Forces of History
- The
following forces help to cause historical events to happen. These forces are constantly at work in the present shaping
future events. To understand current events, we need to look
at past
events through the lens of the forces of history.
1) Economics
-
Every person or community of people have needs and wants
-
To receive what you need/want - Have Money, or Work (Labor)
- Means of Exchange - Barter or Money
-
Factors of Producing Goods (Labor, Owner, Natural Resources, Technology)
2) Geography / Earth
- Places
on earth have different landforms and natural resources
- Use MR HELP (Elements of Geography) - see Prezi link
3) Politics / Government
- Who
makes the decisions for a community
-
How is the power of decision making organized? (Dictatorship or Democracy)
- Types of Government - (Monarchy / Theocracy, Military Dictatorship,
Communism, Democracy)
4) Social Structure
- How is
the community or society of people organized
- Do some
people have higher social standing than others? (Hierarchy)
- Are
there different economic levels? Do some jobs get paid more than others?
- Is
there social mobility? How can a person be socially mobile?
5) Foreign Affairs
- How do
communities/ groups of people interact with other communities different from
theirs (Foreigners)
-
Communities can be isolationist - limiting contact with others. (classic
example - China)
-
Communities can conduct trade, exchanging goods and ideas
- Communities in order to meet their needs and wants, - fight, and conquer
other communities,
6) Culture
- What
are the values /traditions, customs of a community
- ethnocentric (superior to other groups) or accepting of
other communities
-
Beliefs
-
Religion (Animism, Judaism, Islam, Hinduism, Christianity, Buddhism, Shintoism,
etc)
7) Character / Biography
- What characters have acted in forceful ways to
impact historical events. For example - Where they inventors, explorers,
political leaders, religious leaders
8) Connections to the Personal
Lives of People
- Do any of the forces above effect us as individuals? In
your daily life what are the major forces? economic? cultural? If you were to
rank them, what would be the most powerful force acting on your life?
- Consider the force of Culture - What is your moral
compass? What guides you through your daily life?
--------------------------------------------------Some Examples
What were the forces behind the fall of the Roman Empire and the Rise of Feudalism -
Economics - Scarcity - leading to land needs for Romans clashing with the Barbarians. But who were the barbarians? And why were they attacking? - Check out some images of the invaders
Post some ideas on this Wall
Just as World War II - brought us the Nuclear Bomb and the cold war - now computers and the internet have created new war
Cyberhistory Timeline
