� 2001-2006 by Shiloh
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Wanna hear some funny? 'Course you do; most people like to hear something funny. Last night Jon happened upon a show on the History Channel. Called Conquest, it was talking about archery. The commentator took a team of people who knew nothing of bows and arrows into the woodlands and had them try to make their own bows and arrows using the design given them. He told us viewers that wood from Yew and Ash trees make the best bows, because it's sturdy and pliant. He said, and I quote, "I didn't see anyone using wood from any yew or ash, but I did hear the words 'Yew ash' a lot."
Ok, so maybe you had to be there, watching it at ten-thirty at night. But at the time it sent us into gales of laughter and once again when the would-be craftsmen tried out their bows and arrows. Only one person had fletchings on his arrow and it made the target while all the others sailed past or just dropped feet away when released from the bow. One man's bow broke in two when he tried nocking the arrow. I hadn't laughed that hard in awhile so it felt good.
I read the first exerpt from an Ancient Mesopotamian love poem for tomorrow's discussion. That would be around 2000 B.C.E. (Before Common Era) in what is now modern day Iraq. They say writing first started there in the river valleys of the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers.
Anyways as I got thinking 'bout the literature we'll be reading dealing with what the textbook calls the Ancient Period and other periods, I wondered about the peoples who lived back then, when the world was still much a mystery to them in regards why seasons changed, etc. Most of the stuff we'll be reading comes from major empires or regions pivotal in history. I was mindful that these empires never lasted, but literary works from their worlds have passed the test of time.
Then, as my thoughts turned to William the Conqueror (I was obviously thinking of Conquest again) I bluntly thought to myself that the conquerors become the conquered in the end. For example, the Scotti, the people for whom Scotland is named after, conquered the people who lived there before them then they were conquered by those who came after them. The sorceress in The Scorpion King was right when she told the King himself that no empire lasts forever.
One culture melds into another, forming an adapted way of life or being completely overshadowed by the conqueror's culture. You know, you would think in ancient times people would be a bit isolated from other people in far away regions. But they weren't. My textbook says Buddha statues were found in Vikings graves and remnants of Celtic tartans were found in China. They were almost more well traveled than we are today with our planes, ships, vehicles and trains. You would also think that with that kind of interaction each culture would rub off on each other and cultures would relate to one another in some fashion. In ways they do, but mostly they're so desimiliar. It's interesting.
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