Chapter 2 - Section 21
Questions for Reflection
- What does it mean when historians say that the ancient Near Eastern civilizations of Egypt and Mesopotamia were primary, archaic, and mythopoeic?
- Explain why the flooding of the Nile River as so important to the rise of civilization in Egypt? What was the character of the flooding and of Egypt’s geographical location, and how did it shape the outlook of the Egyptians?
- Identify and explain the significance of the Rosetta Stone and the Egyptian’s solar calendar.
- Explain the creation of the Old Kingdom, the significance of Upper and Lower Egypt, and the idea of kingship in ancient Egypt.
- Describe the essential elements of the Egyptian government, society, economy, art, and architecture (including pyramids and obelisks).
- What caused the events of the First Intermediate Period, and how did these affect the reunification of Egypt in the Middle Kingdom?
- What caused the events of the Second Intermediate Period, and how did these affect the reunification of Egypt in the New Kingdom?
- Explain the social and economic impact of the New Kingdom’s large army and empire? How did the policies followed by Hatshepsut and Amenhotep IV disrupt this military expansion, traditional concepts of the kingship, and traditional religion?
- Describe the creation stories of the Heliopolitan theology and the significance of ka, ba, and ma’at.
- What aspects of the Heliopolitan theology, Memphite theology, and Thebian theology became the source for concepts and stories that later appeared in Hebrew and Christian theology?