Among the countries that you would
know, there is not one that does not have a unique culture of their own. They
have their traditions, basic etiquettes, old architects and many more. But
where does this all come from? Did it all just appear out of nowhere and seep
into people’s lives? No, because behind all of this lies that country’s
history. Without its history, a country would not have been able to make their
culture and find their characteristics. Also, the longer the history, the more
that country’s culture is clear and distinct compared to the others. The
research question I am to do is related with this, especially with the history
part.
What kind of cultures do you think
are unique in their way? Or what culture can you think of at the moment? There could be
the tea time people have in England, the festivals that happen in China or
Spain, or even the fact that in Australia sheep is the main domestic animal. As
I said before, it was the history which had led these countries to do those
kind of cultures. A culture, or two, that I am currently interested about right
now is about Greece and Rome. Yes, these cultures are considered to be from one
of the oldest civilizations, the Mesopotamia or Sumer. As a student studying
about its history, a thought occurred to me, if history and culture were
related so deeply with each other I could be able to find examples about it
from the Greece and Rome cultures. This would prove that learning about a
country’s history could help people understand about their culture too. Another
reason about doing this research question is if I get to know about their
culture more through history, I might be able to use those facts when I travel
or study there. One of the future goals (and wish) I’ve had in mind was to
study abroad in Italy for a year. So by doing research about Greece and Rome’s
history and their culture I would be able to adjust to the environment when I live
there more easily than not knowing anything about it. In order to answer this
question, I will look up the most well-known facts about their culture, and
then look up the history behind it. These facts could vary from small ones such
as how people greet each other, to enormous festivals that take place.
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| Poseidon |
Normally
when we think about Greece and Rome, the famous myths come to our minds. The
ones where Zeus and Hera, Aphrodite and Ares, and many more gods would appear,
with also mythical creatures and mortal heroes. What I know right now is that
myths had been a pretty big part of the history of Greece and Rome. It’s almost
like without the myths, it would have been very difficult to explain about
their culture and understand it. The Greeks and Romans, in the past, would have
shrines built for the gods, had people who worked there or spoke to the gods,
and even reveal prophecies they said they had received from the gods. Festivals
that were held there were mostly for the honor of a particular god, or to
please one for good weather to farm or the well-being of their family. The gods
were a part of their daily lives. Also, not only the gods but even heroes, who
were just the same human as they, had a big role in history. Some heroes had
contributed in founding the country, or winning wars, communicating with different
countries or even establishing the traditions that still exist today. Many
famous architects, which also shows their culture, are also mostly related with
the gods and heroes inside those myths and legends.
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| Drawing of Pegasus on pottery |
As I said in the first paragraph, by
answering this research question I would like to know about the relation
between the history of Greece and Rome and the culture, while also obtaining
knowledge which would be helpful when either traveling or studying there. To
achieve all of this, I would first have to learn about the history first.
However, since it’s history is too long and contains too much information, I
decided to narrow it down to the famous myths and legends they have. After
choosing a few specific stories among them, I will do research about the
background and also if there are any traditions or typical cultural actions
people still do today. Or another way I could do would be to look up famous
traditions or cultural info and then go deeper inside it by searching the
related history. There could be famous festivals in certain areas that happen
at a certain time of the year, a type of unique animal which are bred
somewhere, and even the architects that are currently famous tourist
attractions. Moreover, if I wanted to learn more about just the daily life of
the people which I could use when traveling or studying there, I could search
about it and the background and history behind it. By doing all of this, I
would be able to understand more about this culture, how history and culture is
inseparable, and also get some useful tips on how to adjust there.
One thing that I would have also
like to do some research about was about just the ancient Mesopotamia
civilization. It is considered to be the basis of many cultures which exist
right now, and so learning about it might let me understand more about the countries’
cultures. The languages of those countries was also what I was considering
about looking up, because just the language itself can also show us the history
and culture inside it. However, the information about the civilization is too
much and with not much time, I decided to narrow it down to one which I was
mostly interested about. I do wish that through this research process I would
achieve the knowledge I had desired, and if lucky even more than that.
