Intro to part 2 and chapter 3 (State & Empire)

Classical Era: (500 B.C.-1400 AD)
-Competition for dominance between civilizations
-Unique thinkers develop the seminal ideas that still define us as peoples
-Formation of complex empires+ Cosmopolitan Urban Centers
-Political units arise which straddle more than one continent

Empires: are large states that exercise coercive power. They usually are aggressive and conquer other states to steal their resources.

Cosmopolitans: People that come from all around the world to learn their language, food, customs, religions, clothing, etc.

Persians:
-In my opinion the Persians were successful but very short lived
-They were able to bring together all of the major ancient civilizations of Afro-Eurasia into one big empire.
-They had a really big military
-They were eventually conquered by the Greeks

The Golden Period:
- Lasted 100 years and was the development of Greek Humanism
-Philosophy where big questions are answered using the Human mind
-The art was precise and very realistic of the human body
-Mythology was stories that humans were imperfect and had flaws
-Democracy ruled by the people
-Drama and theater was really big and was centered around humans and their problems.
-The Romans preserved the Greeks knowledge so we could use it during the renaissance 

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