Cyber Day Assignment- Essays

            The social hierarchy in Ancient Egypt was very interesting. It consisted of eight groups of people. A hierarchy is a person or group of people that out rank people below them that don’t have as much power as they do. We use a pyramid that shows who out ranked who in Ancient Egypt. The specific person who out ranked everybody and had total power was the Pharaoh. The Pharaoh has all power and respect because he was thought of as a religious and political leader. He owned all of Egypt, including upper and lower, made all laws, collected taxes, and was greatly respected. A Pharaoh was so respected by the ancient Egyptians because they thought the Pharaoh had contact with all the gods they worshipped. They believed that the Pharaoh had power given to him by the gods and that he was honored with that power. They thought that the gods chose this specific woman or man to rule over Egypt so they praised him or her.

            Below the Pharaoh on the Hierarchy Pyramid, we have Government Officials which are the Priests, Nobles, Physicians, and Engineers. These people come below the Pharaoh because they had power but not nearly as much as the Pharaoh did. They were known as “The White Kilt.” Below the upper class, we have the soldiers. The soldiers used wooden weapons and rode chariots to protect Egypt. Below the soldiers, we have the scribes. The scribes were the people responsible for keeping records, telling stories, writing poetry, describing anatomy, and medical treatments. Next, under the scribes we have the merchants. The merchants used the money and barter system. They accepted bags of grain for payment and later accepted coinage. Underneath of the merchants we have the artisans. The artisans were the ones who carved statues showing military battle, the afterlife, and other scenes. Underneath of the artisans we have the farmers. The Farmers raised wheat, barley, lentils, onions, and they benefited from the irrigation of the Nile. At the end and bottom of the pyramid we have slaves and servants. The slaves and servants helped the wealthy with the household and child raising duties. They didn’t live a horrible life, but weren’t exactly free to do what they wanted to.

            The importance of the Nile River in Egypt is a whole other topic. The Nile was a river that provided the biggest source of life for the ancient Egyptians. Without the Nile, the Egyptians might have been very troubled. The Nile provided the Egyptians with the ability of drinking, irrigating, bathing, and transportation. The Nile gave off water for the Egyptians to drink from and bath from. It also helped farmers with irrigating. It helped anyone with transportation because wooden sailboats were invented and could travel up and down the river. Every July though, the river floods. To prevent houses and such from being washed away, Ancient Egyptians had a breakthrough of technological advances to make sure the land wasn’t damaged. This process pushed water away from land and to deserted areas where things wouldn’t be damaged. Along with every July flood, every October the river brought in rich soil which was fantastic for farmers.