Cyber Day Essays #1

Social Hierarchy of the Ancient Egyptians Lives

 

               Ancient Egypt was a highly successful civilization that survived at least 3000 year, even longer than Christianity and Judaism has been around. Life in Egypt depended on your social ranking, which determined your job and wealth. Egyptians believed in gods and goddesses that controlled natural events, flooding etc.

              The different social rankings can be interpreted as a pyramid. Of course, at the top was the pharaoh and his wives and family. The pharaoh was basically the king or leader of Egypt. He had the titles, "lord of the two lands", and "high priest of every temple." The pharaoh was believed to be in communication with the gods and goddesses. He would communicate with them on behalf of humans. And he meet with the gods in the afterlife. The pharaoh was worshipped by the people as a god and was all powerful. The pharaoh was responsible for keeping harmony and balance of the universe in order, for example not allowing floods to occur or a drought. If a natural event such as an earthquake or drought was to occur, the pharaoh would be held accountable and he would be impeached from his reign and a new pharaoh would take his place. He or she was also in charge of collecting taxes, defending Egypt, owning all of the land, making laws, and conquering other lands. Each Pharaoh had multiple wives, one of which usually was his sister. 

            The next category of people were the upper class, containing government officials, high priests, and etc. They were often known as "White Kilt Class," because of their clean non-dirty shirts that other people would get dirty doing their job. They were quite wealthy and able to purchase new clothes to change into, where as other down the social pyramid could not.

            Following the upper class on the pyramid were the soldiers. Soldiers back in Ancient Egypt could have rood in chariots pulled by horses and used wooden weapons with bronze tips. The bronze tips used shows an advance in their civilization, resulting in being able to melt metals to create tools.

            Then there were the scribes. Scribes were responsible for keeping written records, telling stories, writing poetry, and describing anatomy and medical treatments. They wrote in Hieroglyphics which was made up of pictures and paintings of actions rather than an alphabet. Scribes used ink to write on papyrus.  

            Continuing down the pyramid, next is the merchants. They accepted bags of grain as a form of payment. They eventually invented a form of currency after centuries of trading and bartering.

            Artisans came after merchants. Artisans usually carved statues and reliefs, all having to do with religion and military events/battles. They also painted scenes of what the afterlife was believed resemble. Most of the paintings were painted at the same side angle.

           Then there were the farmers, raising wheat, barley, lentils, and onions. They benefited greatly by the invention of irrigation and the Nile river, after all the Nile provided life for all Egyptians.

          Finally, at the bottom of the social ranking pyramid, are the slaves. Slaves lived with their masters and were considered part of the family, that did the work that others don’t want to do. They usually did household chores, like child raising. Slaves in Ancient Egypt were nothing like the slavery in the south. They weren't whipped and they were treated as a part of the family. Slaves probably liked their job any way.

 

Egyptian Life Centered Around the Nile River

          The Nile river flowed for South to North, which is the opposite of every other river in the world. Without the Nile the Egyptian civilization would not have lasted nearly as long as it did. It was an essential part of the average everyday life of an Egyptian. Farmers needed it for irrigation to grow their crops, without a continuous supply of food, the civilization could have come to an end or not have advanced to the extent it did.

           The Nile was a source for drinking, irrigation, bathing, and transportation. It provided rich silt every July for farmers, and it flooded every July. It emptied out into the Mediterranean Sea. The entire civilization was centered around the river, and 95 percent of the population lived along the river.

           As the Egyptian society advanced, the sailboat was invented. The Nile was then used for transportation. Egyptians would use the current to float supplies to another area, but never could get the boat back using the river. Once the sailboats were created, people could float the boats back up stream, making transportation faster.