Greek and how it differs from Egyptian Civilization

One of the biggest reasons why these two civilizations had these differences is due to their geography. The Egyptians had easy access to large stones that they could bring in to their country and use them to erect such monumental structures. Both the civilizations are known to have been extensive traders, however, there were certain differences in the way that they traded due to their geographical location. The Egyptians had the Nile to their advantage and their production was mostly agricultural. The Greeks had a much harsher climate and their focus was instead on the development of commercial law and merchant class. This is why the Greeks had to develop much more complex trade routes than the Egyptians did (Buitron-Oliver, 56-61).

One of the main differences between these two civilizations was in the realm of politics. In the political sphere, we find that the Egyptian civilization had stronger emphasis on central authority, while the Greeks had a more decentralized structure, where powers were distributed over the cities and the states as well. The polis is often described as a complex hierarchical society that was built around the notion of citizenship. Hundreds and thousands of peasant households were all part of the Greek polis and none of them were dependent on a central government. None of the household in the polis ever paid any kind of a tax nor did they have to revert to the government in order to provide them with the basic necessities, which is very much unlike the major forms of governments that we have today. This is one of the biggest factors that differentiate the Greek polis from other ancient states: the equation of the polis with the completed citizen body and the reservation of the governmental functions to a very small group. The polis was a society that was isolated from the rest of the world and it was not much influenced by the external forces. This is greatly different from Egyptian politics, as we find that the pharaohs had a more conservative approach. The pharaoh was the main ruler of Egypt and unlike the Greek politics; the general public did not have any say or representation in the government. This was also due to the religious differences in between ancient Egypt and ancient Greek. The Egyptian believed that the pharaoh was some sort of a god who was answerable to some higher gods. The Ancient Egyptians believed that there was more to life than just the life on earth.

One of the most apparent aspects of both these civilization that sets them apart at a glance is the differences in their art. The Egyptians were more involved in creating great monumental and gaudy structures, while the Greeks were more involved in creating smaller, more literary pieces of art. It is important to know that Egyptian artists followed the implementation of certain stylistic laws in their art especially in the creation of statues. The Pharaohs made them work with strict rules ...