Civilization

Civilization is a term that has been used in various relevant and irrelevant contexts for ages. Many people relate civilization to the society’s state, nature or class. Resultantly, ambiguity in the term has been developed. Only keen scholars and people with the expert mastery of language have been able to use the term in its rightful context in order to describe its past, present, and future. Therefore, this paper defines civilization both in history and modernity, tries to evaluate how it shapes human life by looking at people’s reactions as well as different options for improving, and cites its proponents.

Historical civilization is related to justice, or rather social justice. It can be defined as the ancient ways in which societies have developed respect for human rights and life and have exemplified an organized form of authority (Shah, 2011). Notably, there was no defined form of leadership in the ancient times. Leadership became a concept that people needed and valued when populations were growing and hence there was a need for social organization. Such organization was supposed to be moral, legal and to some extent religious. Moral organization was supposed to oversee the actions of the people to assure that they acted within the socially-acceptable realm. Legal organization was guided by justice, or social justice, which ensured fair and rightful behavior of the society.

One of the ancient societies that ascribed to and exemplified historical civilization was the Ancient Greek Empire (Guisepi, 2007). Its people were required to treat others fairly in order to not violate their rights. Theft and murder were crimes that were punishable by death. Hearings were also arranged for offenders to receive their verdicts. This structure was meant to ensure that the societies existed in a harmonious way, which ensured peaceful coexistence among people. Religion is also a part of historical civilization, which has evolved over time. People would move from one type of belief system into another one, while others would become atheists. The people who were converting from one religion to another or improving their allegiance to the same religion defined this process as civilization. They believed to have developed more knowledge and understanding of living under the influence of supernatural being who needed to be acknowledged through praise and worship. This faith explains the emergence of churches, religious movements and societies in the ancient world.

Historical civilization has shaped life in different ways. People have developed careers in law such as lecturers, lawyers and judges, all of whom influence the legal world (Violatti, 2014). Correctional facilities were built to deal with crimes and ensure peaceful living environments. Additionally, transparency is still fostered in such human engagements as business. As a result, people have begun to avoid corrupt dealings in order to build their reputation and integrity. Therefore, lives have positively been impacted by the rightful creation of revenue and income, where job opportunities are available for the existing population (Ehrlich & Ehrlich, 2013). Jobs have improved the lives of people and have helped build modern societies. People have acknowledged and have come to appreciate historical civilization, as it has a significant impact on the world today. Its developments include fair and just systems of administration, as mentioned above. Leaders and property owners realize that a society should be organized based on the rules of coordination, which ensure peace and security of other people’s assets or investments.

People who dislike historical civilization are either lazy or stubborn, as they do not strive to improve their social and financial positions. Such people are a nuisance to the society, since they engage in illegal acts such as robbery, violence and corruption. They try their best to object civilization, which connotes a just and legal system, but fail because of the influence of the larger population. Civilization always has room for improvement. It can be improved by increasing awareness among its people. Moreover, constitutions and laws should be evaluated and made comprehensive. Not everyone is fully knowledgeable about civilization, hence campaigns for improving knowledge among people are needed. Laws should be tightened to provide minimal to no loopholes for social injustices that most people try to misuse by bending rules or laws (Oman-Reagan, n. d.). Cognitively, there is no room for disliking civilization if one looks for the good in the society. Abandoning civilization and disregarding its history are retrogressive acts.

Darwin, Darius and Marx are three people who have showcased different approaches to civilization. Darwin described civilization as a tool that would help mankind reach more developments. In his explanation of the evolution theory, Darwin states that a man passes through different forms of civilization, which include knowing how to start a fire and make food. It is an advancement from eating raw meat, which humanity has surpassed long ago. Proponents of Darwin argue that a man can consider killing of animals unethical and thus defend the preservation of wildlife. A sense of fairness has been later developed and it has evolved into the just and legal system. Darius was a political ruler in India who did not show much respect to human life. He would ask people to eat the bodies of the dead and, if they refused, he would call in a tribe that ate the dead. He did not value cremation, which can be considered disrespectful and unethical. Moreover, Marx argued that populations were focused on social and political foundations (Gallo, 2014). This belief made him ponder how a modern society can improve. Thus, he wrote about the political development denoted by the bourgeois order with reference to the French commune. He condemned violence and asserted that it pulled societies back. This Marxist school of thought was focused on the materialistic aspect of the society, and that is why it found much relevance in the idea of civilization to protect property.

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