Mesopotamia is situated between Euphrates and Tigris rivers in an enormous expanse of delta. Actually, this is the area where the fountainhead of modern societies surfaced. Thus, the people of Mesopotamia discovered the value in dry land and started captivating it to draw nourishment, sustenance and provisions from it. Additionally, tanks for water storage started being a common thing in the area and they even discovered and started companies that could pump and tap oil from underground. Today, most of Mesopotamia is in what we refer to as Iraq. Thus, in many ways Mesopotamia is credited for the order present today including the existence of countries. Mesopotamia is in the main accredited with being the initial point of which all civil societies have borrowed from (Jackson 4). Many things had been achieved in the world including animal domestication for food and labor, art creation for many years, laws formulation in the form of folkways and mores, establishment of agriculture in 8000B.C and many other components of human culture but not civilization. Thus, Mesopotamia is referred to as cradle of civilization because they are the initiators of civilization. Furthermore, they come about with most of the things that are attached to the ancient societies like Greece, Rome and Egypt and basic things in modern society too. For example, the wheel was discovered in Mesopotamia and this has allowed versed inventions on the same including cars, bicycles, gears, carts, horse, and pulleys among others. Lastly, Mesopotamia is referred to as the frame of civilization as it rose to distinction, prominence, and fame as reverse as the Early Bronze Age. It is also important to note that the first writing skills were learnt in Mesopotamia.
What does the cod of Hammurabi tell us about equality in the Mesopotamian society?
Taking a critical look at law development during the early history as it was in Mesopotamia, it is evident that movements gearing towards equitable practices and equality existed. There is an idea of “seignior” in the code of Hammurabi that refers to “master” or “lord”, justly classifying the primary code targets. Therefore, Hammurabi’s code of law was important in a land that was characterized as having many resources, for example, Mesopotamia, where these laws codified the existing hierarchy and the strict social more. However, the cord of Hammurabi championed for equality in the Mesopotamian society. This is so because every time a seignior could come about with false testimony, especially when it involves love, they were to be put to death. This is a form of equality as because despite the fact that the laws presented and preserved by Hammurabi meant to serve not the common man or peasants but the upper echelon of society, it still respected everyone’s life. However, there is no equitability in this as the punishment given to a “seignior” when he offended another “seignior” was not the same with the punishment presented to them when they offended a common man. When a “seignior” could break the bone of another “Seignior”, theirs could be broken too. But when they broke a bone of a common man, it could be compensated with paying one mina silver. This is clear inequality as life should never be compared to material things.
Works Cited
Jackson J. Spielvogel. Western civilization (Eighth Edition). Print.
