Explain the significance of Mesopotamian culture by addressing the following subquestions:
1. What characteristics distinguish the ancient civilizations of Sumer, then Akkad, then Babylon, and finally Assyria;
2. What was the Gilgamesh Epic and how does it capture/describe the relationship between the Mesopotamian ruler and the gods?
3. What distinguished Ancient Hebrew culture from the other cultures in the Ancient Near East?
4. What characteristics did the religion of Ancient Persia share with Judaism?
5. List four parallels between Ancient Mesopotamian culture and contemporary life describing these parallels in terms of either similarities or dissimilarities specifically with regard to the following areas:
a) immortality;
b) morality/ethics;
c) politics; and
d) social relations/structure.