What Makes Us Western? The 3 Rs CIV 101-02 Fall November 20, 2015 Class 39

What Makes Us Western?The 3 Rs

CIV 101-02Fall

November 20, 2015Class 39

What Makes Us Western?The 3 Rs

Renaissance

(Protestant) Reformation/Revolt

(Scientific) Revolution

What Makes Us Western?

Renaissance

• We learned to be HUMAN again– Humanism shifted the focus from the divine to

the human being and from the everlasting to this life.


Renaissance

• We learned how great humans have been and we recalled what they had given us.

• We recovered the legacies of Greece & Rome– And these are a huge part of our Western-ness – Without the Renaissance, the people of Islam

would be more attuned to Greece and Rome than would we.

• In the process, we learned a lot about the people of Islam– Through what they saved and how they saved it.


Renaissance

• We learned how great humans can be– And focused on individual genius

We still aspire to works of these levels

What Makes Us Western?(Protestant) Reformation/Revolt

• Notions of “One Way,” “the unified mystical body of Christ,” “the global village” all sound wonderfully unifying.

• But one of the essential strengths of the West is its diversity.

• The hold the Catholic Church had on Western Civilization might have continued to be good for Catholics (though it might not have been)– But could not have been good for everyone else, despite

Catholic insistence to the contrary.• The development of Protestant approaches become

some of our strengths (e.g., Protestant ethic) and weaknesses (e. g., Puritanism).

• Reigning-in Catholic excesses (Papal/leadership misconduct, theological abuses, the Crusades, the Inquisition, anti-Semitism, etc.) was probably healthy, even for the Catholic Church.



• Regardless of the faith or sect, religion can expand human aspirations toward the extra-human, the divine.– As evidenced by the artistic geniuses in the Renaissance.

• The Christian who take on those aspirations are immeasurably important to our development.

• Without the (Protestant) Reformation/Revolt, humans may have rejected religion by rejecting Catholicism and it’s problems, and by doing so, lost out on religion’s potential advantages.

• Undeniably, Christianity and Christian people have done a LOT of good, often in the name of their faith.– Some bad, sure. But at least enough good to make it possible to

claim a balanced accounting.

• As important as religion was, and is, Western progress turned on getting away from its overwhelming influences. Yet,

• we needed other ways to explain the mysteries of life.

• Science and the development of technologies and methods became the ways (for better or worse).

What Makes Us Western?Scientific Revolution

• On the one hand, the Cartesian Split simply isn’t true and caused us to misunderstand both ourselves and our world.

• On that same hand, science and technology have resulted in many ills, so much so, that we may end up killing off both ourselves, everyone else, and the planet.

• Still, it is what it is and it is who we are.


• And of course, just like with religion, for all the bad, there’s also a lot of good and these positives are often what we are most proud of as a people group.

• Our slices of Western Civilization developed into places of extraordinary advancement due to our scientific and technological methods, thinking, and achievements.


What Makes Us Western?Everything that Came Before,

and then The 3 Rs

Renaissance

(Protestant) Reformation/Revolt

(Scientific) Revolution

Thanks for hanging in there with a Gen. Ed. section that might have been a little more difficult than you had planned for. Perhaps, looking back on it; the whole thing won’t seem so bad. In fact, maybe it’s what you pay the big bucks for (even if sometimes you think you’d be willing to get a little less if it were a little less difficult).

Prior to grades for the final paper and final exam, the class average in this course stands at a 79% B; I expect grades will go up as the papers come in; your projects are in pretty good shape in early planning.

Please be safe over the winter break and return refreshed. If you need a spring class, I’ll let you into CFA 314/IM 450: Privacy in the Connected USA

The rest of the term:(Please call 2378 if you scheduled a meeting but need to cancel)December2 class 40; no class: Scheduled meetings over papers

4 class 41 no class: Scheduled meetings over papers

Assignment for class 42: Art Analysis Paper Due, by 1pm, December 7

7 class 42 no class: Art Analysis Paper Due by 1pm9 study day

15 2:30-4:30 Final Exam: here. Although listed as 2 hours, it’s a 1 hour session. The exam will be over at 3:30. Don’t come late, expecting to be able to test after 3:30. However, if you begin on time and need more than an hour, you will be allowed to take as much time as you need.

Course Evaluations• We take student course evaluations seriously at Bradley.

– They go into our permanent employment record– They are considered during decisions about pay increases

• I have tenure and am a full professor, yet I am still expected to do evaluations and I DO read every one.

• Please remember, especially when you review younger faculty: Be honest but BE FAIR. Evaluations are not the place to hijack and back stab. Please consider your effort as well as their shortcomings. Those young faculty need your support and encouragement AND your honest evaluation of things they can improve.

• Often, in multi-section settings, your teacher might not be in charge of everything (book selection, exams, assignments, etc.). Please be sure that they ARE before you take them to task for X, Y, Z.

• In here, it was all my call. • Please put them in the envelope when done. Mr. Bell will take them up to the

Honor’s Program office after completion.. Slide them under Deb’s door if she isn’t there.

• Questions?

Documents

What Makes Us Western? The 3 Rs CIV 101-02 Fall November 20, 2015 Class 39