Emily Eastlack
Mrs. Emami
Enduring Issue Essay 2
1/10/19
Many people throughout the world have different ideas and beliefs. As historians research different civilizations and rulers that have come before us, they find that these rulers and groups of people believe in different things, whether that be religion or government. These rulers or groups of people also have different ideas and thoughts on how civilizations and groups of people should be governed. The issue of impact of ideas and beliefs is a significant enduring issue, because it has affected many people and is still affecting many people today negatively and positively through leaders and rulers only allowing the people they govern to believe in what that ruler believes in, and creating new ideas like Roman roads that move society forward. The issue of impact of ideas and beliefs has endured across time, because many people have different ideas and beliefs today all over he world, which is creating new technologies and innovations, but also causing conflict among the people that can’t accept others ideas and beliefs. The enduring issue of impact of ideas and beliefs can be shown by document 1, “The Records of the Grand Historian, Sima Qian,” document 2, “Roman Roads,” and document 5, “1938- Nazi SS in a parade.”
Emperor Shi Huangdi unified the people of China during the Warring States period when China was divided between seven major states who were fighting one another for power. He and his forces defeated the other states and unified the people of China under the Qin Dynasty. He followed a philosophy called legalism, which enforced strict laws with harsh punishments to create order. According to document 1, “The Records of the Grand Historian, Sima Qin”- “China. C3 Teachers: college, career, and civic life.” Li Si, who was a strong supporter of legalism and a counselor to Shi Huangdi spoke in response to a scholar who challenged Shi Huangdi. Li Si is trying to get the point across that the opinionated scholars or the learners/students are not good for the Qin dynasty, because they have different opinions and beliefs that go against what emperor Shi Huangdi is trying to enforce. For example the document states “These opinionated scholars get together to slander the laws…” the document also states “If this is not prohibited the Sovereigns prestige will suffer and fractions will be formed…” Meaning if this is not stopped conflicts will be formed among the people. This document relates to the enduring issue of impact of ideas and beliefs, because it is one example of how a ruler like Shi Huangdi or Li Si only cares about what beliefs system they follow, and forces the people they govern to believe in that exact belief system through strict laws and punishments. This causes people to live in fear and hardly have any freedom. With people living in fear of questioning the government, new ways of thinking and new innovations were not created. Also when Shi and Li ordered for other books on different philosophies or other information that the rulers didn’t like to be burned, it causes people to know less and not be as intelligent On the other hand civilizations like the roman empire used their beliefs and ideas to positively impact people.
The romans created a well organized and efficient transportation system through the construction of their roads. In document 2, “Roman Roads”- “Virtual Karak Resources Project,” it gave information on the roman roads, and how the idea of having roads was a major innovation for the romans that greatly contributed to their success. The main reason the romans created these roads was for the use of military. According to the document “Their economic benefit for civilizations was a later byproduct and not the main reason for their creation.” Meaning at first the main reason for the creation of roads was for military purposes, but as time went on another main reason for the roads was the economic benefit. This document relates to the enduring issue of impact of ideas and beliefs, because the romans had an idea of creating roads to maintain their power, and this impacted their success as an empire.
The Nazis were a group of people who took control of Germany in the 1930s and 1940s. They were led by a man named Adolf Hitler. The Nazis had a private army known as the protective squad or the SS. This was an important tool for the Nazi terror and control. According to document 5, “1938-The Nazi SS in a parade”- “https://en.wikipedia.org/…” The Nazi sought to eliminate all opposition, or anyone who had ever spoken against hitler. The document states, “They used cruel methods throughout Germany to identify, arrest and murder political opponents.” This shows that if you were under the rule of the Nazi and you didn’t have the same beliefs and ideas as hitler, you would have extreme punishments like execution. This relates to the enduring issue of impact of ideas and beliefs, because hitler and the Nazis beliefs and ideas affected many people by living a fearful life and having extreme punishments. This philosophy that Hitler used is similar to the philosophy that Emperor Shi Huangdi used, with harsh punishments and no tolerance for opposition.
In conclusion, when historians look back into our history they find that the rulers and groups of people who believe in different things had a huge impact on the people that they were governing/rulin. These people were affected in many ways like being short sighted and not caring about others beliefs, and also living in fear of their rulers harsh punishments if the people didn’t believe in what their ruler believed in. However some beliefs and ideas of the ruler can be positive. For example the roads that the romans built helped the people and moved their civilization forward. Throughout all three of the documents there were examples of how important peoples beliefs and ideas in history had affected and impacted people. For example in document 1, it gave information on how the ruler Shi Huangdi, an emperor that strongly believed in legalism impacted the people he ruled through having strict laws and harsh punishments if the people didn’t believe in exactly what Shi believed in. Also in document 2, it provided information on how the romans had the idea of creating roads, which affected and impacted people in a positive way. This is one example of how ideas and beliefs could positively impact people’s lives, and contribute to moving civilization forward. And lastly in document 5, it provided information on a group of people called the Nazis, who were led by a man named Adolf Hitler. Similar to document 1 talking about Shi Huangdi and his devotion to legalism, document 5 was another example of how a rulers ideas and beliefs negatively impacted people and civilizations. Weather it be negative or positive the enduring issue of impact of ideas and beliefs is still happening all over the world today. One example of this is what is happening in North Korea today with ruler Kim Jong Un. Similar to rulers Shi Huangdi and Adolf Hitler the leaders in north korea have strict laws and punishments if you go against the rulers beliefs. For example in North Korea if you go against or criticize the leaders you and your family could be sent to a political prison camp. Much like the Nazi concentration camps, the political prison camps have forced labor, brutal beatings and even death. This shows that people all over the world have been or are still being affected by the enduring issue of impact of ideas and beliefs.
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