Monday, January 24, 2011

Uruk Ch. 1 & 2 and Societies

In “Uruk: The First City,” Liverani explains the development of the Uruk society from independent family groups or a monarchical ownership over a city. A technological advances in farming and government made Uruk a civilization that would blueprint the structure of more complex civilizations and empires.

New technologies such as the seed-plow, clay sickles, and threshing sledge have improved the efficiency and crop yield for Uruk. The cheap, clay sickles make harvesting faster and affordable so that more workers are available to do work. The seed-plow increase the yield in a shorter time period. Not many workers are needed to use the plow, so they can be redistributed elsewhere to increase work and efficiency there. The advances allow the workers to do more work and produce more. With an increase in yield will allow more people to live in Uruk. In addition to creating more yield, using surplus to maintain food consumption throughout droughts and famines. Steady food supply will maintain the city's population rather than decay due to starvation. This made Uruk a powerhouse for steady growth in population while maintaining it at the same time.

Also in government, instead of the workers working for the central head, it branches off into 3 separate departments in which the labor goes to a separate head department for agriculture, commerce, military, etc., and from there they reply to the central administration that would overlook the entirety of the city. This communication reallocated the work so that the workers aren't overworking and that government is overbearing. This early form of checks and balances show stability in the city and allows growth in the city. The number of available jobs will increase and with growth come new labor opportunities. This made Uruk's government stable and didn't allow civil distraught which is the case for most cities at that time.

The advances in civilization through simple agricultural means allows growth in the city of Uruk as well as provide more labor. With a steady food supply and a steady government, Uruk had the recipe for growth and survival during harsh times. Civil uprisings were at a low due to communication amongst the departments. Food supplies were maintained through surplus and increase in food yield made Uruk a dominant city and the title: the city first city.

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