Ancient Egypt Religion

934 Words4 Pages
The ancient Egyptian civilization lasted over 3000 years and remained relatively unchanged when it came to religion, art and culture. The stability of these key factors helped the society both flourish and remain the same. That stability also aided in social cohesion, as well as the ability to repel change. These three features of society however have been seen to not aid in social progress which can be seen as an advantage to the Pharaohs. The Pharaohs of Egypt used these factors to their advantage to remain in control of the population. Religion was a major social force within Ancient Egypt, with religious being a prominent undertone in art, literacy and philosophy. Religion can be a major influence in social cohesion…show more content…
The art around Egypt is a prime example of how the culture did not adapt to new innovation. Egyptian art is far from realistic, taking more of an idealist approach to make their figures seem strong, beautiful, youthful and powerful. The only time that there was a change in art was with the reign of Amenhotep IV or more commonly known as Akhenaten. A long with monotheism with the worship of the Aten, Akhenaten brought with him a new are form for the Egyptians a form of realism. The royal artists made are that was true to life and not just flattery and powerful symbols. It showed the pharaoh as human with a family and with a pot belly in a relaxed position. After the death of Akhenaten, the Egyptian priesthood removed all trace of Akhenaten, his son Tutankhamun, Atenism and the new art form. This moved people back to the traditional way of life which lead to a return of stability and normality in their eyes. The reluctance of change leaves no room for questioning the system as you would not want to throw the Ma’at out of order. This was why invading rulers who captured Egypt such as Alexander the Great and his successor Ptolemy left the culture and religion untouched and just assumed power. They people wanted stability and to keep the peace between worlds so a lack of social progress was integral to pharaoh’s and invading rulers to

More about Ancient Egypt Religion

Open Document