Describe the steps by which hunting and gathering societies develop into civilizations.

Patterns of early life included “constant mobility, few material possessions,” and little to no hierarchy due to the inability to foster or keep these possessions. At around 11,000 B.C.E., hunter and gatherers became involved in the Neolithic revolution, or the way humanity revolutionized sourcing, growing, and preserving their food. “People then began to domesticate animals and cultivate plants. Stable settlements grew into cities.” (Page 7) As humans began to see new ways of life yielding new results, including how the changes brought by the Anthropocene era “produced new surpluses of food,” the new generation brought new positive changes and new challenges for these newly developed communities. For example, women became strong and healthy due to the recent surpluses of food enough for these communities to increase bearing healthy children. However, these new settlements were faced with infectious diseases, which resulted in death. These diseases were later outweighed by increasing population rates which allowed for the implementation of stable agriculture practices that would later sustain larger communities. It “brought a host of additional benefits…” “guaranteeing a more reliable supple of meat, milk, leather, bone and horn, but also providing animal power to pull carts and plows.” (Page 8)

 

With the population and sustainability of life increasing, rivalry and competition among emerging societies increased. One of the emerging cities was the city of Jericho, created as a “grain-producing settlement.” “Jericho’s inhabitants also produced some of the earliest known pottery, which enabled them to store grain, wine, and oils more effectively.” (Page 8) As these settled societies continued to thrive differences also began to arise regarding “the amount of wealth individuals could stockpile for themselves.” This resulted in stratification within these emerging societies and more dependence on the newly established settlements.

 

 

• Describe the civilization of Egypt. Include an explanation for its long periods of unified rule, and a description of its religious beliefs.

 

Egypt’s civilization became a symbol of abundance and prosperity due to its geopolitical standing in comparison to Mesopotamia. The Nile River allowed Egypt to be “the richest agricultural region in the entire Mediterranean world,” serving as fertile land and a form of transportation.

 

Prominent Egyptians, especially pharaohs frequently saw themselves as divinities. Pharaohs saw their durability in their rule due to their belief systems including the belief that “the pharaoh died only to only to be born again, renewed and empowered.” Egyptians identified closely with being divine, this in turn facilitated a “peaceful transition of power to new rulers…” along with the “efficiency of palace bureaucracy” for the Egyptian dynasty to persist for another three thousand years. Egyptians believed that the pharaoh was nothing less than a ruler, they believed he “was Egypt” itself.

 

“Sources have tended to convey” that Egyptians were obsessed with the idea of death (or after life), reincarnation—the possibility of living more than one life, and eternal life. Prominent Egyptians oftentimes had luxuriously adorned tombstones with animals representing different types of statuses or even strength.

 

Moreover, Egyptians based their beliefs on gods such as Osiris and Isis, that were “not only brother and sister, but husband and wife.” After their brother Seth tried to kill Osiris, Isis later tried to revive him seeking the help of God Anubis (the god of the afterlife), to later preserve the scattered portions of Osiris’ body—known as the process of mummification. In conclusion, Osiris ends up being “revived as the god of the underworld.” In the story, for Egyptians Osiris represented the way Egypt itself could not be destroyed “and the cycle of his death… and resurrection” which Egyptians correlated to the “yearly renewal of life” of the Nile.

 

• Compare and contrast the Bronze Age and Iron Age.

 

The bronze age is the period in history followed by the stone age and preceded the iron age. During this period, humans relied on bronze to make tools. The discovery of bronze was a significant discovery where humans learned how to make the alloy.

 

Bronze was made by mixing copper and tin. The discovery was a groundbreaking discovery, which resulted in the development of cultures in the Near East between 3300 to 1200 BCE, the Indian subcontinent between 3200 to 1100 BCE, and in East Asia between 3100 to 300 BCE. Egyptian, Chinese, Mesopotamian, and Indus valleys were the main bronze age civilizations of the world.

 

The human race reached the new highest of civilization with bronze tools and weapons and invented writing techniques. All major bronze age civilizations developed languages and scripts, a significant development.

 

The iron age was followed by the Bronze age and provided more strong and more durable tools for humans and enabled civilizations to turn into kingdoms and empires. The discovery of iron was a huge turning point in the human race, and humans still use and rely on iron for making tools and weapons. Iron has played an essential role in the development of the human race over the centuries, and it is still the dominant and powerful metal used by humans.

The iron age created more superior human civilizations than the bronze age, and regions with abundant iron ore had a head start regarding historical development. Most of the prominent regions which witnessed the bronze age cultures were followed by an iron age, and some cultures directly reached the iron age without experiencing the bronze age. The time of the iron age varies according to each civilization, and the availability of archaeological artifacts defines it. Both the Bronze age and Iron age are used to define the pre-historic and proto-historic periods in human history.

 

• What events led to Persia’s rise in prominence during the sixth and fifth centuries B.C.E.?

During the 6th and 5th-century Persian power rose under the rule of the Achaemenid Empire, which was established by Cyrus the Great in 550 BCE. It was the first Persian empire, and it turned out to be one of the most significant empires in the world, spanning across Egypt in the west and the Indus valley. Achaemenid power reached till Balkans, and they ruled these vast areas from 550 to 330 BCE.

 

The foundation for the Achaemenid empire was laid in the 7th century BCE in the region of Persis in the Southwestern region of the Iranian plateau. From Persis, Cyrus rose to prominence, defeated the Median, Lydian, and Neo-Babylonian empires, and established the Achaemenid empire. The empire was ruled by famous kings like Cyrus the Great, Darius I, Xerxes I, Xerxes II, and Darius II.

 

They ruled the empire with a centralized administration, constructed complex infrastructures, built roads and organized postal systems, and had an efficient military. Persian and Aramaic were the official languages of the kingdom, and Zoroastrianism was the official religion. By 330 BCE, the Achaemenid kingdom came under the control of Alexander the Great, and the Hellenistic period had begun. Thus, during the 65th and 5th centuries, Persia rose to prominence with the rise of the Achaemenid kingdom.

 

• Compare and contrast the religions of Judaism and Zoroastrianism.

 

Judaism is an Abrahamic religion followed by the Jewish people comprised of the religious, traditional, and cultural beliefs of its follower. It has had a long antiquity since the Bronze age. The followers of Judaism believe that there is only one and only God and they can communicate through their prophets. They also believed that God is always having an eye on them and he rewards them for their good deeds and at the same time will punish them for their evil deeds. Most of the followers of Judaism have faith that their Messiah will come one day and will act as the interpreter between them and their god.

 

Zoroastrianism has its origin in Iran and is considered to be amongst the oldest faith revolving around the teachings of the Iranian prophet Zoroaster. It is based on the dual cosmology of evil and is well-framed based on monotheistic ontology. The followers of Zoroastrianism believed in a benevolent deity and denotes it with Ahura Mazada, their supreme. They have faith in free will and judgment of their deeds after death. They also have faith in the concepts of demons, angels, hell as well as heaven. The religion also has had a very long antiquity since the 2nd millennium BCE.

Apart from it, some scholars believe that Judaism has its roots in the theologies of Zoroastrianism as the theology of universalism followed by the Jewish is among the core dogmas of the Zoroastrian