Earliest Writings &
Literatures
Professor Stephanie Maher Palenque
Where was writing developed?
Writing was first
developed in the
region of the Tigris and
Euphrates Rivers,
specifically in the
towns of Babylon and
Nineveh.
Ancient Egypt & Hieroglyphics
 Began as
pictographic writing
 Hieroglyphics were
not interpreted until
1799, when the
Rosetta Stone was
discovered.
 The earliest
Egyptian poems we
have were written in
the pyramids created
during the Old
Kingdom period
(2575-2130 B.C.)
The Rosetta Stone & the Leiden Hymns
The Leiden Hymns cycle of poems is
from a papyrus dated to 1238 B.C.
(Ramesses II)
Fertile Crescent & Cuneiform Writing
* The civilizations of the
Fertile Crescent—
Sumeria, Assyria,
Babylon, and others—
developed cuneiform
writing
* Cities began in the
Fertile Crescent as
centers for the
administration of
agriculture.
* Gilgamesh is the
“oldest heroic epic,”
written down about
2000 B.C.
The Hebrews
* The kingdom of Israel
flourished from 1005-925
B.C.
* The legacy of the
Hebrews was not political or
imperial; instead, theirs was
a history of struggle against
oppression and imperialism,
and a history of forging a
monotheistic religion.
* The Hebrews’ religious
attitude was markedly
different from their
polytheistic neighbors.
* The canon of the
Pentateuch had been
established by 539 B.C.
The Uses of Literature
What we now think of as “literature” is
much narrower than earlier conceptions
Notice that much of what we read from the
ancient world is what we might consider
theology or philosophy
One of the earliest uses that literature is put
to is that of cultural formation
Literature & Cultural Formation
What is a myth?
What is a worldview?
What are some important “worldview”
questions that a culture needs to answer?
Where did we (I, the world) come from?
Why am I (are we) here?
What is the world really like (what is the basic nature
of the world)?
Does humankind have a problem?
If so, where did it come from?
What do we do about it?
What is good?
What is evil?
Are humans basically good, or are they basically
evil?
Where am I (are we) going?
How do we get there?
What methods should I use to achieve my goals?
What actions are right and what actions are wrong?