John Carroll Blogs

Today in Western Civ we took a test on Christianity in Rome and honestly it didnt go too well. I got about 3 out of 16 wrong and I dont know what grade that will give me. At least in the end its the last test till finals.

Basically Rome ended on a terrible streak. They were declining in population, they had nobody joining the army, and they were running out of food. In the end they had a 14 year old emperor who was overthrown because he was so young and was placed in charge of running an already sinking ship.

In Western Civ. we have been learning about Christianity and how they were insanely persecuted for their beliefs. We also learned about how Jesus most likely didn't look like most pictures of him. He was probably darker skinned and scruffy haired instead of the light skinned with long flowing locks that we portray him as. Finally we learned about the punishments that Rome inflicted on people and most of the time it was for very unimportant crimes. They burned, crucified, fed to beasts, and executed people.

Literally at this moment in time I couldn't hate people more. They never do their work and they just mooch off of who they know will do the work. This is also why group projects are the worst thing to ever exist. Right now I have multiple group projects that I need to get done. Not the group just me, because God knows that they aren't going to do any work. Currently in my group project I have 1 person who is helping me and that is it. WE HAVE 4 PEOPLE! Nobody wants to do anything and they expect other people to do the work for them. The project is 400 points for crying out loud. Just do your part. Ok, my rant is over.

I'm so happy! I got an 80 which truthfully isn't that good. But it somehow only lowered my grade to an 89 and if I do all my blogs which I do I should get a 90 so I'm not distressed about the grade. Luckily all I have to do now is do well on the end of Rome test and I should get an A in the class. Shooting for that 4.0 :)

God that test wasn't that easy. I honestly thought it was pretty difficult even after I studied. In the end though all I can say was that I tried my best even though I feel like it didn't go as well as I hoped.

Honestly I really like the BBC shows we are watching because they provide us with a good visual source of history. Despite all that I think it was pretty lucky how Caesar won because Pompey definitely had him if the rich guys didn't pressure him into attacking. Caesar should have suffered greatly for his first loss but instead won because of it and even though I find it a great story I think it was pretty lucky for him to win.

The same actor in Gotham which I am watching tonight is also in the Rise and Fall of Rome show we were watching in class today. In Gotham he plays Alfred Pennyworth and in the BBC episode he plays Julius Caesar. I knew after seeing his facial expressions on the BBC and after watching him for so many weeks on Gotham that it was the same guy. The proof for this is right here   http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0675730/ .

I really enjoy the movie we are currently watching in Western Civ. because it shows how Rome was a struggle for power and a fight for the upper hand. It also shows how politics work (and also how stupid they are) by having each person manipulate the other into doing what they want. Finally my favorite part of the movie has to be the battles they are recreating

Today in Western Civ. we learned about Rome's long line of terrible emperors and how they seized power by killing, betraying, and backstabbing others. We also learned about Nero and how he gained power by having his mother poison his father giving him the next seat on the throne. The worst part is that his father was actually a good emperor who made good changes to Rome but he died just so Nero could become king and screw up everything.

Honestly I love the family of Julius Caesar because they are brilliant people who new how to appeal to the people and do good things for them. I loved Julius and it seems that Octavius is following in his footsteps and doing a fantastic job leading Rome.