Compare and Contrast Mesopotamia & Egypt

Compare & Contrast Essay
Mesopotamia and Egypt
By: Jessenia Carranza

Egypt and Mesopotamia are similar because they share the same concept of having a single rule, although Egypt is a theocracy and Mesopotamia is a monarchy; and both are divided into social classes, the difference being that women in Egypt have more right than Mesopotamia. Mesopotamia and Egypt are both based upon a single ruler. The Akkedians, for example, had king Sargen, who formed the first empire; or even Hammurabi, the ruler of Babylonia, he created the fist code of laws, which were followed by his people. The Akkedians had to have a single ruler because an empire doesn’t form itself; it needs a leader, which is the king. Similar to this is Menes the king of Egypt, he united Lower and Upper Egypt and built the first dynasty. Although Mesopotamia and Egypt were both based upon a single ruler, Egypt was a dynasty and passed down the power to the son, whereas Mesopotamia was just a monarchy didn’t necessarily pass down the power to the son. In Egypt the pharaohs, were believed to be gods, therefore it was a theocracy and he had total control. Unlike Egypt, Mesopotamia was a monarchy, and it was believed that their ruler descended from the gods, but they were not gods. Another similarity between these two societies is that they are divided into social classes. In both of them, the King is in the first class followed by wealthy merchants and then the farmers, unskilled workers, and all the other people. Basically the social classes in Mesopotamia and Egypt are based on power, money and skills. One difference between both of these societies is that they Egypt give women more rights then the women in Mesopotamia. In Mesopotamia women could only own property and could divorce their husbands. Meanwhile, in Egypt women could not only divorce and own property, but also they could also manage and sell properties and trade. In short, while in Mesopotamia women’s rights were restricted, in Egypt women’s right were equal to men.