I will honestly say I chose this topic with very minimal knowledge on anything related to Syria. When finding articles, I was simply looking for sources that helped me understand the state of Syria before, during, and after Assad and the uprisings. I chose one of these articles because it gives a good, holistic picture of Syria – from its people to the climate to politics – and how everything factors into the Syria we know today.  One point in particular is the fact that different people have different ideas as to what being a Syrian means. For example many are Sunni-Muslims who speak Arabic, for these people that is exactly what being Syrian means. Then there are the minority groups who – by the time of the uprisings – are seen as a threat to Nationalists. This can be seen as a cause of the focus of revolution shifted to issues of politics and religion. The second article I have chosen because it related this massive topic to something very specific, reminding me of the complexity of this revolution. It focuses on a city that, 17 months after the uprising began, had decided to take their lives out of the control of the regime and created councils – including a military council – so that the city could run itself. This of course happened after months of attacks between rebels and the regime. Although daily life can still be a challenge in this city of Aazaz, the people are satisfied that they are at least not under the rule of the Assad government.