{"id":9493,"date":"2016-10-06T07:24:16","date_gmt":"2016-10-06T14:24:16","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/dminlgp.com\/?p=9493"},"modified":"2016-10-06T07:24:16","modified_gmt":"2016-10-06T14:24:16","slug":"fairy-tale-history","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/fairy-tale-history\/","title":{"rendered":"Fairy Tale History"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"zeus_by_genzoman-d1qn6k2\"<\/a>Long ago, there was a boy by the name of Zeus, son of Cronus and Rhea. He later became the god of sky and thunder in ancient Greek religion and also ruled over the gods of Mount Olympus. He would overthrow his father and drew lots with his brother Poseidon and Hades to decide who would rule as supreme ruler of the gods. Zeus was known for hurling thunderbolts at those who defied him, but we could also say he was a Casanova\u2026what a man, what a man, what a man!!! Frankopan must have realized that people like myself needed a story to connect us with the facts because The Silk Road<\/em> begins with the story of a boy and a map who was electrified with adventurous danger. This boy would eventually learn about the myth of Zeus releasing an eagle at both ends of the earth at the sacred points between the Black Sea and the Himalayas: the heart of the world. The Silk Road<\/em> gives us a historical look at early civilization in Central Asia to the Second Gulf War and continues to highlight some of the challenges affecting the \u2018Middle East.’<\/p>\n

\"maxresdefault\"<\/a>There are those who are thrilled with hearing about the battles between kings riding on chariots. However, if you\u2019re like me, history is not always exciting unless something intriguing draws us in. Living in America, you don\u2019t always get a chance to appreciate the history of other countries because you rarely hear about it. However, as a Jamaican native, global history was the norm in most schools. While visiting Oxford, every aspect of the country\u2019s history was inviting because I met Martyn Percy personally. Every aspect of this history was engaging and personal because of my acquaintance with Dr. Percy. When we heard that \u201cAlice in Wonderland\u201d was inspired by real events or that the Harry Potter series found inspiration in our dining hall, suddenly Oxford\u2019s history was even more intriguing.<\/p>\n

\"Silk-Road\"<\/a><\/p>\n

More than a book, the Prussian geographer, Ferdinand von Richthofen developed the term \u201cSilk Road\u201d in 1877 to highlight the network of roads and routes. This is cultural interaction at work as it connected the East and West from China to the Mediterranean Sea. \u201cTrade on the Silk Road played a significant role in the development of the civilizations of China, the Indian subcontinent, Persia, Europe, the Horn of Africa and Arabia, opening long-distance political and economic relations between the civilizations.\u201d[1]<\/a> Frankopan wanted to trace this network and role throughout history. There is uniqueness that remained throughout history until now. In our present culture, we associate a country\u2019s power based on its wealth and resources. \u201cWhat made empires great were large numbers of cities, producing taxable revenues; what made them culturally spectacular were artisans and craftsmen who developed new ideas when wealthy patrons competed with each other for their services and rewarded them for their skills\u201d (p. 13).<\/p>\n

\"Silk_road_payment\"The author provides the backstory between modern Iran and the US, Israel and Palestine, and the Gulf conflicts. By reading this book, you\u2019ll find that the author uses stories to connect with some of the key moments in history, rather than throwing a bunch of dates to the readers. Here\u2019s some of what you learn in this book:<\/p>\n