Natural Disaster And People Of Pompeii example essay topic

The morning of August 24th 79 A.D. started out as any other day in Pompeii. The streets were full of people trying to do their daily chores and activities, unaware that it was the day that would be forever engraved in history. The Pompeians settled in that area mainly because of soil and agriculture, but were also mesmerized by the beautiful location. They did not know the dangers of the neighboring volcano and so believed themselves to be very lucky to find such a place.

The Pompeians were led to immortalization by uncontrollable forces of nature and their lack of knowledge. Although a very unfortunate disaster, Pompeii provided future generations with a great deal of knowledge about their civilization. Campania, the region in western Italy where the site of Pompeii is located attracted its inhabitants with its fertility, rich soil and magnificent location. The main reason the Pompeians settled in Campania was for the soil. The ashes from previous eruptions had changed to rich, volcanic soil full of minerals, providing great agriculture. Some areas had up to three crops of grain per year.

Historians have concluded, "In ancient times, the region's crop yield was 6 times higher than the average of the rest of the peninsula". However, the soil and the crops were not the only reason the Pompeians inhabited Campania. The splendid and magnificent location did its fair share in attracting the population. Pompeii was situated only 500 m from the Mediterranean Sea, which helped give it a warm, pleasant climate. Unfortunately, the Pompeians were not aware that this picturesque setting was hiding a deadly force hide it, and many souls were trapped and immortalized inside the "paradise" land. Due to the lack of evidence and knowledge, the people of Pompeii were shocked to have the mountain disrupt a typical day of their simple lives.

Several authors say that the inhabitants of Pompeii were attending a performance in the amphitheater at the time of the tragedy. They were completely taken by surprise by the disaster and did not know what they were up against. Farmers from surrounding areas rushed towards death thinking the city's strong walls could provide the necessary refuge. Some tried to open up different routes in the lava using axes, and others waited and faced the end which they believed to be inevitable.

Most skeletons found portray despair and panic and the mold statues preserve frozen moments from a typical day. "Human life stopped abruptly" and everything was immortalized. Objects were found preserved together. For example, pots along with pans and other dishes were found in the kitchen, and mirrors and combs in the bedroom. Buildings remained for two thousand years in almost perfect condition, complete with wallpaper and furniture. The dinner remains left on the table as people desperately tried to find refuge clearly shows that the Pompeians were taken by complete surprise and were not aware of what faith had in store.

The immortalization of Pompeii gave us inside information on early Roman life we would never have been able to find out about without the volcanic eruption. Over the centuries, the city was abandoned and forgotten as the memory of Pompeii became nothing but a legend passed throughout generations by word of mouth. Despite the fact that the ancient objects from Pompeii were discovered sporadically, the city itself was not found until the 18th century. Ever since, excavations have gone deeper into the city's mysterious secrets. Archaeological finds reveal how people lived during that time, as well as how they died during the eruption.

Even though Pompeii came to a tragic end, it proved beneficial because the commercial Pompeii was preserved. It not only offered most of the paintings that survived, but presented an opportunity to be able to reconstruct the main features of the houses and other buildings. Unfinished objects and various tools were discovered in workshops, and bread baked almost two thousand years ago was remarkably preserved in bakeries and shops. Their lack of knowledge allowed the volcano to interrupt in the midst of their daily lives, but left behind incredible artifacts.

Some could argue that the people of Pompeii received a number of warnings foreshadowing the unfortunate intentions of Mount Vesuvius and should have known what was coming. On February 5th, 63 A.D., the volcano delivered a dreadful series of terrible earthquakes. The earthquakes devastated areas and stroke throughout the day, causing hysteria and at the same time hope that the suffering would stop. For 16 years after the quakes, instead of moving away from the dangers the city possessed, the Pompeians concentrated on repairing the damages suffered. If the earthquakes of 63 A.D. were too minor, the warnings delivered four days before the overwhelming eruption should have been more than enough. The earth began to crack, the usual still sea gave birth to humongous waves and animals became uneasy-almost like they could foresee the tragedy.

If nothing else, this was clearly a sign that even the uneducated ancient people could have figured out. The city could have been preserved in other, less tragic ways. Written records, historians and legends would have given us enough information to satisfy our curiosity and allow us to visualize the Roman life in the early centuries. Although several events foreshadowed the tragedy, people could not understand them properly. Vesuvius was once a very active volcano, but it rested for as long as people remembered. Pompeians did not know how a volcano worked, thus had no real knowledge of its dangers.

"No legacy of destruction had been passed down from their ancestors" so they did not see the potential for any real danger. The tremors that shook the town before the eruption were insignificant and caused little damage, so everyone disregarded them as being unimportant. Also, at that time people did not understand natural disasters very well. The common belief was that it all happened because the gods were angry and they would proceed to make sacrifices or offerings to the gods in order to please them. While it was an unfortunate tragedy for those living through it at the time, it helped provide a thorough understanding of natural disasters for the generations that followed. Also, the immortalization of the Pompeians worked to the benefit of knowledge about early civilizations today, since it preserved their final moments.

All in all, Pompeians had no fault in their destruction and immortalization. No one during those times was able to interpret the warnings provided, and the only education available on natural disasters was personal experience. The inevitable disaster for them brought with it great benefits for historical knowledge, as the city of Pompeii will be forever preserved through artifacts and written documentation.

Bibliography

Pompeii. web Patent, Hinshaw Dorothy. Lost City Of Pompeii. (Marshall Cavendish: New York, 2000.