Justifying Rulership: a comparison of the
Olmec and Ubaid cultures There are many similarities in the rise of complex society in both Mesopotamia and Mesoamerica. From monumental structure building to well integrated trade, cultures such as the Olmec of Mesoamerica 1200 BC - 400 AD and the Ubaid of Mesopotamia 4500 BC-3000 BC, have many parallel elements relating to their success as complex societies and what one may refer to as states, despite thousands of years between the two. Comparatively, there are also key differences between the two, particularly the timescale in which complexity took place and the practices of agriculture. Most, if not all of these elements that factor into the success of a state are generally under control of the ruler of the state, but how do these rulers keep their subjects loyal and in order; justifying the vast inequalities …show more content…
The ability to convince one’s subjects that a ruler was truly in control of every aspect of their lives, in a way more meaningful than crops and trade, but aspects like fertility, life, and death was ultimately what justified the differences between commoners and elites, the basis of rulership. These ideas are linked to the religious political aspects of these states which were one in the same for these societies. Economic aspects were also important in a literal sense, for if a ruler cannot sustain their subjects they cannot be justified, but as seen in the Ubaid and more so in the Olmec, religion is truly what allowed rulers to gain the power necessary to construct the states studied today. The importance of economic functions within the Ubaid and Olmec are both essential to rulership because they sustain the population, but also work to procure valuable items and materials
Olmec and Ubaid cultures There are many similarities in the rise of complex society in both Mesopotamia and Mesoamerica. From monumental structure building to well integrated trade, cultures such as the Olmec of Mesoamerica 1200 BC - 400 AD and the Ubaid of Mesopotamia 4500 BC-3000 BC, have many parallel elements relating to their success as complex societies and what one may refer to as states, despite thousands of years between the two. Comparatively, there are also key differences between the two, particularly the timescale in which complexity took place and the practices of agriculture. Most, if not all of these elements that factor into the success of a state are generally under control of the ruler of the state, but how do these rulers keep their subjects loyal and in order; justifying the vast inequalities …show more content…
The ability to convince one’s subjects that a ruler was truly in control of every aspect of their lives, in a way more meaningful than crops and trade, but aspects like fertility, life, and death was ultimately what justified the differences between commoners and elites, the basis of rulership. These ideas are linked to the religious political aspects of these states which were one in the same for these societies. Economic aspects were also important in a literal sense, for if a ruler cannot sustain their subjects they cannot be justified, but as seen in the Ubaid and more so in the Olmec, religion is truly what allowed rulers to gain the power necessary to construct the states studied today. The importance of economic functions within the Ubaid and Olmec are both essential to rulership because they sustain the population, but also work to procure valuable items and materials