Civilization

1. Definition:
1. 1828: The act of civilizing, or the state of being civilized; the state of being refined in manners, from the grossness of savage life and improved in arts and learning.
1. Act (move)
2. Refine (clarify)
3. Improve (progress)
1. Civilization is an action which will clarify the previous state of being (be it social or individual) to enhance progress in artistic and educational areas.
2. Quotes:
1. “The idea of progress, of development, appears to me the fundamental idea contained in the word civilization.” (Francois Guizot)
1. Civilization is a process of growth. When mankind individually or collectively grows, it becomes more civilized in the area of it’s growth. Ergo, it is knowledge and learning that mark civil development. 
2. “Books are the carriers of civilization. Without books, history is silent, literature dumb, science crippled, thought and speculation at a standstill.” (Barbara Tuchman)
1. We learn here that civilization is a combination of things; history, literature, science, and thought are all essential to the civilizing power. Books can carry all that, therefore a society that reads is more civilized than one that does not, and the rift between the two will only grow exponentially ad infinitum.

1. Scriptures:
1. “And I will bring the third part through the fire, and will refine them as silver is refined, and will try them as gold is tried: they shall call on my name, and I will hear them: I will say, It is my people: and they shall say, The Lord is my God.” (Zechariah 13:9)
1. Fire can refine metals. It is a difficult process, but when it is finished the metal becomes better than it previously was. Similarly, people and societies can grow through tests. Knowledge always accompanies this growth, and knowledge is the foundation of civilization.
2. Personal Definition:

Humility has been defined as the willingness to grow and learn. I believe that all

civilized nations, societies, and people have to go through a period of humble growth. Access to knowledge is essential, and a lifestyle that permits this kind of learning makes it so more people can be civilized. In the end, however, a nation that holds themselves above knowledge, and is complacent and apathetic, will only atrophy into barbarianism. It is through hard work that an entity can become refined into civilization. Civilization is hard won intellectual growth.