ancient Rome and ancient Greece. Ancient Rome and Greece are two civilizations that are alike in ways which many are not. Both throughout their times had goals to expand, conquer, teach, learn, and invent. What made them unique was their culture, and a style of doing things. Both these two different yet same civilizations flourished at a time, but eventually had their downfalls. Ancient Rome and Greece were two civilizations that were alike in many ways. The way that they grew and how they were run by their respective emperors, they shared a lot in common. The both of them shared a similar style of government. Rome had a Republic, and Greece had a democracy. Even though they are both different types of government, they share some properties. In both systems, you vote for what you want. In a democracy, the people themselves vote, but in a republic, the people elect a representative to vote. Both share the same concept and both are held to be equal. There isn’t one biased person making all and every single decision. The reasoning behind choosing these types of government is fairly similar for both Rome and Greece. They both didn’t want a power hungry person making ignorant decisions and doing bad things. Early on when both civilizations were just developing, they both had a system of running things. Both civilizations had one selected ruler that made important decisions and were fairly important. They were either elected in by a senate of people or, elected by the people and couldn’t overuse their power. Both civilizations declared that citizenship was a privilege not a right and both had restrictions. In both civilizations both slaves and women couldn’t vote and had no citizenship. But if worked for, some freed slave could eventually get a limited form of citizenship, but still couldn’t vote. Rome and Greece has also left a lot of philosophical means and inventions. Both cultures were filled with geniuses and smart and educated people. From Socrates and Aristotle, to Tiberius and Gaius Gracchi, the two civilizations have contributed in many ways alike to modern day thought. But one thing that was un-deniably the same about the two throughout their rein of rule was their system of government, and economic levels. Both had two basic levels of social class. The rich and the poor. The rich were entitled to more land and more say when voting, and the poor got less land if any and didn’t get much say in voting. There was also military perks for joining. However, Rome and Greece had there many differences. Greece had a big influence on the great leader, Alexander the Great. Alexander the Great of Persia was actually frightened of Greece and its flourishing culture. That’s why he decided to attack Greece, to make sure that it didn’t over throw his Persian empire that he had built. On the other hand, Alexander had no interest in Rome or its culture or land because he felt like it didn’t pose a threat to him at the time. One other thing that made Rome and Greece a bit similar was there East vs. West mentality that they had managed to forge throughout their time. In Greece, it had always been the Sparta vs. Athens mentality, and in Rome, East Rome vs. West Rome. This mentality has been carried on through the ages and is still used today as a common competition. But Greece and Rome both had their culture and similarities and differences. Both civilizations were great and powerful and we have much to thank for them today. We have a system of government, roads, math, science, etc, all because of these two great civilizations.