Civ IV and anthropology

[Legio X]

I fiirst got interested in Civilizations from a friend that had a great interest in anthropology, both social and genetical. Of course, I had this interest as well, but once I started to play Civ I also started to read up on anthropology, religions and different cultures. You might say that it sparked my interest, and today I spend a lot of my time reading books on religions and anthropology.

Just for fun I want to see if anyone else here shares this interest.

//Legio X

 

[Ball Lightning]

I'm fourteen now, i've been playing civ since i was 5. This is propably why i'm interested in history. Who knows?

 

[Judge Dee]

I started playing CivII back when I was doing my Bachelor's in Religious Studies & Comparative Literature. I found the presence of things I had been studying in a game to be a spur to my imagination, both game-playing and academic. Of course, that could just be a rationalization of why I spent so many hours playing the darn game. (smirk)

By the time I got to my Master's, I was starting to look at the ways that Civ's contents were presented, what kind of worldviews they stemmed from, and so forth. This has continued into CivIV, where I find myself having to look at some things askance, such as the rather heavy Judeo-Christian foregrounding, and the gearing of the tech tree (and thus, to an extent, the default historical narrative) towards the path taken in Europe. Not that I'm really complaining - you have to have some sort of bias, and a Euro-centric one makes sense for a game sold largely to English-reading peoples, but it does mean that I would be delighted to see a really thorough treatment of these issues in, say, the Chinese unification scenario.

 

[Esox]

I can't say it sparked it. I got into Civ3 long after I'd studied quite a bit. But I've found some great topics to explore from this game.

 

[binhthuy71]

Always loved History, not too interested in Anthro. I agree with Esox in that Civ has sent me on some interesting research.

One of the things that impresses me in these forums is the number of players who are knowledgeable in History.

 

[cairo140]

Civilization DEFINITELY got me more interested in anthropology, sociology, scientific history, military development, and world history in general.

There were plenty of times that I asked questions about the game and then researched it afterwards. And there's no better feeling that having a teacher or professor introduce something in class that you know thanks to CIV.

 

[Esox]

And there's no better feeling that having a teacher or professor introduce something in class that you know thanks to CIV.

Of course, if he mentions Montezuma you're going to have to bite your tongue.

 

[drkodos]

I'm not sure anthropology is the right discipline, but I guess you could make that argument. I always thought it was more along the lines of plain old History and a tinge of sociology.

Either way though, I believe your point is correct that it can be a good jumping off or flash p[oint to get some people interested in these topics. It has exposed me to some things I was not fully aware of and has sent me to the books on a number of occasions to increase my knowledge of the past and the forces that helped shape the world as we currently know it.

And as such, it would be great to see it used in some academic settings to spur some interest in world history for people/kids that might not ordinarilly have any.

 

[Gr3yL3gion]

A little bit of what OP have stated, I guess.

 

[Pratputajao]

Yes it has absolutely has. Learnin' cause of a game is good!

 

[Legio X]

Since my brother started to play the game I've also noted that he sometimes has wikipedia up and reads about subjects such as christianity and islam, to learn more. I rather see people play CIV then Counter-Strike.

 

[Head Serf]

Yea, now I enjoy reading historical and economical books and making historical mods and scenarios.

 

[gdgrimm]

Civ has sparked my interest in a range of historical and cultural aspects.

One example -- this fall I'm taking a vacation trip to the Yucatan in Mexico. It's possible that without Civ, I might have made Chichen Itza a stop on the trip. But with Civ, I DEFINITELY have made Chichen Itza a stop. And when I see some statue of carving of a jaguar in that area, I'll have some idea what it meant to those people who put it there.

On a different note, it was definitely Civ that caused me to start seeing human history along the lines of Darwinism of civilizations. This being an area I wish were studied and discussed more. There was at least one book (named something like "Steel, Germs, and Conquest of Civilations" or something) that hit the theme well. But I think it would benefit us all if we all started to think more along the lines of the evolutionary paths of different civilizations, and how it affects which survive and which die.