Download Unit 2 – Foundations of Civilization Name: Grade on Unit #2 Test

UNIT 2 – FOUNDATIONS OF CIVILIZATION
Name:
Grade on Unit #2 Test:
All of this
information must
be completed to
turn in the
assignment
Current Grade in class:
Parent Signature:
Description of assignment
Because you did not pass the Unit # 2 – Foundations of Civilization assessment, you will need to
complete additional assignments to help raise your current World History grade. You will need to
complete each of the following activities in their entirety. Partial credit will not be given. You may
use your notes, online resources, classmates, or you may come for help during tutorial.
For each assignment successfully and accurately completed, you will receive +3 points on that
objective’s portion of the test. Therefore, your test score can be raised a total of +9 points. For
example, if you received a 17/31 (54%) on the first test, you will now receive a 26/31(84%).
Due Date: This assignment is due Friday, March 14. NO EXCEPTIONS!
ROME & GREECE Three Democracies: Athens, Rome and America
Following the format of Ancient Athens and Modern Day America, complete this chart about Ancient
Rome. You can find the answers in your reading on “Key Features” and “Rome Becomes a Republic”
Ancient Athens
Ancient Rome
Modern America
Type of Democracy
Direct Democracy- all
citizens made and voted
on laws
Representative Democracy- Citizens elect
representatives to make and vote on laws
Citizenship
Based on Athenian
ancestry. Denied to
aliens.
Based on American birth and the
naturalization process.
Women’s Rights
Women denied voting and
other rights.
Equal Rights.
Slavery
Permitted.
Prohibited.
Write one sentence describing how these three democracies are similar:
Write one sentence describing how these three democracies are different:
Government of the Roman Republic
What is a republic anyway?


Latin term meaning _________________
Also means _______________________
Separation of Powers



Like the _____, Roman Republic was also a tripartite
government
Divides a government into different _______
No one person or groups holds all of the _________
Checks and Balances



Each branch holds power to prevent others from having too
much control
In Rome, Senators (legislative) voted on consuls (executive)
Ex: ____________________________________
__________ - There were two; they
were heads of the government and
commanders-in-chief
__________ - Can be appointed to rule
single-handedly for up to 6 months
(nominated by consul)
Makes the laws
Roman Republic
____________________ - declared war
and passed some laws; run by
upperclasses
__________ - elite and more prestigious
than assemblies; __________ body
(foreign policy)
United States
____________________ - 2 year terms,
all bills dealing with taxes
__________ - 6 year terms, specialize
in foreign policy
Judicial Branch
Interprets the laws
Roman Republic
__________ - high judges; 2 year
terms
__________ - tried court cases
United States
____________________ - determines
whether laws are constitutional
__________ - variety at state, county, and
city level
Legal Code
Written rules
Roman Republic
__________ - posted in forum; meant to
protect plebeians from patricians
Executive Branch
Enforces and carries out the laws
Roman Republic
Legislative Branch
United States
__________ - adopted in 1787;
amended 27 times
United States
__________ - Chosen by electoral
college
Citizenship
__________ - assumes presidency if
President is no longer able to serve
__________ - determined through
ancestry
Who can participate
Roman Republic
United States
__________ - determined by birth or
naturalization process
DISTRIBUTION OF POWER Egypt, Rome, India and the Fertile Crescent
Ancient Egyptian Social Structure
Egypt’s government took shape during the Old Kingdom. At the head of the government was the king, who eventually became known as the pharaoh (Feroh). The term pharaoh literally means “great house.” Pharaohs had absolute power in Egypt. They owned all the land in the country, and their word was
law. In addition, pharaohs acted as judges and the leaders of Egypt’s army. One reason for the pharaoh’s great power was the belief that he was god. The
ancient Egyptians believed that the pharaoh was really god in human form. As such, people thought that the pharaoh was responsible for Egypt’s
prosperity. He and his priests had to perform elaborate rituals everyday to ensure that the sun would rise, the Nile would flood, and crops would grow.
Because the pharaoh was thought to be a god, religion and government were closely intertwined in the Old Kingdom. Egypt was a theocracy, a state ruled
by religious leaders. After the pharaoh the most powerful people in Egypt were government officials, priests and priestesses, scribes, military leaders,
landowners and doctors. Government officials were highly influential in Egypt. Powerful as the pharaoh was, he could not rule Egypt alone. The kingdom
was simply too big and too complex for one person to govern. To aid him in ruling, the pharaoh surrounded himself by a well-established bureaucracy, a
highly structured organization managed by officials. In Egypt, many of these officials were the pharaoh’s relatives. Their duties-and by extension their
influence- varied widely. Some officials served as governors of small territories within Egypt. Others were irrigation supervisors or crop inspectors. Census
takers kept track of their kingdoms population, while tax collectors gathered the grain and good that supplied the kingdom. All together these officials kept
Egypt running smoothly and efficiently. The next level of Egyptian social structure included artisans, craftsman, and merchants. These were people who
made and sold the goods, such as jewelry and clothing, used by others both in Egypt and other lands. The largest part of Egyptian society, 90 percent of the
population, was coincidently the least powerful group of people in Egypt. This group was made up of peasant farmers. Although they spent most of their
time in the fields, these farmers could also be recruited the build large public works, such as pyramids, during the flood season. Farmers were also
sometimes asked to work in quarries or mines to serve in the army.
Ancient Rome
In The early days of the Roman Republic, the heads of a few aristocratic families, known as patricians, elected officials from among themselves. Organized
in clans, patrician families controlled every aspect of society- politics, religion, economics, and the military. Patricians maintained their power through a
patronage system in which wealthy Romans provided financial, social, or legal support for lower ranking families in return in return for political backing
and loyalty. Almost from the beginning of the Republic, however, the common people, or plebeians (pli-bee-uhns), challenged the patricians for power.
When invaders threatened Rome in 494 BC, the plebeians seceded, or withdrew. They left Rome and refused to fight until changes were made. Realizing
they would not have an army without the plebeians, the patricians grudgingly expanded plebian rights. Once they received these new rights the plebeians
returned to defend the city. Back in Rome, they formed their own assembly, the Plebeian Council. That assembly had the responsibility of over seeing and
protecting Plebeian affairs. To guarantee their rights, the plebeians also gained the right to elect officials known as tribunes. It was the tribunes job to
protect the plebeians against unjust treatment by patrician officials. Eventually, these tribunes even gained the right to veto, or ban, laws that seemed
harmful or unjust to Plebeians. Later, around 450 B.C. The plebian forced the patricians to have all laws written down. The laws were displayed in the
Roman forum, or central square, on twelve large bronze tablets. As a result, the code became known as the code of the Twelve Tables. Because the laws
were posted, patrician judges could not make decisions based on their own opinions or on secret laws. However, one of the newly posted laws, was a ban
on marriage between patricians and plebeians- an attempt by the patricians to preserve their special status.
Ancient India
The ancient people of the Indus River made up one of the oldest civilizations on earth. The civilization was made up of four distinct social statuses. These
social categories were called Varna’s. Each Varna played a particular role in society. These roles are alluded to in the passage of the Rigveda that describes
the creation of humans. According to this passage, people of the four Varna’s were created from the body of a single being.The part of the body from
which each Varna was created was tied to its duties. For example, Brahmins came from the mouth, the source of speech and wisdom, and thus were priests.
Over centuries, the four Varna’s were divided into hundreds of smaller divisions called castes. Membership in a caste determined what jobs one could hold
and whom determined what jobs one could hold and whom one could marry. A social hierarchy developed in which some castes had some privileges than
others, though the order of castes could and did change frequently. Not everyone in society belonged to a caste, though. A group commonly referred to as
the untouchables had none of the protections of caste law and could perform only jobs that other castes did not, such as handling dead animals.
The Fertile Crescent
An ancient tribe, the Amorites, settled along the Euphrates river, near modern day Bagdad, This settlement was one of the most powerful cities in the
region, it was called Babylon In 1792 BC the Amorite king Hammurabi became king of Babylon. A brilliant warrior, he united all of Mesopotamia in what
became known as the Babylonian Empire, named for its capital. Hammurabi’s skills were not limited to the battlefield. He was also an able ruler and
administrator who oversaw building projects and improved the tax collection system to pay for them. He also increased trade so that the empire would
grow wealthy. Hammurabi absorbed elements of the earlier culture of the region. He honored the old Sumerian gods and allowed priests to retain their
power and influence. During his reign, schools continued to teach the Sumerian language and cuneiform writing. Hammurabi is most famous, though, for
his code of laws. Hammurabi’s Code consists of 282 laws dealing with everything from trade and theft to injury and murder. The code was important not
only because it was thorough but also because it was written down for all to see. People across the empire could read exactly what actions were crimes.
During Hammurabi’s long reign, Babylon became Mesopotamia’s greatest city. Yet after his death, Babylonian power declined. In less than two centuries,
the Babylonian Empire had fallen.
Answers must be in complete sentences. Answers must be at least two sentences each. Use an additional sheet if necessary
1.What was the social structure of ancient Egypt?
2.How did the pharaoh’s position as spiritual and political leader influence his power?
3. What passage describes the creation of humans in Ancient India? How does this passage determine social status? What group was considered the lowest
caste?
4. Name one similarity between ancient Egypt’s social class and ancient Rome’s social class.
5. Name one similarity between Hammurabi’s code of laws and the Twelve Tables?
6. Think critically: how does law enforce social structures?
ACCEPTABLE & UNACCEPTABLE BEHAVIOR The Law of the Twelve Tables
Background: The Law of the Twelve Tables, compiled sometime around 450 BC, was Rome’s first written law code.
Organized by patricians at the insistence of the plebeians, the laws included in the code deal largely with trials which were key
issues in relations between the two classes in Roman society. As a result, studying the Law of the Twelve Tables can reveal a
great deal about how the two classes got along, and thus about early Roman society. Read the sample laws from the tables
below. As you read, think about: who created the laws, the possible points of view of patricians and plebeians on each law,
and how the laws would have affected members of each class.
From Table 1: If anyone summons a man before the magistrates, he must go. If the man
summoned does not go, let the one summoning him call the bystanders to witness and then take
him by force.
From Table III: One who has confessed a debt, or against whom judgment has been pronounced,
shall have thirty days to pay it in. After that forcible seizure of his person is allowed. The creditor
shall bring him before the magistrate. Unless he pays the amount of the judgment or some one in
the presence of the magistrate interferes in his behalf as protector the creditor so shall take him
home and fasten him in stocks or fetters. He shall fasten him with not less than fifteen pounds of
weight or, if he choose, with more. If the prisoner choose, he may furnish his own food. If he does
not, the creditor must give him a pound of meal daily; if he choose he may give him more.
From Table XI: Marriage should not take place between plebeians and patricians.
Identify the following information about this document:
Author
Author: Who produced the material studied?
Place & Time
Place and Time: Where and when was the document produced?
Prior Knowledge:
Prior Knowledge: What do you know about or need to know to understand the document?
Audience:
Audience: From whom was the document produced?
Reason:
Reason: Why was it produced?
The Main Idea:
The Main Idea: What is the document mostly about?
Significance:
Significance: What is the importance of the document in history?
Answer the following question, utilizing both information from the document as well as prior knowledge about the
patricians and plebeians. Your response should be at least one paragraph with 5-7 sentences.
Is this document effective at solving problems between the classes of citizens in Rome? Why or why not?