Foundations of Western Civilization

1. Foundations of Western Civilization To 1000 B.C.E.

2. Prehistoric Human Societies • The Paleolithic (“Old Stone”) Age, c. 40,000-c. 10,000 B.C.E. • Hunter-gatherers • Trade (e.g. seashells) • Technology • firemaking • bone and stone weapons and jewelry • Art and religion: Cave paintings and female figurines

3. The Neolithic (“New Stone”) Revolution, c. 10,000-c. 4000 B.C.E. • Transition from a nomadic existence as hunter-gatherers to more settled lifestyle • Invention of agriculture • Domestication of animals

4. Increasingly gender-based division of labor • Specialized crafts (metallurgy and weaving) • Emergence of social hierarchy: patriarchal organization of state and society would become the norm in the West • Invention of irrigation (c. 6500 B.C.E.) facilitated establishment of settled agricultural communities in the Fertile Crescent

5. Mesopotamia, c. 4000-1000 B.C.E.(Bronze Age) • The Tigris and Euphrates • Flood control and irrigation • Trade, migration, movement of armies • The West’s first large-scale civilization • Cities containing large public buildings • Crop diversification and diverse crafts • Organized central governments • Writing

6. Religion and Mythology • Polytheistic religious belief reflected harshness of war and struggle with unpredictable environment • War-like gods who possessed total control over human lives • Sacrifices, rituals, temples (ziggurats) • Power of priests and priestesses

7. Epic of Gilgamesh • Search for immortality by semihistorical King Gilgamesh of Uruk after death of his friend Enkidu • Realizes that only gods enjoy immortality; humans must content themselves with fame derived from performing mighty deeds • Story of a devastating flood in later version

8. Sumer • Earliest cities in southern Mesopotamia • Agriculture and trade (as far away as India) • Sumerians • Developed the wheel • Created first writing system (cuneiform) • Devised a mathematical system and astronomy

9. The Akkadian Empire, c. 2350-2200 B.C.E. • World’s first empire • Sargon the Great conquered Sumerian cities and territories westward to the Mediterranean, in part to ensure metal supplies • Destroyed by invading Gutians during reign of Sargon’s grandson

10. The Kingdom of Assyria, c. 1900 B.C.E. • Became dominant city-state due to control of trade between Anatolia and Mesopotamia • Encouragement of private enterprise rather than state monopoly

11. The Kingdom of Babylon and King Hammurabi’s Code (18th century B.C.E.) • Earliest known written laws • King’s responsibility to maintain order and justice • Basis of international commercial law: regulated contracts, interest, mortgages, etc. • Criminal penalties harsh and reflective of social hierarchy

12. Egypt and the Levant, c. 3050-1000 B.C.E. • Egyptian Civilization • Geography as Destiny • The Nile • Protected by deserts on the east and west • Predictable annual flooding • Stability and Unity • Developed in relative isolation into a prosperous and stable kingdom

13. Old Kingdom, c. 2687-2190 B.C.E. • Unification of Upper and Lower Egypt by King Menes, c. 3100-3000 B.C.E. • Controlling the river • Astronomical charts • Writing system: hieroglyphs

14. Religion and Government • About 2,000 gods in the Egyptian pantheon • All powerful kings were believed to be human incarnations of gods • Only the king could express the ultimate truth and justice, or ma’at

15. The Afterlife • Belief in an immortal soul and reward for those who lived a just life • Mummification • Provisions for the afterlife in burial chambers of those who could afford it, including the Book of the Dead

16. The Pyramids • Royal burial tombs reflected the kings’ power in political and religious life • King Djoser’s Step Pyramid at Saqqara (c. 2650 B.C.E.) • King Cheop’s Great Pyramid at Giza (c. 2575 B.C.E.)

17. Middle Kingdom, c. 2061-1665 B.C.E. • Diminished flooding of the Nile and famines around 2350 B.C. E. led to civic disruption and the loss of royal authority • Regional governors withdrew support of the king, spawning political breakdown and the First Intermediate Period (c. 2190-2061 B.C.E.) • King Mentuhotep II’s reunification of Egypt initiated the Middle Kingdom • Territorial expansion and increased trade contacts

18. New Kingdom, c. 1569-1081 B.C.E. • Second Intermediate Period (c. 1664-1570 B.C.E.) • Famines • Invasion by the Hyksos • Thebans from Upper Egypt reunited Egypt as New Kingdom • Warrior pharaohs further extended Egypt’s borders and trade contacts

19. New Kingdom aberrations • Queen Hatshepsut (r. 1502-1482 B.C.E): Only woman to rule as pharaoh (and female king) • Akhenaten (Amenhotep IV, r. 1372-1355 B.C.E.) and Nefertiti • Introduced cult of one central god, Aten, and moved capital to Amarna • Wife tried to restrain his zeal, but his devotion to Aten undermined his effectiveness as ruler • Tutankhamen (r. 1355-1346 B.C.E.): restored worship of traditional gods

20. Other Bronze Age Civilizations • The Peoples of the Levant • The Canaanites • Dominated trade between the Mediterranean and Near East • Developed first alphabet, c. 1600 B.C.E. • The Hebrews • Origins, according to the Book of Genesis in the Old Testament • Abraham and migration from Ur to Palestine (c. 1900 B.C.E.) • Loosely organized into twelve tribes • Abraham’s covenant with the Hebrew god Yahweh

21. Exodus • Hebrews moved into Egypt under Abraham’s descendant Joseph. By 13th century B.C.E., they were enslaved to work on the pharaoh’s building projects. • Moses led Hebrews out of Egyptian bondage, and on Mount Sinai he reestablished their covenant with Yahweh (c. 1250 B.C.E.)

22. The Hebrew Covenant • The Ten Commandments • The Torah (Pentateuch): first five books of the Bible • Hebrew Monotheism • Idea of Yahweh as the one God developed in the centuries after the period of Exodus • Fundamental influence of Biblical texts and monotheism on Christianity and Islam, and of Hebrew law on Western ethical tradition

23. Bronze-Age Greece and Anatolia, c. 2200-1000 B.C.E.

24. The Hittite Kingdom, c. 1750-1200 B.C.E. • Maintained dominance by controlling trade routes and raw materials, especially metals • Military prowess • Sack of Babylon, 1595 B.C.E. • Prevented Egyptian domination of the region by stopping Ramesses II at the Battle of Kadesh (c. 1274 B.C.E.)

25. Minoan Crete, c. 2200-1400 B.C.E. • Palace society: centered on independent palace complexes that controlled the religious, economic, and political life of their communities • Mediterranean polyculture • Integrated the cultivation of grapes, olives, and grain • Other cultural features • Highly specialized crafts • Redistributive economy regulated from palace complexes • Sophisticated artwork depicting scenes of leisure and sports

26. Mycenaean Greece, c. 1800-1000 B.C.E. • Earliest mainland Greek culture characterized by independent hilltop fortifications that competed with each other for resources and territory • Redistributive economy similar to that on Crete • Warfare a central preoccupation, perhaps even eclipsing religion

27. The Sea Peoples and Calamities of c. 1200-1000 B.C.E Exact reasons remain unknown, but region’s political equilibrium was upset and most centers were dramatically wiped out. In the resulting Dark Ages, most traces of Civilization disappeared for several centuries.