AP World History: Summer Assignment
Chapter 1 1. Geography and climate play a major role in the development of early human societies, for instance, Middle Eastern grains did not grow at all in the humidity of equatorial West Africa. Rather than cultivating grains, the geography and climate limitations made it more suitable to grow rice, pearl millet, and sorghum in West Africa. The barriers that the environment set led to the diversity of human culture and diets based on the condition of the weather correlating with their geological position. With the climate favoring agriculture, scientists believe that early humans abandoned foraging due to global warming, and began to farm instead. The benefits of cultivating crops helped …show more content…
Mesopotamia, Egypt, and Indus Valley civilizations all had their own components in order to keep their society prosperous. Mesopotamians were unified under the priest, the religious figure of society, but then was passed on to the king, who took all the responsibilities of the kingdom. The Mesopotamian civilization also developed a social structure based on a person’s wealth and their contribution to society. In addition, they developed a complex set of laws that had multiple levels of punishments based on a person’s status in society; this was the Law Code of Hammurabi. With all these components, Mesopotamia summed up to be a well organized and powerful civilization. The Egyptian civilization was also unified under one powerful and religious figure, the pharaoh. Egyptian society was far less complex when compared to the Mesopotamians; Egyptians did not have a class division or a system of laws. Egyptian women also had freedom in society then Mesopotamian women. With these lenient components, people in the society most likely are more loyal to their superior. While the Indus Valley civilization weren’t unified under one leader, the society did prosper in their technology and their construction. Buildings were constructed with mud bricks along with organized street systems that resemble modern day streets. The Indus Valley civilization also developed a complex writing system, still un-deciphered today. With their great advances in technology, the Indus Valley civilization was truly a prosperous one out of the three others, but they did not have the uniformity like the other