86 i PERIOD 2 Organization and Reorganization of Human Societies
Slavery was commonplace in both Greece and Rome. Aristotle attempted to justify
slavery, believing that it was necessary to a thriving society. In some Greek poleis, such as
Sparta, slaves performed agricultural tasks. In Athens, slaves labored in the silver mines
and as household servants. Roman slaves made up as much as one-third of the population.
In fact, among the reasons for Roman expansion was the acquisition of slaves from among
conquered peoples. Some Roman slaves were used to mine iron and precious metals. Other
slaves carried out household duties. Especially prized were educated Greek slaves, who
became tutors for the children of Rome’s elite class. Slave labor was so widely used by both
Greeks and Romans that neither culture found much need for technological advances as
labor-saving devices. As a result, the Mediterranean world fell behind the technological
level of China and India in the areas of agriculture and manufacturing.American Civilization
The Maya civilization of the Yucatán Peninsula and present-day Guatemala and Belize
reached its height about 300 c.e., building on the cultural traditions of the societies of
Mesoamerica. Termed the “Greeks of the Americas” because of their exploration of numer-
ous branches of learning, the Maya:- Developed a system of writing based on pictographs, or glyphs
- Understood the value of zero as a placeholder
- Studied astronomy and predicted eclipses
- Calculated the length of the year within a few seconds of its actual length
The Maya political organization consisted of small city-states ruled by kings who often
fought against one another. Prisoners of war usually ended up as slaves or as sacrifi ces to
the Maya gods.
To the north of the Maya homeland, in the Valley of Mexico, the grand and heavily
populated city of Teotihuacán featured pyramids, public buildings decorated with murals,
and active marketplaces. The city also served as a center of long-distance trade with coastal
peoples and Mayas. To the south of Maya lands, the Mochica people established cities in
the central Andes during the fi rst millennium c.e. Inhabitants of these cities cooperated to
construct irrigation systems.❯ Rapid Review
Classical civilizations in China, India, and the Mediterranean forged lasting institutions
in their respective regions. China created a complex bureau cracy based on the traditions of
family and education. In India, cultural diversity prevailed while a caste system gradually
evolved to rigidly organize this diversity. In the Mediterranean, rational thought and the
rule of law prevailed during the dominance of the Greeks followed by the Romans.