DIRECTIONS:
Select two of the topics below and write a 1 to 2 page essay in response to each prompt (In other words you will write 2 distinct essays). Your completed work should be 2 pages minimum and 4 pages maximum.
Points will be awarded based on content primarily. Additional considerations include: quality of examples provided in the essay and mechanics (grammar, spelling, essay construction). Hint: you need to organize your essay with an introduction, content, and conclusion. You are expected to proof read and spell check.
1. A culture's literature provides insight into the values and issues people face. In class, we deconstructed and discussed several examples of literature from antiquity (Flood Lore, The Greek Classics - Homer's Epic Poetry The Iliad and The Oedipus Trilogy of the Greek Playwright Sophocles, and/or The Legend of Remus and Romulus). Pick two from the examples listed above and write an essay comparing the themes explored in these pieces of literature. Why did these stories matter to the early human civilizations? Why do stories matter to us today?
2. Human societies all organize around some form of a government. Describe the differences between the Mesopotamian monarchical leadership, the Greek ideal of Democracy, and the Roman Republic. How did these ancient systems of government differ and why? Give examples related to how the government structure impacted the people. How did the founders of the United States government use the ideas of the republic and democracy to create the government structure we embrace in our country?
3. Hammurabi's code of justice laid the foundations of our current legal system. In class we explored this code and it is also referenced in your textbook. The values of a particular cultural are embed in a legal system. I want you to compare Hammurabi's code with that of Roman Law? How would you characterize Roman Law and justice in comparison to Hammurabi's code? What aspects of our justice system reflects some of the qualities of the Roman laws?