Maya Vs America

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In the book, Three Weeks with My Brother, Nicholas Sparks, and his brother, go explore different places such as Guatemala and Peru. In the book, you get to see the contrasting values between America and in a third world or developing countries. The differences include culture, environment, and climate. When in Petén, Guatemala, you can visit a Mayan ruins site. “... what was once a flourishing civilization, whose large cities included temples rising as high as 230 feet and silhouetted against the dense jungle foliage” (75). The city ran very well from A.D. 300 to 900 where they encompassed the area including the Yucatán Peninsula, southern Mexico, Belize, and Guatemala. Their culture was somewhat brutal because they engaged in human sacrifice. …show more content…
Back in its day it would have had temples and such everywhere, but there was still lots of trees and other types of foliage. The proof is from the present day area, where there is tons of nature. “When we arrived, however, we saw nothing but trees and dirt pathways winding among hills. In the background, we could hear howler monkeys, but the foliage above us was so thick it was impossible to see them” (75-76), and “Beyond us, we could see the lagoon and the utter density of the jungle spreading thirty miles in every direction” (78). In comparison to America, which has limited areas filled with wildlife, the ruins of the Mayan empire is a more natural place that isn’t taken up with buildings. Another way that the places contrast, almost all of the buildings that are there today are underground. “‘Those are not hills you see. Beneath each and every mound is a building or temple’” (76). Over the years the trees have dropped their leaves, which has formed compost and caked over the buildings. The compost turned into dirt and that is like a hard shell around the buildings. In America, a site like that would very rare to find. To conclude, the Mayan empire ruins are much more untouched nowadays compared to …show more content…
Work for the Mayans must have been dreadful, from the boiling temp to the lack of breeze. It must have been terrible. Here in America, we have ways to keep cool, but our weather is a lot more flexible, referring to the seasons. But even when it is hot temperature, we have ways to help people who work inside and outside cooler. The climate also affects the types of jobs in an area. Like the Mayans’ would have had no use for snow blowers. The climate could have been the cause of the end of the Mayans. “By the end of the tenth century, however, the civilization began to disintegrate. A number of theories as to the reason: overpopulation, wars, an overthrow of the ruling class, drought, famine, dwindling nutrient capacity in the soil, or a simple discontent of invading tribes” (80). Climate can greatly affect a civilization and can determine whether or not a civilization will succeed or not. America has adapted to our climate, found ways to lessen the bad effects, and improved the good effects of our
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