Chapter 3

For once, his studying was not simply a means of escaping from social interaction. Now, he was paying attention to the aspects of each subject that other students were having difficulty grasping, for these were the very matters which were likely to come up in their evening reviews.

With these thoughts in his mind as he listened to a history lecture next day, he neglected to pay attention as the lecturer droned on about civilisations. It was only when his name was called, that he came back to the present moment.

“Mr Robertson? Are you with us again? You seemed to go off into a world of your own, and even I noticed it. What were you thinking of?”

“Oh. Girls, sir,” he admitted without thinking.

The lecturer grinned at this unexpected answer, and there was a titter of laughter among the other students.

“Admirable in their own setting, I agree, Mr Robertson, but not at this precise moment. How about you help us out with the expansion of civilisations? Root cause, in your opinion; and if you say ‘population growth’, I shall be most disappointed in you.”

“Ah, Resources, sir.”

“Succinct, but not very explanatory, my boy. Care to expand on the thought?”

“Well, a civilisation needs resources to survive. If the available resources match the population’s requirements, there is no need to expand, but if the population starts to increase beyond that point, there is a need to find more resources or the civilisation will get poorer; so there is an imperative to locate and gain control over these additional resources. If the new resources are in a sparsely populated region, the civilisation expands into that region and absorbs the few people; but if the resources are in the hands of another civilisation, there will be a clash of interests, often leading to warfare. If the other civilisation is technologically inferior, it will probably lose out.”

“Thank you, Mr Robertson. An excellent summary, if somewhat reduced to little more than a skeleton. Fleshing out that skeleton is what we observe in specific cases. The Roman civilisation operated a policy of conflict right from its beginning, and continued as a militaristic empire right up to its collapse. It was a ‘one-size fits all’ organisation. Not only did all roads lead to Rome, all taxes and other income went to the centre as well. The Roman Catholic church operated in a similar centralised fashion, with the Pope nominally making all the decisions though the Roman Curia officials actually did the job and he signed the letters, much as modern politicians do.

The Greek civilisation operated instead as a decentralised trading bloc, planting new cities throughout the Mediterranean, fighting only when they had to, in order to defend their city states. City states were the equivalent of small nations, and they squabbled in much the same way.

Once the Greeks had stabilised themselves from a group of individualistic city-states pattern into a one-nation outlook, their intellectual approach to life encouraged great learning, much as this university purports to do, and it is mainly Greek works on many subjects that are the mainstay of our modern civilisation, even if they had to be debunked at times for some assumptions that proved untrue.

I will give you an essay later, where you will select a Greek work of literature, and you can show how it has affected the whole Western world.

Do you think that will keep your mind off girls, Mr Robertson?” There was a renewed burst of laughter among the class.

“To return to the concept of civilisations, some have collapsed without being attacked by another one. The main reason for such a collapse, surprisingly, is disease. Most civilisations in history had no defence against diseases, because they had no concept of infection by bacteria or viruses; it was assumed to be something in the air, such as a miasma, or acts of the gods, that caused the disease.

Thus, when a major outbreak of ailments such as measles, typhus, bubonic or pneumonic plague occurred, there was a tremendous impact on the population, on the civilisation’s industries, and its ability to resist any outside pressure.

The arrival of the Spanish conquistadors in South America resulted in the total destruction of the indigenous civilisation, but very little of it by military might, despite what the Spanish liked to believe. If the locals had organised themselves effectively to resist the small invasion force, the Spaniards would have been wiped out. The locals’ fear of the strange animals the invaders rode – horses – and their own ancient predictions of a major chief arriving from over the great water, combined to stifle resistance. In the end, it was disease unwittingly brought by the Spaniards that wiped out most of the locals and debilitated the remainder. The Spaniards had no idea of, or concern for, what was happening, as it didn’t affect them. They carried immunity.

Such disease-induced collapses make little impact on country to country relations, if they are all afflicted by the same disease. The black death of the 14th century in Europe claimed anything up to 200 million lives, and knocked back societies throughout the continent for centuries. Where peasants had been bonded serfs, forced to remain on the same estate all their lives, they suddenly discovered the freedom to move around and seek better terms of employment, due to the shortage of labour resulting from the plague. Every disaster brings opportunities, it transpires.

So disease can alter entire continents with its impact on human numbers. The Justinian plague of the sixth century C.E. was like a mini-black death in its spread and effects, and it may in fact be the same bacterium – Yersinia Pestis - that was the cause of both. We do not have the evidence to prove or disprove the blamed bacterium.

To return to that promised essay: For those of you who do not fancy relating a Greek text to modern civilisation, you can instead select a collapsed or semi-collapsed civilisation and show how much of the disaster was due to the impact of disease. There are many to choose from. I shall expect well-referenced data to support your contention, in either essay topic.”

At the end of the academic day, Reg felt as horse-whipped as any of the others. As he said to Frances, “that lecturer knows where he is coming from. No cribs straight from the text-book, but genuine analysis of the known facts of history, and what nuances could be gained therefrom.”

She was apprehensive as they walked towards the car. “Does that mean you can’t help me and the other girls in their essays?”

“No, there are always ways you can slant an essay to suit yourself, but this guy knocked most of my plans into the long grass with his clear and incisive views. He has already said most of what I might have advised for the essays. I will have to think about it all for a while.”

He tried to apologise for not contributing to the evening meal, but Frances pooh-poohed him. “It is nothing, Reg. My budget was planned for treating my friends, and you are my friend, aren’t you?”

“Yes, of course, Frances. Without your help, I’d still be a morose recluse on campus.” He took the opportunity to grab her and kiss her on the cheek.

“Aye-aye! We saw that,” came a call. It was Freda and Erika, come to join the car, but they were smiling at him, so it couldn’t have been all bad.

Frances welcomed them. “He only kissed me on the cheek, quite demurely. I’ll need to get him trained properly.”

Erika gave a laugh. “He wasn’t so demure last night. He managed to fondle one of my boobs!”

Reg tried to recover. “It was an accident, I swear, Erika.”

Freda intervened with a scowl, “Don’t put him off, Erika. I am still untouched by Reg, and I feel neglected.”

Frances declared, “Enough, girls. Get into the car, and let’s be off.”

Tonight’s meal was a chicken curry for each of them, from packets heated up in boiling water. It was not bad, Reg decided, for a shop-bought meal. The ones he had experienced at home had left a lot to be desired in comparison. This prepared meal must be from a higher-class store that focussed on quality and taste.

There was a bit of giggling from the girls during the meal, as they discussed Reg, particularly his admission in class that he was thinking of girls. Freda demanded of him, “Reg, was it girls in general, or some specific girls, that you were thinking about?”

“Um, both at the same time,” he declared softly.

“How do you mean, Reg?”

“Well...”

“Oh, come on, Reg, we are not going to laugh at you.”

“O.K. Well, I was thinking that girls seem to be more in control of their lives than boys. Thinking about you three lovely girls, you seem to know what you want and how to go about it. I just study and learn; and now, teach.”

All three took a gasp of breath at being described as ‘lovely’. They had never seen themselves as anything other than plain.

Frances jumped in to cover that embarrassment, “But you are doing what you want to do, Reg. That is control.”

“Not quite the same, Frances. If, for example, I was in love; that is not being in control. It is the subject of your affection that is in control.”

Frances scolded him, “Reg, that is not a good example. Love tends to be an exception to most rules. They say that love is blind; that may be true. Do you really think we three girls are lovely?”

“Well of course you are lovely. I can’t say you have beautiful faces; that would be untrue and unfair to claim. Very few girls are truly beautiful. You three are lovely to look at, overall, and have wonderful personalities. That’s what makes the difference: the overall impression; its impact on me. You ARE lovely, you see.”

“Wow. You have been thinking deeply, Reg; and not just about academic subjects. Have you ever talked to girls like this, before now?”

“No, I have never had the courage to say such things. You, Frances, are the one who broke through my reserve, and pulled me out of my shell a bit. I find I can talk to you and the other two without getting tongue-tied and blushing. You make me feel comfortable around you. It is great for me!”

Frances looked across at Freda and Erika; saw something in their faces, and nodded. “Reg. I want to tell you something, in confidence. I think you can keep it to yourself.” She took his face in her hands, gazed intently at him, then kissed him on the lips. He gulped.

“Reginald Robertson, you are the first person who has ever considered me to be lovely.”

“What?” he burst out, “That’s daft. You are clearly lovely. Surely it is just that people didn’t bother to mention it?”

She looked at him, and gave him another kiss. “That is for being nice, Reg. No, the truth is, I have been called plain, or ordinary, or even ugly, but never ‘lovely’. You are the first person to see me that way. Freda and Erika have had similar experiences, I think.”

She turned her eyes towards them, to find them nodding in serious agreement. She continued, “Reg, I hate to bring bad news to you, but unless you decide to reject us, I think you have three girlfriends, starting right now.”