Mesopotamia Complex Societies

Human Evolution into Complex Societies

Human evolution in the Ancient Near East began when we ceased to hunt and gather; instead, humans settled down and began to develop agriculture, thus forming complex societies. Complex societies have laws, division of labor, and technology. Complex societies have laws because they establish order. Laws are beneficial because they distribute punishments to those disturbing the order. They are detrimental because the strength of the penalty depends on the social status of the offender. Complex societies also have a division of labor, so everyone isn’t doing the same job. Benefits of a division of labor include a larger variety of goods as well as accomplishing more work in less time. A major disadvantage

Social classes, religion, and consequences are ways the law validates Mesopotamia as a complex society. Social classes demonstrate Mesopotamia as a complex society. On the stone, there is an illustration of the sun god giving the king Hammurabi’s code, and the laws are written on the back. This demonstrates social classes because only those high up in social ranking could read; therefore, the picture on the front would show the illiterate population that the king had power and they must follow him and the laws. Mesopotamia’s complex society is also exhibited in their practice of religion. An image of the sun god giving the king the laws is displayed on the front of Hammurabi’s Code. This shows that the people of Mesopotamia believe in gods and believe that their king is a servant and friend of the sun god. Consequence is the third reason that laws prove Mesopotamia to be a complex society. If someone broke Hammurabi’s code they would be punished; for example, one of the laws says, “If a man steals valuables belonging to the god or to the palace, that man shall be killed, and also he who received the stolen goods from him shall he killed.” This gives

On the tomb, domesticating and breeding animals, culinary work, and pottery show division of labor, which began just after the thirtieth century BC. Domesticating and breeding animals was one of the most important jobs in the early complex societies. At the top of the tomb, there is a worker breeding animals. This illustration proves that domesticating and breeding animals was a significant occupation during this time, and the appearance of breeding demonstrates that the humans have reached an intellectual level where they are able to decide the traits they want in animals and breed them accordingly. Another valuable occupation in the early complex societies, though not as important as the domesticating and breeding animals, was culinary work. Baking and brewing are pictured in the middle of the tomb. This fact is significant because it proves that there was no longer a need for humans to consistently hunt for food. Pottery is one of the less important jobs in Egypt during the rising of complex societies. Pottery is illustrated the lowest on this particular tomb. Potters were not extremely important because pottery was not essential to living; however, the presence of pottery further proves the progression of complex societies because it can be used for trade. Division of