1. Backgrounds for Egyptian poetry Taken from our text The Language of Literature Pages 20-21, 50-59

2. Life and the afterlife (p. 21) 1. Egyptian religion focused on preparing for the afterlife. 2. They designed great pyramids in which to bury upperclass people. 3. They developed the art of mummification.

3. Life and the afterlife, con’t 4. The Egyptians believed that the afterlife would be a paradise that was an idealized view of earth. 5. The Egyptians focused much artistic and creative effort on making their pyramids beautiful.

4. Egyptian culture (p. 50) Three important features of ancient Egypt: 1.concern about the afterlife 2.worship of a sun god 3.delight in everyday life

5. Egyptian culture, con’t The Egyptians believed that people enjoyed the same pleasures in the afterlife as they did while on earth. They believed that the sun god gave life to all of nature.

6. The Book of the Dead (p. 50) The Book of the Dead is based on the myth of Osiris. Osiris was a good god who taught people about farming and civilization. His brother Set was jealous of him and killed him. His sister Isis brought him back to life, and he became king of the underworld.

7. Book of the Dead, con’t The Egyptians carved stories and prayers into the wall of the pyramids. These are called “pyramid texts.” Later on, they wrote their prayers on papyrus scrolls and buried them along with the dead. These are referred to as burial scrolls, or The Chapters of Coming Forth by Day.

8. Adoration of the Disk (p. 51) This poem was written by the pharaoh Akhenaten. He ruled Egypt between 1353-1336 B.C. The writer believes that the sun god is the only true god. He built a capital city in honor of the sun god named Aten.

9. New Kingdom Poetry (p. 51) The ancient Egyptians were people who knew how to enjoy life. During the period of the New Kingdom, the society experienced great prosperity and many opportunities for cultural enrichment. The New Kingdom period was known for its poetry, especially love poems.