Ancient Civilizations :: History

While reading chapter one in our text book, I learned about the ancient civilizations that are no longer around. I noticed how different their cultures were from ours today. However, those are the foundations of who we are. Starting with the Paleolithic people, they were the groundwork for all humankind. Life for them was basic and simple. They didn?t wake up and wonder what they were going to wear. The men were hunters and gatherers, and the women were caregivers and producers. That is a theme relevant to even today. (men being dominant, etc?). As I read on, humans began to evolve after years and years. Soon humans were able to build structures using the post and lintel system. It seems the more we evolved the more we learned, and the more survival of the fittest played a part in the development of humans. I found the story of Gilgamesh very interesting. The fact he was seeking immortality but unable to attain it, represent humans always wanting things they can?t have. This is something everyone can relate to. It also incorporated the flood/ark part which I thought might have a connection with Noah?s ark ? especially since the time periods were very similar. One thing that sparked my curiosity, was how all of the ancient civilizations used hieroglyphics or symbols to communicate in writing. Today, many countries and cultures do not. They use the letters for their words and phrases. In fact, hieroglyphics is not really used in any place. The closest thing is probably Hebrew and Arabic which were derived from the ancient civilizations. Although not in America so much, religion is still a prevalent factor in cultures today just like they were in Egypt and Babylon. The old Kingdom had a very interesting method of ?judgement.? The Book of Dead was the evaluation was a huge part of their lives. Similar to our judgments found in some religions today. I think the middle kingdom was a time to learn and discover new theories and methods and time to figure out what works and what doesn?t. Prince Mentuhotep II was the leader and reunited Upper and lower Egypt. This was a great accomplishment because it brought peace and enabled the culture to prosper. The impression I got from the Old Kingdom to New, was that the old kingdom maintained traditions in the books.