Western Civilization: The Greatest Advancement, or the Biggest Mistake in Human History?

Western Civilization was without a doubt the greatest advancement in the history of civilization. During the Neolithic Era, civilizations sprouted in the west, with the coming of agriculture, which lead down many different paths, such as to trade and religion. Although some issues did sprout up during this time period, they all would have been unavoidable, even if it was developing in another civilization. 

Western Civilizations opened the door to several things that would lead to prosperous societies. First, the development of agriculture is what allowed a surplus of food. This surplus is what ultimately lead to occupations being created, because now that everybody did not have to work all day, every day in order to supply a group with food. More efficient ways were created to collect and grow crops so now people had more time on their hands. For example, the Phoenicians learned how to make a purple powder, so they could make purple textiles. These soon became a sign of wealth and power, so it was naturally very expensive. The Phoenicians then traded these textiles and other resources to maintain their civilization. That is where trade comes into play. Although some civilizations depended on it more than others, it still did the same job of spreading culture and religion throughout the Mediterranean basin. Through all of this spread of ideas from so many different areas, civilizations were able to learn and develop even further in the years to come.

Some issues that stemmed from Western Civilization, such as social hierarchy and slavery, are accused of being the ultimate result of the West, and their development to have been a big mistake. This, however, is not true; because these problems would have developed no matter what civilization it originated in. Any civilization needs a social hierarchy to be able to function properly. No matter how terrible it must have been to be at the bottom of the social ladder during the Neolithic Era, these people were the basis of Western Civilization. Without these people of lower status constantly working, there would not be room for civilizations to develop an economy, or trade market, or anything else it needed to thrive. This downside to Western Civilization is actually the most important part of it's development. No matter what civilization had been the first to pop up, it would have created some form of slavery and social hierarchy, or else the civilization itself would not have been able to develop at all.