Geographic Influences In Mesopotamia, Greece

Geography influences the relationships among places and people through time, which is evident through the geographic influences that have had an impact on the basic cultural characteristics in Mesopotamia, Egypt, Greece, and Rome.
In Mesopotamia, the geography that the Sumerians lived upon provided them with a culture that learned to feel unsafe and fearful of the world that surrounded them. A main reason that Sumerians believed that they were unsafe in the world was due to the heavy rainfall surging into the rivers in the north. According to Kidner, the heavy rainfall “also sometimes flooded the cities without any warning and Mesopotamians lived in constant fear of floods,” which caused the Sumerians to be afraid of the natural world that surrounded them. The Sumerians also feared raids and attacks from outsiders, giving the Sumerians a feeling of a life that was full of uncertainties. According to Kidner,

Sparta, which is inland, far from the sea, is a culture of less wealthy peoples with a conservative outlook focused on agriculture and the expansion of land. According to Kidner, Spartans “always were wary of foreigners and new ideas,” showing that the Spartans had a more conservative culture that is not fond of foreigners or change. Athens on the other hand, located on the coast, is a culture of more wealthy peoples that developed an economy focused on trade. According to Kidner, “Athens had the most liberal political ideology of all the Greek cities and was open to ideas about new kinds of government,” showing that the Athenians were more open to foreigners and new ideas, and not as conservative as the Spartans. Athens and Sparta are almost complete opposites, and in the comparison between the two, it is evident that the geographic locations of the two Greek cities adversely influences their