Social 8 Final Exam Study Guide
Chapters 1 - 3
World View is:
Not obvious, a collection of values and beliefs that are common amongst a group of people. It is also the basis for the way you act, react and feel about the world

These are the factors that shape World View: Social Systems, Culture, Political and Economic Systems = these are the factors that influence how a society works (Page 9)

There are three factors that affect World View: Geography, Ideas and Knowledge, and Contact with other groups. (Page 10)

Middle Ages:
During the Middle Ages crusades were organized to take control of the Holy Land. Christians and Muslims developed in various ways during this time.

The people of this time believed life on earth was short and they would be rewarded after death by going to heaven. The wealthy gave money to help secure their place in heaven. People did not disagree with the church and their art and architecture was influenced mostly by religion.

The feudal system was developed in this time period. Near the late Middle Ages there grew a need for discovery and new trade routes for spices, food, fabrics and other products.

Merchants grew in wealth because of the trading which in turn created growth within the cities.

Renaissance:
The renaissance is another name for rebirth which is a period of innovation and change from the many discoveries of other cultures.

Silk Road:
This is where rare items, inventions and knowledge traveled back and forth through out Europe from China and Japan. It was linked societies and changed world views.

City-States such as Florence, Venice and Genoa influenced the Renaissance world view through politics, social systems and culture. Because of their location they became very wealthy and powerful. Florence was highly influenced by the Medici Family, Genoa had a strong location between land and sea that influenced their views and cultural interactions. Venice became the centre of the European book trade.

Urbanization (movement to the cities) greatly affected the bubonic plague (Black Death). Many people died both rich and poor. With fewer workers in the farming communities, the nobles moved to the cities as well and lost their land as a result.

Humanism:
A system of thought that focuses on human values, potential and worth; having a concern with the welfare of humans. During the Renaissance, people began to believe that they needed to live a good life while on earth and not to spend time only in preparation for the afterlife. Humanism is looking at ways to change and improve one’s life and society as a whole. People began to question old beliefs.
Education systems changed, people travelled to learn from other cultures and societies. Learning more was believed to create better Christians and better citizens.
As a result of humanism the printing press became one of the most important inventions by spreading this need for knowledge. Books were being printed in the vernacular of the areas so that more people would learn to read and obtain this information.

Geography hindered travel because of the many mountains and rivers. This, coupled with the feudal system of society, the Renaissance spread slowly until the feudal system began to collapse. The war ended and travel was safer and the need for knowledge and change began to emerge. Trade increased as well as wealth, business and banking.

Many artists began to spread the ideas of the Renaissance through their work. These artists included; Donatello, Masaccio,
Michelangelo, and Leonardo da Vinci (the Renaissance Man). Paintings became more realistic, and focused less on religious themes. The wealthy began to sponsor the artists as well and they became well paid for their works. They travelled to learn from others in how and what techniques and materials they could use. They became very highly educated because of these changes.

Science was slow to progress during the Middle Ages and it took them much longer than most areas to develop their skills and advancements.

Social and Economic Systems changed because of the breakdown of the feudal system. Merchant classes became more wealthy with trade and more people began to learn how to read and write. Quality of life for the poor increased as well with more opportunity for growth as an individual and not a “class”.

Martin Luther was was an important reformer because he wanted people to see themselves as individuals. The church was no longer the main focus.

Writers changed World Views because of their writings in the vernacular of the people. They standardized words and language to create a sense of identity among society. The writers wrote about what was going on and opened the eyes of the readers. Humanist ideas were widely spread through the many writers of this time.

As history was being written and recorded it is important to know that it was mainly from the perspective of the wealthy and important, not from the lower class society.

Exploration changed as the need for more variety, knowledge and change grew. Once the realization that the world was not flat explorers went farther and feared less about their fate of reaching an end point. They challenged old geographical beliefs. Cartography opened up new passages and ship building techniques created more sea worthy ships for longer voyages.

Henry the Navigator set up a school for navigation changing the ways and practices of sailors and explorers. Many famous explorers paved the way for others: Columbus, Magellan and Caboto to name a few opened new passages and established more trading routes.

Imperialism increased with these new discoveries and claims were  made to these new lands. Imperialism was built on the need for more wealth and power. However, with the good came the bad and exploration not only found riches but also diseases and death. Sadly those that were most effected by the negative aspects of exploration were the Natives of the lands that were “discovered”.
The ethnocentricity of the Europeans became the detriment to the Native peoples. The only things they found impressive about these indigenous people were their lack of need for property and ownership, their sense of personal liberty and their inequality in government.


Many world views of today have been influenced by the end of the Renaissance including:
- importance of the individual
- materialism
-	importance of education
-	democratic governments
-	rights and freedoms for citizens.


Japan: Chapters 4 - 6
Edo period: Isolation

Mountainous area with very little space for farm land. Very isolated from other cultures and countries because it is an island.

Tokugawa Ieyasu did not want Japan to be influenced by outside sources, most especially Western ideas. He wanted Japan’s sovereignty to remain stable and intact. Foreign ships could only port a Deshima, a small island built in the Nagasaki Bay.

Christianity was starting to influence the Japanese people from the European missionaries. The Bakufu did not want this  to spread so they established edicts to ban the influence of these foreigners. They needed to maintain the control of centralized government. This established the Closed Country Edict.



The Bakufu also created an edict ni-nen naku which meant “without thinking twice” and it referred to these foreigners and that were shipwrecked on the Japanese shores. They were not welcome and would not be helped.

Rigid feudal system:
Shogun: The man in charge of the government (Bakufu)
Daimyo: Rulers of the domains
Samurai: Hereditary Warriors; living to a strict code of honour and serving one master.
Farmers: People that farmed the land. highly respected because they produced rice/food for the country
Artisans: People making useful objects and goods for trade
Merchants:Distributors of goods
Outcasts (Eta): in charge of tanning hides and removing corpses and lived outside the city walls. They position was inherited.
Non Human (hinin): Entertainers and/or prostitutes by choice and not by heredity. Geisha were considered Non Human even though they were highly respected for their singing and dancing.

Three Metropolises of Japan:
Edo: Became the new capital and was centre of the shogun’s military government
Kyoto: The centre of publishing and woodblock printing
Osaka: Centre of the rice market; famous for its castle and many bridges


Popular Culture:
This began to change with the growth of the cities and as the merchant class became wealthier. The Samurai turned their creative energies to more of the arts and the Samurai had less to do with war, their roles took on that of civil administrators.

As Japan was becoming more influenced by the outside, they were conflicted with the need for change and how to keep their sovereignty intact. During this time the Ainu were trading with the Russian-American Company. Once the Bakufu learned of this the Shogun forced the Ainu to sign a treaty giving up their land. They were later forced to assimilate and give up their culture and customs.

As Japan was being inundated with outside traders the Dutch East Indian Company was the only one they would trade with. They were allowed access only through Deshima.

The United States wanted to open up trade with Japan. They wanted to set up a refueling station at one of the ports in Japan. Commodore Matthew Perry went to Japan and wanted three things:
1.	to get supplies and coal from Japan
2.	To protect their sailors that were shipwrecked or might need help
3.	 To create an official trade agreement with Japan

To eliminate a possible war, Japan signed the treaty which left them with the power and authority over their own country. This caused many heated debates between the Bakufu and the Samurai.

Soon isolation was no longer possible and treaties with other countries were eventually signed as well. The Charter Oath was built to regain confidence of the domains and solidify loyalty to the emperor under the new Meiji reign.



The Meiji period created changes to promote economic growth and. Japan could no longer stay isolated if it was growth in power and wealth. Their world view changed within this process to rebuild Japan and it soon moved into the Modernization era. They wanted to become a strong and capable nation, a world leader and leading exporter.

A new system of education was needed for the Japanese people to accept the new rules and reforms that were necessary. The army adopted the bushido moral code (Rescript to Soldiers) which stressed loyalty to the emperor. This was the same code that the samurai lived by before they were abolished.
From the Edo period to the Meiji period there were many changes including: the governmental structure, the educational system the social system of hierarchy and power. The only thing that changed very little because they wanted to stay true to the emperor and their traditional customs was their culture.

Japan needed to become a stronger player in industry; they needed to become more industrialized in order to compete on a global level. The amazing difference between Japan and other countries was the fact they changed so much over a short period of time with very little conflict or force upon the commoners to do so.

At the end of the Meiji era ended with the death of the emperor his key advisors committed seppuku just as the samurai had done for centuries. Life had changed drastically but the old traditions remained as intact as possible.




Aztecs and Spanish
Chapters 7 - 9

The Aztecs and the Spanish had very different worldviews but they were both very strong empires.

Aztecs:
The worldview of the Aztecs was very limited because they lived a fairly isolated life based solely on their religious beliefs. But they did believe that conquering others was a way to wealth and power making them a stronger nation. They lived a semi nomadic life style until they were given a sign to settle down in the middle of Lake Texcoco. Huitzilopochtli was their Patron god, and was believed to be the incarnation of the sun. They moved when ever they were given a sign by him even if they gave up their crops in the process.

Because they built their city in the middle of this lake they had to build causeways to the main land, traveling mostly by water.
They fought with many of their neighbor’s but eventually they became the most prosperous community in the valley and created alliances with the stronger city-states in the area.

The Aztecs developed their culture around war. This gave them opportunity to have sacrifices for their gods and to obtain tributes and labour for their empire. (This ended up causing a disloyalty to the Aztecs and an alliance with Spain when the time came). The Aztecs did not reorganize the new society they took over, instead the captured society was made to pay tributes, promise allegiance to the emperor and to worship their god Huitzilopochtli.

The main goal of the Aztec society was to create loyal citizens. Their education system was established to teach the children about traditions including songs, poems and dances. This was how they passed on the traditions and values of their culture.

The Aztecs had a hierarchical system, like most societies of that time. Individuals were born into a particular social class.

Nobility: pipiltin were the upper class and were the ones that ruled. Top ranking positions in the priesthood were pipiltin.
Warriors: make decisions about petty crimes
Commoner: these were the middle class and could improve their status by becoming members of the military, priests, merchants, artisans or long distance traders
Peasants: worked the land for the nobles. They were given some land they could work for produce and hand down to their children.
Slaves: no one was born into this. A person that could not pay a debt could become a slave until their debt was paid. A slave could buy back their freedom.

The Aztecs rose to power through arranged marriages forming common alliances. They wanted other Meso-Americans to believe they were the descendants of Toltec.

Moctezuma allowed Cortes into the city because he believed he was the god Quetzalcoatl and was afraid to offend him. It was frustrating to the Aztec people because they did not want this to happen. They feared for their land and city.





Spanish:
The worldview of the Spanish was similar to the Aztecs in that conquering others resulted in a stronger nation.

Muslim rule in Spain lasted over 700 years, however in Europe the Muslims, Jews and Christians were allowed to practice their own beliefs. Spanish conquistadors helped to carry on the fight for Christianity and spreading the word of God.

Isabella and Ferdinand tried to unite the country by following one religion; Christianity.

Age of Exploration: Spain was branching out in their explorations. Christopher Columbus went west to claim land for Spain. Once new lands were claimed, the riches of that land became the property of Spain, and missionaries were sent to teach Christianity to the people of the new lands.

Because of their ethnocentrism, the Spanish had no hesitation to impose their worldviews onto the people they encountered and overtook.

When Cortes came to Mexico he was searching for gold and riches. He did not want to necessarily wage war, but he did not want to take over the land, just the gold. The aim of the Conquistadors was to make the take over as peaceful as possible.

When the Spanish through Moctezuma in to the crowd they were pushed back into the temple. In anticipation of a quick escape they built a bridge that would get them out of the city since the Aztecs had destroyed the causeways to the mainland. Since the Spanish were so heavily laden with gold many of them drown or were killed because they could not move fast. This night was called Noche Triste (sorrowful night).

After recovery and forming alliances with other Meso- Americans, the Spanish overtook the Aztecs and began to destroy all of the temples and religious symbols.

The Spanish saw the Aztecs to be heathens while the Aztecs knew so little of any outside civilizations they did not know what to believe and had no idea of the motives of the Spanish. Disease killed most of the Aztecs and the remaining ones were converted to Catholicism by the priests.