Chiinged

Hello! This is my first time posting, but I was ruminating on some information and just had to write this down. Sorry if I mixed up anything down there. I was thinking about the different shards we have been introduced to, and the worlds they have created for themselves to watch over. I realized that the civilizations and cultures which grew out of these efforts are largely constructed around the key aspects of the shard’s influence and the histories of these influences. To start, three major points to take into account. Hopefully I’m not mistaken in a few assumptions. The inclination of each shard influences the shardholder’s actions and alters their motivations and personality. They create the civilizations on their respective planets, but can only influence them in ways which align to their shard’s intent. We view each civilization at a certain point in time, and by comparing this glimpse with what we know of the greater cosmere history of the world they inhabit, can explain civilization’s state of affairs as a whole. For instance, Roshar: When both shards lived, the cultures that grew through honor’s influence ascended, creating a more idealized society and entering a time of prosperity. There was war with Odium’s influence, but it was primarily fought by the Radiants, agents of Honor. Odium’s end of the deal eventually broke these agents and Honor was splintered during the Recreance. (Correct?) After this, subject only to Odium’s influence, the civilizations on Roshar fell into disrepair. With only a vestige of Honor’s influence carried through prophecies and broken histories as civilizations reforged, this idea of honor was warped to represent an honor of conquest instead of bonding. This leads to societies on Roshar where station and power are fought for violently, whether in academia or on the battlefield. Even within societies you can see this, such as separating women’s and men’s arts to force power onto only one side. Feudal systems, slavery, etc. are all aspects from this idea of honor. Capitalism anyone? On Scadrial we can see something similar! In the beginning, Preservation’s influence created civilizations founded on agriculture and trust. Ruin could manipulate this trust to create conflict, thus forming a workable society (balance, always). After the Lord Ruler ascended, he created a subjugated people that would not require his attention so he could fight Ruin away. This limited technological advancement, and stopped the growth of civilization for the duration of his rule. After Harmony ascended and Ruin was defeated, the civilization entered the Industrial Revolution and things are quickly picking up. An exception to this is the Southern Scadrians we meet in BoM, they have lived (mostly) without the Lord Ruler or Ruin’s direct attention, and have advanced civilization far past the other areas of the shardworld. That’s the gist of it, and it's probably nothing new, but I thought it was interesting and had to write it down somewhere! Let me know if I was incorrect in anything, I’d love to hear input about shardworlds I’m not too keen on the histories of. Thanks for reading!