The Collapse of an Empire It has been said by many, “All great empires will fall.” This is a powerful statement, and history has shown it to be true repeatedly. By definition, an empire is a major political unit having a territory of great extent or a number of territories or peoples under a single sovereign authority. Empires have existed since the beginning of time; for example, the Ottoman Empire, the Persian Empire, the Mongol Empire, and most notorious, the Roman Empire. Furthermore, all of these empires have shared the same fate; they found themselves in the history books as a failed empire. Moreover, there is a lot to be learned from these empires and anthropology can assist in teaching those lessons. The United States of America is
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However, they are not the only ones who help write history. Archaeologist and Anthropologist are two major contributors in assisting people with knowing and understanding the past. Archaeologist deal with hard evidence, they confirm the unknowns in history by uncovering lost cities and artifacts, and can make them facts. Archaeologist uses hard evidence that is discovered at a site to help piece the puzzle together and to present what was found to the public. Although very similar, Anthropologist requires a slightly different skill set. That is to say, they have to be both critical and creative thinkers when analyzing an archeological site to determine how a society interacted with each other, organized themselves, behaved, and overall lived together. It for this reason I would choose to be an Anthropologist versus an Archaeologist at an archaeological …show more content…
This is what makes a culture so dynamic, a society so complex, and that is the reason I would choose to study and analyze an archaeological site through the lens of an anthropologist. The question still looms, “why did Rome fall?” It is for that reason; I would choose to work on any of the above listed archeological sites.
No one has completely answered the question, “why did Rome fall?” Some point to the leadership of the emperors. Others believe it was do-to over expansion and their inability to manage all the resources to keep the empire going. Squires (2011), states the increase in taxes, imbalanced trade, and a weakened army that was being destroyed from within its own ranks, may have been the cause (3). Whatever the case, unearthing their lost cities and finding the missing pieces to the puzzle is the only way to answer the question. Additionally, the Roman society was comprised of many different cultures. As their expansion grew, so did their multifaceted culture. Furthermore, the complexity of their society is very similar to that of America’s. For this reason, I would want to be on an expedition to explore Roman archaeological sites. Additionally, it would give us clues as to why the Empire fell and how to prevent America from repeating
However, they are not the only ones who help write history. Archaeologist and Anthropologist are two major contributors in assisting people with knowing and understanding the past. Archaeologist deal with hard evidence, they confirm the unknowns in history by uncovering lost cities and artifacts, and can make them facts. Archaeologist uses hard evidence that is discovered at a site to help piece the puzzle together and to present what was found to the public. Although very similar, Anthropologist requires a slightly different skill set. That is to say, they have to be both critical and creative thinkers when analyzing an archeological site to determine how a society interacted with each other, organized themselves, behaved, and overall lived together. It for this reason I would choose to be an Anthropologist versus an Archaeologist at an archaeological …show more content…
This is what makes a culture so dynamic, a society so complex, and that is the reason I would choose to study and analyze an archaeological site through the lens of an anthropologist. The question still looms, “why did Rome fall?” It is for that reason; I would choose to work on any of the above listed archeological sites.
No one has completely answered the question, “why did Rome fall?” Some point to the leadership of the emperors. Others believe it was do-to over expansion and their inability to manage all the resources to keep the empire going. Squires (2011), states the increase in taxes, imbalanced trade, and a weakened army that was being destroyed from within its own ranks, may have been the cause (3). Whatever the case, unearthing their lost cities and finding the missing pieces to the puzzle is the only way to answer the question. Additionally, the Roman society was comprised of many different cultures. As their expansion grew, so did their multifaceted culture. Furthermore, the complexity of their society is very similar to that of America’s. For this reason, I would want to be on an expedition to explore Roman archaeological sites. Additionally, it would give us clues as to why the Empire fell and how to prevent America from repeating