Ancient Egypt Essays (2051 words) - Predynastic Egypt,

Ancient Egypt The civilization of ancient Egypt is significant in several ways. Egyptian influence on other peoples was also significant. Ancient kingdoms of the Sudan adapted its HIEROGLYPHIC writing system and other cultural elements. The two last regions and the Bible are the most important antecedents of the modern western world that owe something to Egypt. The western alphabet is derived from a Phoenician one possibly modeled on Egyptian hieroglyphs; Egyptian ideas are found in some parts of the Bible; and Greek sciences and especially, art were originally influenced by Egypt. Finally, archaeology and historical writing have made Egypt a subject of great public interest, stimulating many books, novels, exhibits, and movies. The image of Egyptian history moves continually closer to reality as new facts are discovered and new kinds of researchanthropological and other--supplement more traditional archaeological techniques. Egypt's well preserved pyramids and cemeteries on the dry desert, and sturdy stone-built temples, have been studied by archaeologists since the early 19th century, but river-plain town mounds and all sites in densely settled northern Egypt now receive more attention than previously. Funerary and temple inscriptions survived well, but they paint an idealized, oversimplified picture of history and society. PAPYRUS exists and pottery fragments are rarer but more realistic. They now are better studied and are supplemented by new types of archaeological analysis. Environment strongly affected history. In a largely rainless climate, Egypt's high agricultural productivity depended on a long but very narrow floodplain; on average 19.2 km (11.9 mi) wide, it reached a maximum of 248 km (154.1 mi) in the Delta and was formed by the Nile's annual inundation. Periodic, long-term decreases in its volume might create social stress and political and military conflict; increases in volume increased food supplies and favored stability and centralized government. The deserts to the east and west had valuable stones and minerals and helped protect Egypt from much external attack or infiltration. Continuity was very strong. Egypt's religion, its concepts of social order, and its system of strong monarchical government remained fundamentally the same for over 3,000 years. Environmental stability helped, as did ethnic and linguistic continuity; unlike other areas of the Near East, Egypt did not periodically have to absorb large new populations with languages and ideas different from those already established. Equally important did all Egyptians share a powerful and tenacious worldview--an orderly cosmos, enfolding gods, humans, and nature, had been created in complete and perfect form at the beginning of time; its perfection held off the destructive, chaotic forces that surrounded it. Adherence to traditional forms of belief, politics, and culture was believed necessary to maintain perfection and prevent the collapse of the universe. Egyptian art and religious architecture (temples and tombs) closely followed established conventions of style and content because their role was t o depict this ideal order--and thus be one of several means ritually integrating Egypt with the cosmos. Change and innovation nevertheless occurred, sometimes violently. Egypt's periodic interludes of disunity were politically disorderly and economically painful in part because inherent problems and contradictions (for example, obvious weakness in perfect institutions such as kingship) came to the surface and demanded solutions. Less obviously, change also took place in more stable periods. Bureaucracies were periodically reformed or restructured in the interests of both royal power and fairer government. Religious concepts became increasingly rich and complex. Styles in art and architecture changed subtly to meet new needs and tastes, but all successful innovation required adherence to basic, traditional norms. Predynastic Egypt Egyptian history is usually divided into periods roughly corresponding to the 30 dynasties of kings listed by Manetho, an Egyptian chronicler of the 3d century BC. The period before c.3100 BC, a time for which no written records exist, is called the Predynastic era. Well before 5000 BC many communities of Paleolithic hunters and gatherers lived in the Nile valley and across savanna lands stretching far to the east and west. As rainfall decreased, especially after 4000 BC, the western lands became arid deserts and human settlement was confined to the valley and its fringes. However, here exotic fauna such as elephants and giraffes persisted as late as 2300 BC before finally retreating southward. Annually inundated, and with natural irrigation basins that retained floodwaters, the Nile valley

Romeo and Juliet For a different audience Essay Example

Romeo and Juliet For a different audience Essay Example Romeo and Juliet For a different audience Paper Romeo and Juliet For a different audience Paper Essay Topic: Romeo and Juliet William Shakespeares story of doomed lovers, Romeo and Juliet is a story for all generations. The presentation of the story depends on how the audience will react to it. For instance, the audience from Shakespeares time ranged from rich snobs to drunken groundlings. In my comic book version of his story, I used more modern words to help my audience; the people of today understand the story better. I adapted Shakespeares original to fit todays audience by modernizing the vocabulary, taking out a few of the less exciting elements and by showing the emotions of the characters through illustrations. The original version of Romeo and Juliet is only different from my own version in one aspect; the presentation. In William Shakespeares time, society was a lot different from the society we know today. The audience Shakespeare had to write for was very demanding. The audience consisted of two major groups; the upper class and the lower class. The upper class was a group of civilized people who were entertained so long as the story of the play was intriguing. The lower class was harder to deal with though. These citizens were most often arrogant drunks who would yell and throw things on stage if they were not pleased by the play. These groundlings surrounded the stage on three sides in section where there were no seats, which made them less comfortable and more threatening to the play. To control these audience members, Shakespeare had to please them. He did this by adding fight scenes and a bit of crude humor. As long as the groundlings were entertained, Shakespeare could run his play without interruption. William Shakespeare wrote his play, Romeo and Juliet masterfully to entertain both upper and lower class citizens. In my version of Romeo and Juliet, a comic book version, I exaggerated the action scenes and diminished the less exciting scenes of poetry. I did this because comic book readers do not read comics to enjoy poetry. Instead they are entertained by good illustrations of action as well as good dialogue to accompany them. For this reason, instead of using elaborate wording like Shakespeare had done to express emotion in each characters dialogue, I showed theyre facial expressions in well drawn illustrations. I also used illustrations to show the setting of the play clearly, instead of using long descriptions of each setting like in Shakespeares version. I could portray these important elements through detailed artwork, without words. The illustrations are a very important element in determining the quality of a comic book. Therefore, it was important that I told the story through pictures as well as dialogue, and not just through literature. In my version of Romeo and Juliet, I showed the power of not only words, but art as well. To adapt Shakespeares original masterpiece Romeo and Juliet to better suit my audience, I converted many ideas from the story into artwork. The artwork of a comic is what determines the quality of the book. I believe that in comic books, the wording used in the dialogue is not nearly as important as the artwork it goes along with. I used artwork to portray deeper or more extreme emotions rather than using quite elaborate words as Shakespeare had done in his version. By showing emotions along with scenery through illustrations, I can be sure that readers have an image of the story in their minds. Another adaptation I used to better suit the targeted audience was the changing of Old English words into more understandable Modern English words. Some passages in Romeo and Juliet are hard to understand by the young readers of today. Therefore, I modernized the wording and emphasized every scene through illustration, rather than confusing literature. I believe I have adapted the story of Romeo and Juliet effectively to suit my audience very well. My version of Romeo and Juliet follows the original version written by William Shakespeare despite the many differences in language and style of presentation. I altered the presentation of Romeo and Juliet to more effectively tell the story to readers of todays generations. Although the story is 400 years old, it is not and never will be an outdated story. As long as love exists, the story of Romeo and Juliet will be a story for all generations to enjoy.

How does due diligence differ from due care Why are both important Essay

How does due diligence differ from due care Why are both important - Essay Example nd, is most often defined as the test of liability for negligence whenever there is a question as to whether a person acted in an ordinary and reasonable manner in terms of certain instances considered to be an issue at the time. Each person who enters into a business arrangement, negotiation, or contract usually based upon certain everyday concerns that can be addressed without having to take extra ordinary measures. Due care insures that the agreement was not entered into in a haphazard manner by either party and that the contract or arrangement does not have any adverse effect on the parties concerned. Both due diligence and due care are important aspects of contractual agreements because these two factors, once proven to exist in any contract, could be used to negate or void any agreement based upon legal standards. It is therefore imperative that both parties entering into any agreement ensure that due care and diligence are properly exercised in the creation of the contract and its terms and