Warning

When Philip of Macedonia threatened to send his forces to crush the Greek city-states, the Greeks failed to organize a united defense. Demosthenes, an Athenian statesman, however, warned of the danger in Philippies, a series of speeches he made to the Assembly in Athens in 341 BC. He told them of their indifferences and self-centeredness and challenged them to unify and fight for freedom as their ancestors had done.

Demosthenes placed the blame of Philip's successes in conquering Greece on the competitiveness the city-states have with one another. Demonsthenes also explained that Greece, as a whole, is too big for Philip to conquer, but the small city-states that the Greeks created for themselves and their unwillingness to help their neighbor was the secret of Philip ad the success he often met.

By referring the ancient Greeks, who fought together for a common cause, Demosthenes helped the Athenians visualize the wonders and benefits bonding together for a greater good would bring. He metophorically compared the nation to a vessal. Demosthenes tried to warn the Greeks that if they did not prepare for Philip as sailors prepare a ship for a journey, when the storm that was Philip hit, it would be too late to act. He wanted the Athenians to prepare for Philip while they "are safe, blessed with a very great city, ample advantages, and the fairest reputation" instead of struggling to keep afloat when the bulk of the storm hit. Evidently the Athenians paid little heed to his prophetic words because Philip eventually conquered Athens and many of the other city-states.

If Demosthenes were to address the United Nations today, his words remain applicable. People need to ban together because there is strength in numbers. The way to win a war is through planning, communication, and organization, not by looking out for one person or small group of people. Demosthenes could be addressing the United Nations about the modern topic of terrorism and he would be correct in explaining the way to beat terrorists is to join together for the cause instead of acting alone when one's own nation was attacked.

Demosthenes warned of the danger the competiveness of the Athenians wil bring them as an attempt to warn and save the city-state of Athens and also to keep Greece ruled by the Greeks. Although Demosthenes warned the Athenians and provided them with possible solutions to their problem, the people of Athens were eventually caonquered by Philip of Macedonia. His words rang as true in 341 BC. as they do today.

Trail of Tears

Sara Tezel
Senior Comp. 12-2
8 September 2006
Mrs. Wacker
Trail of Tears
Before the arrival of European settlers, hundreds of Native American tribes inhabited areas of what is now eastern United States. Some were eventually assimilated into the changing culture, and others were assigned by the newcomers to reservations. The culturally advanced Cherokee, in order to meet the demands of the whites, were forcefully relocated to Oklahoma.
The Georgian Cherokee led a sedentary and sophisticated lifestyle. Most owned houses and some owned plantations. Because they had their own newspaper and written constitution.
Although the rights of the Cherokee were protected by treaties with the United States government, white settlers wanted the Cherokee land when gold was discovered in Georgia. The United States Supreme Court upheld the rights of the Cherokee pertaining to land and possessions but President Andrew Jackson broke treaties deifying the Supreme Court and ordering the Cherokee off their lands.
In winter of 1838 over fourteen-thousand Cherokee were taken from their homes, allowed only the clothes on their backs, and forced to march to a designated Indian territory in Oklahoma. The Indians were denied basic rights such as adequate clothing, shelter, and decent food. Some Cherokee were kept chained both night and day.
More than four-thousand Cherokee died during marches that covered four different routes between Georgia and Oklahoma. It is because of the removal of the Cherokee from their land and the hardship they faced while marching that this event in history is called the Trail of Tears.
Recently, some highways in the United States that parallel the Trail of Tears have been designated as memorial highways. These highways are to help remember an important event in it’s past.
The Trail of Tears serves a reminder of what can happen when a person forgets everything by letting greed control his or her actions. The Cherokee were not widely accepted as human beings and were unable to protest their removal from the land they had grown and developed on. Despite the winter of 1838, the Cherokee are currently recognized and accepted as citizens of the United States of American.