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Mesopotamian vs. Egyptian civilizations
This paper will compare and contrast the Mesopotamian and the Egyptian civilizations, in particular the political, social, economical and religious differences. The paper also discusses the role Nature played in each civilization.
The Mesopotamian and Egyptian civilizations were similar in many respects, in that they were both at a similar level of 'advancement', in terms of the development of tools, and cultural and scientific thought (such as language, writing, the use of mathematics) but they differed in some fundamental respects, such as in the place of origin of the civilization (for Mesopotamia in modern-day Iraq, and for Egypt, in modern-day Egypt), and the time period during which the civilization ruled (for the oldest Mesopotamian civilization, the Sumerians, from 5000 BC, and for Egypt for the Old Kingdom, from 2770-2200 BC, to the New Kingdom, from 1560-1087 BC).
In terms of the political structure of the civilizations, Mesopotamia was structured in to Empires, which unified the diverse communities that constituted the Mesopotamians, for example, the Sumerians, the Kassites, the Hittites...
The first such Empire was the Akkadian Empire which represented the first political unification of the Sumerian civilization. In terms of governing the people practically, the Mesopotamians developed and used the Code of Hammurabi, which was basically a code of laws, set in place to ensure good behavior, and to punish bad behavior.
In the Egyptian civilization, the people were ruled by Pharoahs, who were arguably the world's first dynastic rulers: important Pharoahs include Ahmose I, and Ramesses II.
The Ma'at (Pharoahn rules) ensured order and regularity amongst the people, hence ensuring good government.
In terms of the social structure of the communities within the two civilizations, both Mesopotamia and Egypt had Kings who ruled the land, with all the other people supplying goods for the ruler, by working the land, and by working as craftspeople, and other skilled workers. This meant that the social structure was fairly open, with the people supporting each other as necessary, in terms of surviving.
In terms of the economical development of the civilizations, in Mesopotamia, by 2000 BC,…
Secondly, the relations that were created at the level of the social groups and of the human establishments gave rise to a surplus of products and inevitably of wealth. This was a natural consequence of the fact that the specialization of labor determined a larger quantity of products being made and of better quality. This is seen as the first revolution, the predecessor of events such as the industrial revolution
Torah law exhibits a quid pro quo vision of the divine, in which human beings enter into a sacred and immutable contract with God. Like the Sumerians in the Epic of Gilgamesh, the Hebrews in the Torah viewed the world of the gods and the world of human civilization as being distinct from one another. The Torah also illustrates how ancient Near Eastern civilizations became hierarchical and stratified. Priests
In Mesopotamia, the gods were actively involved in the doings of this world, but not in a way that was just or equitable -- the gods had no special moral attributes, merely greater power than humans. The lack of harmony in the natural world of Mesopotamia was also reflected in the disparate nature of Mesopotamian government, which was full of small city-states, with no cohesive national ruler. Egypt's pharaohs reigned
City-dwellers were dependent upon rural residents for buying surplus crops for their food. Trade was mutual, as residents of cities were often specialized artisans that could offer their skills. "Mesopotamian cities controlled the agricultural land and collected crop surpluses from villages in their vicinity. In return, the city provided rural districts with military protection against bandits and raiders and a market where villagers could acquire manufactured goods produced by
civilizations we have studied thus far in this course, which do you believe has contributed the most to our present society and why? You must state you case by giving specific examples based on reading and research. Each civilization of the world has grown and evolved on the contributions made by civilization preceding their own. It is beyond contesting that Mesopotamian and Egyptian civilizations (3000-12000 B.C.E.) laid the foundation of
Ancient History The ancient histories of Mesopotamian and Egyptian civilizations have much in common. Both regions were inhabited since prehistoric times by nomadic groups, which began to settle down in towns and villages by around 6000 BCE. Consistent settlements soon grew into larger cities; in both Egypt and in Mesopotamia, these cities became city-states with complex lifestyles and forms of government. Some of the first written languages were created simultaneously in