Many societies were very similar in their early development. While some trade between cultures was evident, these advancements primarily evolved in parallel. However, environmental determinism led to some differences between societies.
A perfect example of this is Mesopotamia and Ancient Egypt. While Mesopotamia and Ancient Egypt were both environmentally determined river societies that relied on agriculture and social stratification, their cosmologies were vastly different. Mesopotamia and Ancient Egypt both relied on agriculture.This reliance on agriculture and irrigation caused a need for the development of advanced civilization and government. The fertile soil deposited by the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers gave Mesopotamia the nickname “The Fertile Crescent”.
However, because of erratic flooding Mesopotamian farmers had to develop complex irrigation systems in order to cultivate crops. This need for irrigation and agriculture led to the development of advanced civilization and political structures. Ancient Egypt also relied on agriculture and irrigation. The majority of Egyptians were rural farmers who paid taxes in grain.
These farmers relied on agriculture in order to survive. Mathematics and astronomy were created to control irrigation and agriculture. Bureaucracies also evolved to control agriculture and irrigation. Both societies’ agricultural advancements connect to the first theme of AP World History, the interactions between humans and their environment. Social stratification was also prevalent in both Mesopotamia and Egypt.
Mesopotamia had three social classes: nobles, commoners (who typically worked for nobles), and slaves (who typically worked in laborious jobs).The separation between the classes can clearly be seen within empires and state building. Within “Hammurabi’s Code”, the slaves and commoners faced significantly more severe punishments than the nobles. Ancient Egypt was also highly socially stratified. Ancient Egypt was divided into slaves, peasants, civil servants, and the pharaoh and royal family. The differences in class (which connects to the fifth theme of AP World History) can clearly be seen within burial arrangements.
The pharaoh and royal family were buried within pyramids that housed many possessions to bring with them into the afterlife.In contrast, the peasants were simply buried in the ground with a few of their earthly possessions. There was clearly a vast social division in both Mesopotamia and Ancient Egypt. The cosmologies of Mesopotamia and Ancient Egypt were extremely different.
The Tigris and Euphrates flooded erratically and violently, causing the Mesopotamians to have a pessimistic worldview that can clearly be seen within their artistic contributions (which are of the fifth AP World History theme).Mesopotamian art was dull and had pessimistic themes. In “The Epic of Gilgamesh” Mesopotamian gods, which connect to the second theme of AP World History, were depicted as vengeful deities who enjoyed human suffering. On the contrary, Egypt had an optimistic cosmology. Because the Nile flooded consistently and predictability, Egyptians had a positive world outlook.
Egyptian artwork was bright and vibrant, and the Egyptians praised and admired their gods.The differences in cosmology between Mesopotamia and Ancient Egypt can clearly be seen within religious (2nd AP World theme) and artistic (5th AP World theme) perspectives.In conclusion, Mesopotamia and Ancient Egypt share both similarities and differences. Both Mesopotamia and Ancient Egypt relied heavily on agriculture and irrigation that caused more advanced civilization and political structures. Social stratification was prevalent in both societies.
However, Ancient Egypt and Mesopotamia had vastly different cosmologies. Overall, Mesopotamia and Ancient Egypt evolved parallel with a view differences.
