Homework Lance
Answer each question with three or four sentences.
1.
What are some of the difficulties in using ancient writing as historical evidence?
2.
What do different writing materials—clay tablets, bones, bamboo, etc.—reveal about the respective culture that used them?
3.
How did historians of the eighteenth century define “civilization,” and what lasting problems has this created?
4.
How did Sumer’s geography influence the religious system created there?
5.
How did a hereditary kingship and aristocracy develop in Sumer?
6.
What factors helped Sargon and Hammurabi create some of the first empires?
7.
What geographical factors shaped Egyptian civilization?
8.
Describe the complex role of the pharaoh in Egyptian politics and religion.
9.
Describe the relationship between Egypt and Nubia.
10.
Explain why the Persians created a system of roads and how these roads benefited their empire.
Answer Key
1.
Answer would ideally include:
· The answer should discuss the difficulties in translation and in discovering the meaning behind written symbols. Many of the works survive only in copies of the original, and these copies might have been corrupted or changed in transcription. Additionally, because only texts that were at some point deemed important would have been copied multiple times—documents referring to political or military events, records of religious traditions, or writing from individuals achieving notoriety—what survives to today is a very selective sample of writing from any historical period. Written documents dealing with everyday life—particularly women’s texts—are much rarer.
2.
Answer would ideally include:
· The material used presents historians with much information about what materials were available to a culture locally and sometimes indicates something of the trade relations between cultures. Some writing materials are more “permanent” than others, so the kind of material used will also determine how much writing survives. Sometimes the permanence was intended (inscriptions in stone), and sometimes it was accidental (clay tablets that hardened).
3.
Answer would ideally include:
· Eighteenth-century historians defined civilizations as societies with large-scale and complex organizations of law, politics, economics, and culture. This definition has created the concept of civilization as a natural progression from simple to complex. The earliest places that writing and cities developed were referred to as the “cradle of civilization.” These ideas also led to the assumption that all societies must go through the same stages and that any society that developed in a different way was therefore less advanced or less valued. This perspective resulted in a privileging of the Western model of societal development over other regional models.
4.
Answer would ideally include:
· The geography of Sumer, as with all of Mesopotamia, made for an unpredictable climate. The Sumerians perceived violent flooding, extreme droughts, and other dangerous weather conditions as punishments meted out by mercurial and easily angered gods. Therefore, they used gifts and prayers as a means to appease the gods and maintain order.
5.
Answer would ideally include:
· When Sumerian city-states faced military or environmental threats, they often turned to priests or military leaders to defend city walls against invaders or mobilize armies against the elements. Gradually these leaders became permanent and tried to establish hereditary dynasties; some formed alliances with other warriors, who also created dynasties. Power thus became hereditary.
6.
Answer would ideally include:
· Both kings unified Mesopotamia by creating standing armies that could be used for both defense and conquest and formed alliances with other rulers when necessary. Sargon appointed family members to serve as religious administrators. Hammurabi also used religious justifications for his power, by claiming that his code came from his god. Both promoted uniform administration and trade within their city-states and with other cities.
7.
Answer would ideally include:
· Egyptian civilization was shaped by the Nile River, although a particularly good answer might also mention the deserts. The Nile provided a path for communication and trade, as well as water to irrigate crops. The deserts protected Egypt from invasion. The predictability of the Nile’s flooding helped to create stability in the Egyptian state. The Nile was viewed as a creative and comforting force.
8.
Answer would ideally include:
· The pharaoh was seen as a living god-king and served as the focus of religious and political life during the Old Kingdom period (2660–2180 B.C.E.). He was one of many gods honored by the polytheistic Egyptians. One of his chief roles was to control the Nile’s rise and fall. He was also responsible for the integration between the gods and humans. Like other humans, he was expected to have an afterlife. As a king, however, his afterlife needed the trappings of a king, which gave rise to the pyramids.
9.
Answer would ideally include:
· The relationship between Egypt and Nubia was based on political control and trade. From Nubia, Egypt acquired ivory, gold, ebony, and other products from sub-Saharan Africa. During the New Kingdom, Egypt took over northern Nubia and introduced Egyptian religion and culture. In 727 B.C.E., the Nubian kingdom of Kush conquered Egypt and ruled there until the Kushites were driven out by the Assyrians in the seventh century B.C.E.
10.
Answer would ideally include:
· The Persians built roads to aid trade and communication throughout the large empire. Roads linked the capital of Persepolis to all parts of the empire and made it easier for Persian rulers to administer to all parts of the empire and move troops for defense. The flow of trade encouraged further development and connection to the Red Sea and Nile River.
GIPHY App Key not set. Please check settings