Over the course of this semester this course has improved my awareness of social and global issues. A social issue is an issue that concerns society's perception of a person's personal life. Different cultures have different perceptions, and what may be “normal” behavior in one society may be a significant social problem in another society. Global issues are those that have, or hold, the potential to impact the entire world. I learned a lot about global and social issues in the readings we did for this course. In The Origins of the Modern World by Robert Marks I learned about the rise of the West. The idea behind the rise of the West began to emerge after the Spanish conquest of the Americas. Before the rise of the West, the world was polycentric, meaning that it consisted of many centers of authority or control (i.e., it was composed of multiple central parts); however, China and India were powerful. During this period, trade took place between Europeans and Asians, as evidenced by the spread of the Black Death. The Black Death originated in the arid plains of Central Asia, where it then traveled along the Silk Road. The Black Death was most likely carried by oriental rat fleas that lived on black rats that were regular passengers on merchant ships, spreading the Black Death throughout the Mediterranean and Europe. Today the world is no longer polycentric. Today the West is more powerful than other countries; however, this could not have been the case. The rise of the West happened by accident and could have happened in another part of the world. This book taught me a lot about global issues because it focuses on how the rise of the West has affected the rest of the world. Until this course I had known nothing about non-Eurocentr...... middle of paper ......ion, we marry whoever we want, we are not ashamed if our firstborn is a girl. I have always known that women in other countries are not treated equally; however this book really drove this point home and made me realize how happy I am that I don't live in a society where women are looked down upon. During this course I learned about gender issues, the effects of colonialism on natives, Americans going to foreign countries, and I learned about history from a non-Eurocentric point of view. This course taught me to look at the big picture, not just how an issue might affect America, but how it might affect the rest of the world. It made me realize that even though the world is no longer polycentric, the actions of one nation can affect the entire world. It also taught me to look at social issues around the world and not just look at social issues in America.