Life has always fascinated me. People are very interesting to me. I have always wondered how we got to be so smart. Reading about the gathers and hunters gave me a little insight about how we came about. I never realized we all started out in Africa and as black people. Then lightened up according to where our ancestors ended up. It seems like such a simple time, but the life span was very short, maybe 30-35 years if you were lucky. There was danger in gathering your food, because how did they know if what they were eating wasn't poisonous. Trial and error I'm sure. We think of these people as primitive, but i think they were just as smart as people were today. They figured out the right stuff to eat, and where and how to live. All without anything to work with except the land in which they lived.
The story of Nisa was fascinating to me. Even though it is a story of a modern women living in the old ways, It give us an ideal about the thinking of someone who isn't surrounded in a lot of technology. She lives in the bush and is very satisfied with her life. As a women i enjoyed her views on her life and her marriage, her losses, and her lovers. She talks about the power to heal and to help her people. Sometimes I believe we are way to smart for our own good. We would find it hard to live in the bush how she did. The closet we come to that is to camp out at a lake or national park. We bring all the luxeries of home with us. You don't see people out hunting unless they have a special license, special clothing and only when and where the law says its OK. While I'm enjoying my life in the technical world we live in sometimes it would be great to step back a bit and enjoy the simple life. Even with the hard work.
I have always wondered how social rule was set up. In reading about the various wars, I cant believe how much men fought for land and the rights to rule over one another. Why is it that men have to have so much power? Reading these chapters made me realize why women have had so much trouble with men since we began. Today women have every oprotunities as men. At some point we may even get a women as president. In some other countries they do have women in power, but it is rare. It is mostly men, who are placed in that position, showing money and power still are the goal of many. Women have had so many rules to abide to, because we must know our place. Our family's teach each other the rules and women were to have virtue which means to not be brilliant in her abilities and to be exceptionally different from others. She is to watch her womenly words, never clever in a debate or keen in conversation. She doesn't have to be pretty or have a perfect body. She does however have to be able to work more skillfully than others. She is to guard her chastity, to avoid vulgar language and exhibit modesty. She is to clean the filth and be able to prepare the food and wine. (sited pg 246, ways of the world) No wonder as a women we have to fight for everything. Women still have to deal with this stuff even in today's society by some men. Although I think men have also come a long way in understanding that we are the same except our genders.
ReplyDeleteIn the religion section, I enjoyed reading about the time lines of the different religions. It is fascinating to me how we also have a need to worship a greater power than ourselves. We need to have that hope that someone else or something else is in charge. For me it will always be God. For another religion it may be another type of god or practice. While I was born a christian, I can also respect other religions and keep an open mind. I think many people are now open to other religions and show respect for each others way of life. So I believe after our assigned reading we have really gained way more than we have ever done before. Women have fought hard for where they are today and in some ways men are supportive and enjoy the perks of sharing responsibilities with their women. i think people are getting more excepting of each other. We don't need so many rules to just be ourselves.