What is Civilization?
I am going to tell you something about the early civilizations. But before I do so, we must try to form some idea of what civilization means. The dictionary will tell you that to civilize means to better, to refine, to replace savage habits by good ones. And it especially refers to society or a group of people. The savage condition of people when men are little better than beasts is called barbarism. Civilization is the reverse of that. The further away we get from barbarism, the more civilized we are.
But how can we find out if a person or a society is barbarous or civilized? Many people in Europe think that they are very civilized and the people of Asia are quite barbarous. Is this because the people of Europe put on more clothes than the peoples of Asia and Africa? But clothes depend on the climate. In a cold climate men put on more clothes than in a hot climate. Or is it because a man with a gun is stronger than the man without a weapon and is therefore more civilized than him? Whether he is more civilized or not, the man who is weak dare not tell him that he is not or else he might get shot!
You know that only a few years ago there was a great war. Most of the countries of the world were in it, and everyone of them was trying to kill as many people on the other side as possible. The Englishman was trying his best to kill Germans. And the Germans were killing Englishmen. Millions of people were killed in this war and many thousands were maimed for life-vsome have no eyes left and are blind, others have no arms or legs. You must have seen many of these 'mutil'es de La guerre', war-wounded people, in France and elsewhere. In the Paris underground railway, the Metro, there are special seats for them.
Do you think it was a very civilized or sensible thing for people to kill each other like this? If two men fight in the streets the policeman separates them and everybody thinks how silly they are. But how much sillier and more foolish it is for great countries to fight each other and kill thousands and millions. It is just like two savages fighting in the jungles. And if the savages are called barbarous, how much more barbarous are the countries that behave in that way?
So if you look at this question in this way you will say that the countries that fought and killed in the Great War-England, Germany, France, Italy and many others-are not at all civilized. And yet you know that there aremany fine things and many fine people in these countries.
You will say that it is not easy to understand what civilization means, and you will be right. It is a very difficult question. Fine buildings, fine pictures and books and everything that is beautiful are certainly signs of civilization. But an even better sign is a fine man who is unselfish and works with others for the good of all. To work together is better than to work singly, and to work together for the common good is the best of all.
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