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Recommended: Education in ancient Greek and Roman civilization
A Pharaoh and His People
When a member of the Egyptian royal family became pharaoh, he became much more than ruler of a mighty empire, he ascended to the rank of god. This position allowed the pharaoh to commission monuments to himself and to his reign, controls his subjects regardless of their rank, and maintain Egypt’s status among her enemies. Just as in any hierarchical governmental system, the pharaoh treated different classes of individuals and groups in different ways from the austere priest to the lowly peasant. The them, Pharaoh was a god and he would allow no one to forget that fact; but to him, the world was below him and he treated each group accordingly. This is illustrated in some of the few surviving works from the Egyptian dynastic periods. Through personal letters, official government correspondence, and fiction, a broad picture can be painted as to how the pharaoh interacted with his people and how they reacted towards him.
In a cradle of civilization where survival trumped education in life’s necessities, it should be of little surprise that the literate were an elite class who were catapulted to the upper echelon of Egyptian society. There was no attempt to provide free and universal schooling, so the only people who received any education were the wealthy. Anyone of a lower class such as peasants, soldiers, farmers, or tradesmen had to toil in physical labor daily just to survive. To them, education was a luxury that they would never achieve. Scribes were some of the most educated and revered people in Egypt. Royal scribe Nebmare-nakht extolled the virtues of becoming a scribe in a letter to his son who, judging by said letter, appears to be resisting the family business in a rebellious p...
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...enjoyed god-like reverence. Whether one was a peasant, scribe or diplomat, all must worship the pharaoh and show him respect deserving of a god. For his part, the pharaoh maintained and preserved the societal order while ruling a mighty empire. Ultimately, the pharaoh demanded the reverence of a god, but he was still aware that he reigned on earth.
Bibliography
Lichteim, Miriam, ed. “The Tale of the Eloquent Peasant.” Ancient Egyptian Literature. Berkeley, CA: University of California Press, 1975.
Nebmare-nakht. Praise of the Scribe’s Profession. Letter. From Ancient Egyptian Literature: A Book of Readings. Volume 2: The New Kingdom. Lichtheim, Miriam, ed. Berkeley, CA: University of California Press, 1976.
Pritchard, J.B. The Ancient Near East: An Anthology of Texts and Pictures. New Jersey: Princeton University Press, 1958.
Assmann, Jan. The Mind of Egypt: History and Meaning in the Time of the Pharaohs.
Johnson, Paul The Civilization of Ancient Egypt (New York: Harper Collins Publishers 1978,1998 and 1999)
In Egypt the Pharaoh was considered to be the “holy leader” or God of the Egyptian people. We read and understood that his law was never questioned much just like Hammurabi’s law. As people of that time “never chastised the pharaoh for simply doing his job, because he gave the nation his best.” We know he “did” his “job” in promoting peace and prosperity, but what was the Pharaoh’s real job. Was the Pharaoh meant to keep cultures civilized like Hammurabi, or was he created as a symbol of hope and betterment to the people of Egypt? Or was it
The need for writing in Uruk was drastically different than that of the Egyptians, however. As evidenced at the archaeological site of Hierakonpolis, the Egyptian sy...
In Ancient Egypt there were over 29 Kings and Pharaohs and over 5 Queens. Some of the most famous kings and queens were: Ramses II, Ramses III, King Tut, Cleopatra, and Nefertiti.
This depiction of Nebamun hunting in the marshes dates to around the late 18th dynasty . Its formal qualities depict that of an Egyptian scribe on an outing with his family, while utilising proportion to emphasise the Egyptian values and beliefs of the day. Further analysis reveals strong iconographic meaning, particularily in relation to the habitat surrounding Nebamun and his family. When studying the piece in relation to social context, we see how death and the Afterlife were an essential part of Egyptian life as a whole.
Hause, S., & Maltby, W. (2001). The Ancient Near East: Mesopotamia, Egypt, Phoenicia and Israel. Essentials of Western Civilization (pp.7-15). California: Wadsworth.
1. Budge, Sir E.A. Wallis. Egyptian Language- Easy Lessons in Egyptian Hieroglyphs. New York: Dover Publications Inc., 1991.
Egypt relied on their pharaohs to rule and run their county. Amenhotep III was the ninth pharaoh of the 18th dynasty; he ruled as pharaoh for a long period and achieved a significant amount of development in national and foreign affairs. He has been known as one of the best pharaohs that the world has seen. While Amenhotep was ruler of his era, it was known as the period of peace and prosperity. This allowed him to build many of the impressive structures that are found throughout Egypt today. He went on military campaigns and not only strengthened but expanded the boarders of Egypt throughout his campaigns. Amenhotep III was a successful pharaoh because he completed the roles of a pharaoh exceptionally well; these roles are High Priest, Administrator and Military commander. His name ‘Amenhotep’ means that the gods are satisfied.
In this chapter, Waxman examines the effects, both good and bad, of antiquarianism and meddlesome Europeans in Egypt. The author begins by describing the work undertaken by Napoleon and his savants, Jean-Francois Champollion and Giovanni Belzoni. Although, they have helped in the gathering of information and understanding of Egypt’s ancient past, one cannot ignore the negative effects, such as looting, that they have caused. The chapter ends in a discussion of the controversy surrounding the infamous bust of Nefertiti and asking the reader whether it is Germany or Egypt that the bust belongs to. Rather than answering the question, Waxman concludes that perhaps we should concentrate on an exchange of culture instead of arguing over who possesses what.
Damrosch, David, and David Pike. The Longman Anthology of World Literature. The Ancient World. Volume C. Second Edition. New York: Pearson/Longman, 2009. Print.
Egypt had a well-organized government.The first reason is because that it had many laws that kept the government organized.The type of laws it had were if a house breaks down and kills the father,the builder dies as well.Also,if the father’s son dies because the house falls down,the builder’s son dies.The kinds of government that were important were viziers,nomarks,and other kinds of government .How Viziers and Nomarks were important to Ancient Egyptian Government is because Viziers and Nomarks are just like a pharaoh expect they each had a lower class then pharaohs.The third reason why they had scribes were important
As king, the pharaoh had many duties that were civic and religious. The people saw him as the living Horus and the son of Ra. They believed only pharaoh could sacrifice to the gods and only the pharaoh could appoint the priests to serve the gods in his place. The people believed that he became Osiris after death and would continue to help his people in the afterlife. Pharaoh was the commander-in-chief of the army and the highest judge in the land. The people saw the pharaoh as essential for keeping their lives in balance and keeping harmony in Egypt. His rule was absolute.
To become a scribe you needed to start at an early age. Young boys would go to schools called “Houses of Life” to learn to read and write, and this was compulsory for young boys of the elite class. For boys from the lower classes to attend school was still possible in order to reach a higher level in society. The Ancient Egyptians had three systems of writing: hieroglyphs, hieratic and demotic.
The late Eighteenth Dynasty of Egypt in the Thirteenth Century BC was a demanding and strained time in Egypt and other Middle Eastern Countries. New and treacherous Pharaohs forge unrest in both foreign and domestic affairs by acting drastically and leaving their successors to resolve the complications left after their deaths. The novel, The Egyptian, by Mika Waltari, provides accurate information about Egypt during the time by portraying examples of historical leaders in Egypt, foreign relationships, and the Egyptian culture.