Alexander the Great in the U.S Navy

The Navy is many times said to be “old-fashioned.” Things have been run the same way for years and years, whether is be the same uniforms from a couple years ago, or the same books being used from a couple decades ago. One can say that the Navy’s foundation is built on much of history, as it makes us what we are today. However, the role of officers is an aspect of the Navy that has been developed and curated for centuries. Leaders have been founded in ancient civilizations from way back then, such as Ancient Macedonia. Alexander the Great of Macedonia is a great example of an influential leader in the past that still has an influence on the present. We are able to study his successes and failures, in order to learn from them and become a better leader ourselves.

Alexander the Great was an extremely successful leader of his time, as his empire was a colossal size that no had ever even fathomed of. This was only possible through his valuable leadership characteristics. One of his characteristics was being able to bring out the best in the people that he led. When fighting against the Persian army, “He knew that the disorganized Persian army would not be able to withstand his phalanxes (a body of troops in tight military formation). So he used them to their best effect each time, breaking through enemy ranks and forcing the Persians to retreat” (Business and Leadership). Although the Persians were large in numbers, they were not unified, unlike the Macedonians were under Alexander the Great. He was able to understand the strengths and weaknesses of his team, and placed them in positions where they were more likely to succeed. This can be useful to officers in the Navy, as we learn to leverage the Navy’s strengths. As an officer, you will be responsible for assigning tasks to people. So you would not place a mechanic to drive the ship and have a navigator fix the engines. You would place everyone where they are needed, to help the whole team run smoothly as a whole. However, we are also able to learn from Alexander’s failures too.

When Alexander the Great passed away, he had already accomplished a lot and left behind an impressive empire. However, after his death, “no one had the charisma or leadership to rule such a vast empire. Civil war soon broke out, and what Alexander built in one generation was destroyed in the next” (B&L). The lesson here is that a leader should be able to step back and still have his people carry on at full capacity. This is applicable to the Navy, because officers must be able to give tasks to their subordinates and trust them to get the job done. You cannot do everything yourself, as the purpose of a team is to have everyone involved. If Alexander the Great was able to make himself indispensable to his army, maybe his empire would’ve lasted longer after his death.

Works Cited

“Alexander The Great Leadership – Greatest of World Conquerors.” BUSINESS & LEADERSHIP. November 16, 2018. Accessed November 21, 2018. https://www.businessandleadership.com/leadership/item/alexander-the-great-one-of-the-greatest-of-world-conquerors/.

Word Count: 505

Blind to the Resemblance

In many cases when someone grows up surrounded by a single religion for their whole life, it becomes an essential aspect of their culture. They accept it to be valid and certain, because it has always been a part of their life. In today’s society, Christians will believe that Christianity is the only answer, and shut down any other religion. This is common for most followers of any religion. However, Christianity actually shares some similarities with the religion of Islam. Most people have had the wrong interpretation of Islam due to popular culture beliefs and media. On the other hand, Christianity and Islam actual share many basics in their religions.

Christianity and Islam both share holy scriptures with each other. When you think of Christianity, you immediately think of the Bible, and when you think about Islam, your mind goes to the Qur’an. While this is true, both religions find foundation in the Old Testament, and Islam regarded the New Testament as sacred texts. However, Islam had their own twist to certain beliefs, “while acknowledging the importance of the Old and New Testament, Muslims also exalt the Qur’an and the Sunna” (Sharples, Chloe). Islam followers acknowledge the importance of texts in the Bible, but hold their Islamic texts to a higher priority.

Prophets are known to be outgoing people who spread the word of their religion to wherever they traveled to or where they were sent to by God. Christians and Muslims believed that Noah, Abraham, Ishmael, Isaac, Jacob, Joseph, Moses, David, Solomon, John the Baptist, and Jesus were brought to the Earth to be messengers for God. But the difference was that “while Muslims believe that Jesus was simply another prophet in a line of prophets (along with Muhammad), Christians consider Jesus to be the Son of God (and God himself), rather ‘than just any old prophetic messenger” (Sharples, Chloe). Both religions believed that Jesus existed and how he was a prophet. However, while Christians viewed Jesus to be divine and the son of God, Muslims saw Jesus as a prophet sent by Allah (God), born from Virgin Mary, but not divine. For Islam, the prophet Muhammad had the most significance, as he was known to be “the final messenger of God who came to earth to clear up false teachings and to present the world with the final, correct teaching” (Sharples, Chloe). Mohammad was claimed to be the founder of Islam, just as Jesus was the founder of Christianity.

These surprising similarities between Christianity and Islam are not mutually exclusive, as both religions share some ideologies with Judaism. Judaism is another religion that believed in the same God found in Christianity and Islam. The Jews believed that they were chosen specifically to set the standard for holiness and proper behavior to the world. Although these religions may seem very different, they all come from very similar sources and ideas. If compared with even more religions, I believe that you will find some aspects of Christianity or Islam in other ideologies.

Works Cited

Sharples, Chloe. “9 Similarities Between Christianity and Islam.” OnFaith. November 11, 2016. Accessed November 04, 2018. https://www.onfaith.co/text/9-similarities-between-christianity-and-islam.

Word Count: 502

The Art of War in the Academy

Sun Tzu’s Art of War is a military treatise that describes various aspects of warfare, which had set the standard for many military strategies today. The Art of War has had great influence on East Asian warfare. In addition, this piece of writing has been translated to give advice in areas of modern day culture, including leadership, business, legal thinking, and more. As a whole, one of Sun Tzu’s over-arching philosophies was to plan for anything. Planning for any event has a major impact on the success of the actual event. In many aspects, this is also taught in the Naval Academy for various situations involving everyday academy life and their future in the military.

Having a plan is many times half the battle. In Sun Tzu’s military treatise, he mentions “The skillful strategist defeats the enemy without doing battle, captures the city without laying siege” (Sun Tzu). When you blindly run onto a battlefield, thinking that you can defeat the enemy purely based on having greater size in numbers, you are bound to be defeated. However, if you have a plan such as capturing the enemy leader and making them surrender, you are able to win the war without firing a single bullet. A plan can make a great difference in any situation, such as academics at the Naval Academy. At the academy, before the first semester of classes, plebes will receive their weekly class schedule. Within the week before school starts, the plebes are told to find their classrooms beforehand since they are unfamiliar with the academic buildings, so that when they actually have such classes, they will be able to plan the fastest route from class to class. This will help them be on time for class and not worry about getting lost. However, there is still a difference between a good plan and a bad plan.

When you “Plan for anything,” you will be able to adapt to any situation, and not let any roadblocks slow you down. In the Art of War, it says “Attack where he is unprepared;Appear where you are unexpected…Be ready for the unexpected” (Sun Tzu). If you attack your enemy off their guard, they will not be ready for you. The element of surprise can trip anyone up, hence the effect of the surprise. This is also why you must be prepared for anything that comes at you, so that you are not caught off guard. During plebe summer at the academy, plebes are told to always carry around a notebook and a pen. This is so that whenever there is a learning opportunity, they will be able to write it down and look back upon it. You never know when someone is going to give you words of wisdom, as you must be able to take advantage of any opportunity.

The Naval Academy understands the Art of War not only for its military tactics, but on a deeper level of developing a great leader. Planning ahead and being prepared for anything helps midshipmen become leaders that are flexible and able to adapt to any situation.

Works Cited

Sun-tzu. The Art of War. Penguin, 2009.

Word Count: 517

Christian Intimidation

There was a valid reason for the Romans to fear the spread of Christianity throughout the empire. During a time period of a society mainly dominated by Polytheism, Christianity seemed to be a very eccentric religion. The various traditions and beliefs of Christianity were many times misinterpreted to be crazy and offensive. The Romans believed that the Christians had immoral practices, as their religion was seemed as a threat to the well being of the empire.

Religion was one of the core aspects of the foundation of Ancient Rome. The Roman religion was based on Polytheism, where they worshiped a vast collection of gods together. With the presence of Greek colonies in the Lower Peninsula, the Romans accepted some of the Greek gods into their religion. The capital consisted of many temples used for rituals, sacrifices, and even festivals to honor the deities that they wished to praise. They believed that worshiping distinct deities would bring them good fortune and protection in various aspects. One of these deities was named Sarpis, who was considered the healing god, so “the sick would travel to her temple to be cured” (Wasson, Donald). There were cults created to worship these gods, as the government would collect taxes in order to fund the cults and the festivals that they had. They believed that their relationship with distinct deities was directly correlated to the events on Earth. Roman religion had a stable position in society, until the rise of Christianity.

Christianity was spreading across Europe and throughout the Roman Empire. As a monotheistic religion, Christian followers only believed in God, as they refused to worship and offer sacrifices to the Roman gods. This drew a lot of attention because it “was an insult to the gods and potentially endangered the empire which they designed to protect” (Lunn-Rockliffe, Sophie). When the Christians did not make sacrifices to the emperor, who was regarded to be semi-divine, the Romans considered this to be treason. The practices of Christianity were many times questioned to be immoral. At the “Last Supper,” Jesus’s followers consumed the body and the blood of Christ. Many of the Romans were surprised, and thought that Christians supported cannibalism, while in reality, they were merely consuming bread and wine that symbolized Jesus’s body. Christianity also appealed to a wide audience, including women, slaves, intellectuals, and the illiterate. Many feared that Jesus’s influence among such a broad group, including the large population of the lower class would cause a revolt against the Roman government. This would stop the persecution of Christians, as they could worship their religion freely.

In a society that had an established religion and lifestyle, the introduction of a completely different religion was seen as a threat to the stability of the empire. Christianity was viewed to be disrespectful to the Roman religion, and having the potential for a revolt. The religion was also misinterpreted to having strange practices. This is why the Romans had the right to fear the spread of Christianity.

Word Count: 499

References

Wasson, Donald L. “Roman Religion.” Ancient History Encyclopedia. Last modified November 13, 2013. https://www.ancient.eu/Roman_Religion/.

Lunn-Rockliffe, Sophie, Dr. “History – Ancient History in Depth: Christianity and the Roman Empire.” BBC. February 17, 2011. Accessed October 14, 2018. http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/ancient/romans/christianityromanempire_article_01.shtml.

The Superiority of Representative Democracy

Democracy in its rawest form was first seen in Ancient Greece. At the time, they believed that direct democracy was the best form of government for their society. However, this was the “rawest” form of democracy because it needed a lot of work to be done on it to make it more efficient and applicable to everyone in the society. The founding fathers studied the Athenian democracy, and thought about how to make it better. This form of government has now developed into today’s representative model of democracy. The present representative government has been more efficient in satisfying more of the population than the direct democracy of Athens was able to.

It isn’t hard to tell that Direct Democracy came with a lot of problems due to its wide span of participants. Although it may seem like a good idea giving everyone an input in the government, once you try to execute such a plan, it does not work out for the best. I was able to experience this myself when I took part in the “Reacting to the Past” activity in class, where everyone was an active member of the assembly in Ancient Athens. The assembly was very disorganized because people talked whenever they pleased, as many times the main speaker was barely able to get their point across without being interrupted. Nobody really thought about what was best for the nation, as their main priority was “What would be best for them-self.” This is why an elected representative of the people would be more efficient. This person would argue for what the people wanted, but still make compromises with other representatives so that everyone can get what they wanted. It is also the representative’s job to work in the democracy, so they would be more educated in this field of work, and have more experience in negotiation and decision making.

“I have considered the circumstances which point out the necessity of a well-constructed Senate only as they relate to the representatives of the people (Federalist Paper 63). James Madison acknowledged the need for a properly structured senate in order to represent the people as accurately as possible. For the Athenians, the Ekklesia was the sovereign body of the democracy. Even though this group only consisted of male Athenian citizens of 18 years or older, they “made decisions about war and foreign policy, wrote and revised laws and approved or condemned the conduct of public officials” (History). This small group had too much power, as they were making such high caliber decisions based on majority vote. The Ekklesia had the power to expel a citizen from the Athenian city state for 10 years, and no one could say anything about it (History). The representative democracy is able to spread such power more efficiently, as the checks and balances system makes sure nobody has too much power. Even though the Athenian direct democracy had good intentions, the modern day representative democracy has proven to me the most efficient.

Works Cited

Madison, James. “The Federalist Papers: No 63.” The Avalon Project – Laws of War : Laws and Customs of War on Land (Hague IV); October 18, 1907. Accessed October 01, 2018. http://avalon.law.yale.edu/18th_century/fed63.asp.

Editors, History.com. “Ancient Greek Democracy.” History.com. August 23, 2018. Accessed October 01, 2018. https://www.history.com/topics/ancient-greece/ancient-greece-democracy.

The Persian Empire and Fortnite

A unique representation of the ancient world can be seen within the trending video game called Fortnite Battle Royale. In this video-game, users are given the ability to go to battle with other users, conquer land, and be the last one standing. This can be seen as a translation to the Persian Empire and its expansion over time.

The video game of Fortnite is historically accurate when compared to the conquering aspects of the Persian Empire. The Persians were very much known to be “borrowers,” in relation to the societies that they encountered. They took the most exceptional technologies and ideas from the cultures they discovered and molded them to technologies uniquely to their own. When conquering the land of Pasargadae, their advanced art and engineering was seen in elements of Egypt and Syria, which were thousands of miles away from Pasargadae. One example was the famous formal garden by the name of Paradesia. This was a state-of-the-art garden, known for its beautiful design and cutting-edge technology. With the very dry and hot environment, the architecture of the design allowed water to enter the basin every 16 yards. In the structural design, specific textures and shapes were used to harness the light. Such similar designs were seen in the building structures of Egypt the Asia minor. In Fortnite, players are able to use an ax to break down various structures for their material. For example, when they chop down a wooden bookshelf, they obtain more of the “wood material.” Then later on, they can construct their own fortress out of this same wood, or create a staircase to help them reach a location. This would be more useful for them in the game in comparison to a static bookshelf. However, there are still many aspects to this game which isolates its validity for being historically accurate.

There are components of Fortnite that do not seem very realistic or comparable to the Ancient World. When Cyrus the Great was conquering territories with his army, he would invade and then maintain control of each city. This would increase the size of the empire and the size of the population. In Fortnite, players would only invade a city, loot its resources, kill anyone else in the area, and then keep moving on to the next city. One would have no intention of cultivating the society, as they merely took what they needed and moved on. Around this time period, most people would conquer other civilizations by traveling to them by boat or by land. However in Fortnite, players jump out of a flying school bus, in order to parachute into their desired location.

The creators of Fortnite made these components different from history in order to make the game seem more interesting and appealing to modern day culture. They didn’t want to be like every other historical video game that tries to be as similar to the past as possible. Those types of games only appeal to a certain crowd of gamers. Fortnite on the other hand piques the interest of players by including characters with vibrant colored costumes and popular dance moves. Although it is not a valid way of examining history, it helps encourage thought and interest for the past. This is why Fortnite translates as a modern representation of the Persian Wars.