History in the Fleet

Throughout the officer application process, the US Navy emphasizes the importance of being a well-rounded individual. One key to becoming a well-rounded individual is a vast knowledge about the past. Understanding different past societies and customs can help an officer to better prepare for their own fights. One of the most influential past societies imperative for officers to understand is ancient Greece. Although little physically remains of the ancient society, many thoughts and ideas are still carried on. Greek society that has been a continued source of inspiration and admiration for many countries to date. It seems that everywhere one looks, the legacy and impact of the ancient Greeks are embedded in society. Sports, architecture, philosophy, government, and science are only a few examples of how ancient Greek culture is still reflected in the modern world. Through studying the ancient Greek civilization, officers can understand the beginnings of many different aspects of today’s society.

The military prowess of the ancient Greek society, from the Spartan warrior culture to the Athenian navy, is continuously embedded into officer curriculum. Though military technologies changed throughout time, the nature of warfare withstood the time’s test. Today’s warfare still reflects the Greek city-states center on ethos and honor in battle. Here at the USNA, Midshipmen are prescribed by the Commandant to read “The Warrior Ethos,” by Steven Pressfield. In his book, Pressfield examines the warrior codes of many different past civilizations, dating to the Spartans and Athenians. In it he states, “The warrior culture…values cohesion and obedience. The soldier or sailor is not free to do whatever he wants. He serves; he is bound to perform his duty.” (Pressfield Ch. 22). One day, when Midshipmen get placed into the Fleet, their duty will be to protect the USA. As practiced by civilizations like the ancient Greeks, the concept of a soldiers duty to his country/state is so important that it has withstood the test of time. It is important for us to ensure that it will still be present for generations to come.

As officers, knowing how to fight is only one part of the battle. Understanding what is being fought for is equally as important. US naval officers’ job is to protect American democracy all around the world. The ancient Greeks established the very beginnings of democratic thought. Through understanding the Greek’s point of view of democracy, officers can better understand the ideals our country was founded upon. As Pericles once stated of the Athenian constitution in his Funeral Oration, “We have a form of government that does not try to imitate the laws of our neighboring states. We are more an example to others, than they to us.” (Thucydides’ History of the Peloponnesian War, Book I, Chapter 3, Line 37-39). The US military is sanctioned to fight for democratic ideals established many years ago by the ancient Greeks. It is our duty to be the example not only for the soldiers and sailors underneath us, but for the rest of the world.

As an officer, understanding the past will lead to the best success on and off the battlefield. Through examing past civilizations like the ancient Greeks, one can become well-rounded in different areas of thought. The more well-rounded an individual is, the better leader they will become.

By: Melissa Cortese

Word Count: 551

Pressfield, Steven. “Chapter 22: The Civilian World.” The Warrior Ethos. Black Irish Entertainment, 2011. Print.

Islam and Christianity

Christianity and Islam serve at the two largest universalizing religions in the world. Upon initially examining these religions and the historic feuds (The Crusades) between them, it can appear that they do not have anything in common. However, once one begins to understand the origins and beliefs of the religions, they will begin to notice many similar tenants. Although some of their ideological and theological beliefs significantly differ, these two religions share many connections. Both of these religions trace their origins to the prophet Abraham, believe in a centralized holy text, and profess to one true God. Oftentimes referenced as religions of the book, the Bible and the Qur’an serve as the baseline of these two religious cultures. After closer examination of the two holy texts, I was shocked to notice a surprising amount of similarities between the two. The central texts of Christianity and Islam both mirror similar stories and characters which are sometimes unrecognized by many.

One of these stories is the dispute between Cain and Abel, sons of Adam and Eve. As the story goes, the brothers made sacrifices to God. God accepted Abel’s sacrifice due to his righteousness. Cain, out of jealousy for his brother, then killed Abel and was exiled by God. In the Bible says, “And Cain talked with Abel his brother: and it came to pass, when they were in the field, that Cain rose up against Abel his brother, and slew him.” (Genesis 4:8). Although not mentioned explicitly by name, the Qur’an shares a virtually identical narrative of two brothers by saying, “Then his mind facilitated to him the slaying of his brother so he slew him; then he became one of the losers” (Sura 5:30). Although the stories were annotated differently, they remarkably describe the same story. Growing up Catholic, I did not realize that Muslims believed in many of the same parables that I did.

Another surprising fact to me is that the Qur’an and the Bible have over fifty characters in common. One of the most important of these to appear in both texts is the Angel Gabriel. In Bible states, “In the sixth month, the angel Gabriel was sent from God…And he came to her and said, “Greetings, O favored one, the Lord is with you!” (Luke 1:26-29). The Qur’an narrates a similar story by stating, “…Then We sent to her Our Angel, and he represented himself to her as a well-proportioned man….He said, “I am only the messenger of your Lord to give you [news of] a pure boy.” (Surah Maryam, 17-19). Among other similar characters are Abraham, Noah, Joseph, John the Baptist. However, one character upon which both religions differ in the belief of is Jesus. While Jesus is mentioned in both of the books, the two religions believe in his divinity differently. In the Bible, Jesus is the son of God, but in the Qur’an, he was just a prophet sent by Allah. Having no previous knowledge of the Qur’an, I thought the two religions shared more differences like with Jesus than similarities like Gabriel.

After examining the holy texts of Islam and Christianity more closely, I was generally surprised to find how many similarities that they share. It also got me thinking that Islam and Christianity might not be distinctly different religious traditions that many people think they are. They are merely varying understandings of a coinciding religious culture, deeply rooted within the centralized holy texts.

Melissa Cortese (Word Count: 572)

Sun Tzu vs. USNA

Sun Tzu’s The Art of War is one of the most influential books on war ever written. As a Chinese military commander, strategist, and philosopher, Sun Tzu wrote 13 chapters on every aspect of warfare. This has defined the way humans fought conflicts for hundreds of years. The overarching philosophy of The Art of War is understanding the different aspects of war. However, the teachings of Sun Tzu are not intended for the average soldier to understand.

They are intended for the general or the leader to employ. As military leaders, an officer’s job is to understand their troops and the enemy, a major concept of Sun Tzu’s teachings. Although the tactical aspects of war may seem outdated, the strategic teachings of Sun Tzu are still implemented today by militaries all over the world. At the United States Naval Academy, Midshipmen are molded to become future officers using many of Sun Tzu’s warfare concepts. In order to become more effective military leaders, Midshipmen should continue to apply and understand Sun Tzu’s strategic teachings.

At the United States Naval Academy, Sun Tzu’s holistic philosophy of understanding war becomes ingrained into Midshipmen’s brains starting on day one. As reflected within USNA’s mission statement, Sun Tzu’s teachings provide helpful meaning to Mids in all areas of their performance. At the core of his teachings, Sun Tzu argues that leaders must know when to fight and when not to fight. Since war is inherently costly, it is important for great officers to understand when fighting has a justifiable outcome and when it does not. This takes years of developing personal discipline. At the USNA, the honor concept helps Midshipmen understand the difference between ethical and unethical decisions. It teaches Midshipmen that lying, cheating, or stealing to gain an advantage over another is not the correct way to win. If an officer ever compromises his own integrity or the integrity of his troops to win a battle, it should be considered just as grave as a loss. The honor concept helps Midshipmen to gain the self-discipline and develop good habits that will one day help them to decide whether to fight or not.

Another crucial aspect of war that Sun Tzu argues is for leaders to know the enemy and their own troops. As a leader, understanding your troops’ capabilities and caring for what is best for them is important. Within the Brigade, many Midshipmen leadership positions involve leading peers. This teaches Midshipmen that sometimes, as a leader, the right decision is not always the most favorable one. Sun Tzu states that the most effective leaders understand the importance of leading by example. To gain respect from peers and comrades, it is necessary to lead by example, and not by force. If an officer lives by his word, even if unfavorable by many, his comrades will better follow and respect what he has to say. As a Midshipman, it is necessary to lead by example so that your peers will better respect you when a though decision comes up.

Although written nearly 2500 years ago, Sun Tzu’s The Art of War is still implemented in many different aspects of the world. As a Midshipmen, understanding and implementing the teachings of Sun Tzu in the leadership development process will help us to become more effective and useful leaders.

By: Melissa Cortese

Word Count: 555

Roman Expose and Christianity Woes

Christianity’s rise and spread throughout the Western world is an interesting story still studied by scholars around the world. Growing from a small, persecuted religion to a widespread, established religion around the West was one of the most significant transformations in history. This shift in the dominance of the monotheistic Judaeo-Christan belief spread all across the West, most notably throughout the Ancient Roman Empire. When Christianity first spread throughout the Roman Empire, many Romans feared that its spread would cause a massive threat to the stability of the empire. Specifically, many Romans believed that the acceptance of Christianity would damage the polytheistic religious system already established. Since religion is a central part of the Roman Empire, this viewpoint was valid because many of the Roman people believed that the spread of Christianity would endanger a long-established Roman religious tradition and cause massive political and social unrest if accepted.

The long-established religious tradition was very crucial to the social and political hierarchy of the Roman Empire. The Roman people believed that the Empire was protected by an agreement with the gods, called pax deorum. Across the Empire, Romans worshiped and sacrificed to the gods in return for the gods’ protection of their cities (Grant 2016). This view was completely antithetical to the Christan viewpoint. Christians refused to worship and sacrifice to the Roman gods because they believed that there was only one true God to worship. Furthermore, Christians did not believe in the divinity of the Roman emperor and the sacrifices the Romans made to him. They believed that the only beings that deserved divine worship were God and Christ. Prior to its spread to the Empire, the Romans had a complex religious system established with protective gods and worshiping traditions. One day, the Christians came into the Empire and began to spread their aileen religious beliefs and turn-down the Roman religious beliefs. The Romans had every right to feel suspicious and threatened of Christianity because it possessed the potential to completely redefine the Roman way of life. For many Romans, that was scary enough to begin shunning and persecuting Christians to protect their tradition.

Ultimately, the Romans feared the Christians because they possessed different views about how mankind should view the world. Although today Christianity’s monotheistic belief is the most common faith viewpoint of mankind, the pagan ancient peoples of the 3rd century CE saw it as a barbaric concept. The Ancient Romans were so close-minded to the spread of Christianity because they believed that it would wreak havoc on an already peaceful empire. While Christianity slowly started to trickle into the Roman society eventually, the Romans had every right to combat its initial spread.

Word Count: 445

Works Cited:

Grant, Michael. “Roman Religion.” Encyclopædia Britannica, Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc., 2 May 2016, http://www.britannica.com/topic/Roman-religion.

American vs Athenian Democracy

Imagine if 300-million Americans gathered on the floor of Congress to cast a vote on whether the next tax bill should be passed or not. Chaos would quickly ensue, and it would be very hard to pass any laws because people would constantly fight opposing opinions. Most Americans would not be able to imagine this scenario. However, this was a reality to the citizens of Ancient Athens. The Athenians established a direct form of democracy upon which every citizen had the right to vote in every political matter in the Assembly. Currently, the United States practices a form of representative democracy upon which citizens directly appoint representatives to create laws in Congress. As one examines the structures of these two empires, they will begin to realize a fundamental difference between the two. One difference in the success of Athenian direct democracy and US representative democracy is the size of the electorate.

In a democracy, the people (aka the electorate) have the right to vote for what they believe in. However, the size of the electorate can determine which form of democracy is more successful.

Direct democracy is most effective in a nation with a smaller electorate, as in Ancient Athens. To make a major decision, the Athenian Assembly needed about 6,000 people to cast a vote. One drawback to direct democracy is it requires a large amount of voters to ensure fairness and, as one could imagine, it was not always easy to gather that many people in one place. During the late 5th century B.C., according to playwright Aristophanes, the Athenian Assembly filled vacancies by employing slaves to go into downtown Athens, wearing a rope dipped in red paint, and search for non-participating citizens (“Ancient Greece, Part 4 – Athenian Democracy” 2017). If an Athenian citizen tried to resist being sent to the Assembly, their clothes would be stained with red paint and they would get fined if they did not go to the Assembly (“Ancient Greece, Part 4 – Athenian Democracy” 2017). This extreme method of ensuring voter turnout worked for the Athenians direct democracy because it only required a small electorate for a relatively small population.

Direct democracy may have success among a small population, but the larger the population becomes the more difficult it is to control. A representative democracy reduces this difficulty because it operates at a much smaller scale. Simply put, the US electorate is too large for direct democracy to work. In order to ensure that their voices are heard, American people directly appoint officials to represent them at a smaller scale in Congress. In the 2016 election, 58% of eligible voters cast a vote (Regan 2016). Since the larger US public electorate only votes for representatives and not on crucial political issues, the consequences of low voter turnout are less severe than in a direct democracy. The larger the electorate, the more people can vote. Even though low voter turnout is still occurring in the US, the electorate is still big enough to require a representative democracy to ensure that every citizen has a voice.

Although American and Athenian democracy succeed under different size electorates, their mission is still the same. Both of the governments aimed to provide the people with a voice.

Works Cited:

“Ancient Greece, Part 4 – Athenian Democracy.” World History, 21 May 2017, worldhistory.us/ancient-history/ancient-greece-part-4-athenian-democracy.php.

Regan, Michael D. “What Does Voter Turnout Tell Us About the 2016 Election?” PBS, Public Broadcasting Service, 20 Nov. 2016, http://www.pbs.org/newshour/politics/voter-turnout-2016-elections.

300: A Fabricated Blast of the Past

If one examines the world of cinematography, he or she will notice that the themes of many movies are adoptions of historical events or literary works. An epic battle between two rivals or an endless saga between two lovers make great stories for an audience to feel an emotional connection to. However, oftentimes filmmakers will try to manipulate the historical accuracy of events to make a movie more entertaining. This causes dispute amongst historians because it can distort the true events of the historical record. One of these events is the Battle of Thermopylae. In the movie 300, film writers intentionally manipulate the historical accuracy of the Battle of Thermopylae to evoke emotion and draw interest out of viewers.

As a story passed through oral tradition, the Battle of Thermopylae has a limited amount of primary sources covering it, making it hard to uncover the true facts. One well-known thing is that the battle was fought between the massive Persian Empire and the Greeks. 300 filmmakers did an accurate job depicting the massive disparity between the Greek city-state Sparta, led by King Leonidas, and the massive Persian empire, led by King Xerxes. However, since the movie 300 is a fictional recount of an inspirational battle, told from a mainly Greek point of view, some questionable inaccuracies present themselves. The film portrays Xerxes as a barbaric ruler in comparison to Leonidas. This is not accurate because Xerxes is a dignified king of an empire twice the size of Greece. Similarly, filmmakers overestimate the Spartan’s abilities in battle. While it is true that Spartan soldiers were well trained and strong, they did not fight battles without proper armor. The portrayal of the Spartans fighting almost naked is highly unrealistic. These inaccuracies attempt to portray Spartans as superior fighters as a way to help viewers support their cause.

Ultimately, the sole purpose of making a movie is to make a profit. What drives profit in the film industry is viewers emotions. While the movie 300 recounts the story behind the Battle of Thermopylae, it is clear that the filmmakers wanted to apotheosize Spartan culture to make the audience feel more connected to the movie. Of course, every person’s understanding of history is different. Some choose to only remember the glam and others choose to accept the reality. When filmmakers purposefully make movies historically inaccurate, they make it hard for viewers to see history in its true reality. This purposeful manipulation of the historical record is dangerous because it has the potential to distort future understandings of history.

Words: 424