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Mesopotamian and Egyptian Civilizations

1. Geography played a central role in the formation, organization and nature of the Mesopotamian and Egyptian civilizations and culture. Both civilizations were dependent on agriculture and both were located in fertile regions near major waterways.

Both "were dependent on rivers and the rich soil deposited by periodic floods; both had to develop and maintain organized systems of irrigation and flood control." Perhaps in part because of the relative stability both civilizations were able to enjoy, related to their geographical advantages, both "eventually had powerful kings and a priestly caste" and "believed in all-powerful gods who played an active role in the world" (2).

On the other hand, there were important differences between the two cultures, again related to geography:

Mesopotamia was not as well protected geographically as Egypt and was thus more open to attack. Her rivers were not as navigable, nor were the floods as regular as the Nile's. Her culture and religion reflected a sense of instability and pessimism in comparison to the stability and optimism that characterized Egyptian civilization (2).

In other words, the geography of these two civilizations was a central factor in not only their basic survival and success, but also in the way they envisioned the world and the nature of the universe.

They were similar in that they were both agriculturally dependent, both reliant on the rich and river-fed land on which they lived, but the differences in their geographical realities created completely different outlooks on the world and their place in it.

The relative instability of their lives, created by that less protected geography, led to a philosophy and religion among the Mesopotamians which is seen in The Epic of Gilgamesh, one of the major literary pieces of that civilization. One central character, questioned about life and reality, responds:

There is no permanence. Do we build a house to stand...

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Mesopotamian and Egyptian Civilizations. (1969, December 31). In LotsofEssays.com. Retrieved 02:53, March 29, 2024, from https://www.lotsofessays.com/viewpaper/1680574.html