Ap World History Short Answer

Egypt and Mesopotamia are similar in their polytheistic beliefs and use of kingship. They differed in their view of women and the afterlife.

Similarities.

Polytheistic-

Mesopotamia: Believed in a number gods, and also believed in demons created by the gods. Each city worshipped gods who ruled rivers, skies, and and more. Ex. Anu, the god of the sky and father of all gods.

Egypt: Amon-Ra and Osiris. They identified Amon-Ra with the sun. He was said to have played a role in the creation of the universe, but his primary responsibility was ruling over the universe after its creation. The only other god of equal significance was Osiris, the god of the underworld and the dead. However, rather than symbolizing evil or darkness, Osiris was charged with guarding the souls of Egyptians during the afterlife and making immortality possible

Kingship-

Mesopotamia: Kings led. (Code of Hammurabi) Kings were powerful enough representatives of god to speak their will themselves. Some Kings claimed to have divine power, others did not.

Egypt: Led by Pharaohs, who were believed to be the sun god.

Differences.

View of women-

Mesopotamia: Women could not exercise much personal sovereignty in ancient Mesopotamia. The social structure defined women in relation to their families. Society viewed a woman as her father's daughter or her husband's wife -- and not as an individual. 

Egypt: Legal rights extended to women in most situations, which made the nation's societal structure more egalitarian than most others of the time. Women could buy, sell and manage property. They had ownership rights and could acquire livestock, money, goods, slaves and servants. Egyptian women could work outside of the home and build wealth.

View of afterlife-

Mesopotamia: Negative view of afterlife. Believed descent to underworld, thought gods were cruel because of unpredictable weather patterns and devastating flooding of Tigris and Euphrates rivers.

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