EGYPTIAN LITERATURE

· comprises a wide array of narrative and poetic

forms including inscriptions on tombs, stele,
obelisks, and temples; myths, stories, and legends;
religious writings; philosophical works; wisdom
Features of their writings/
scripts:
concern in afterlife
worship in sun god (sun is the giver of life
and in nature)
daily life activities
HISTORICAL BACKGROUND
Old Kingdom (2705-2213 BC, Dynasties 3-8)
·first showed signs of greatness in the period
·the literature of this era are mostly Pyramid Texts,
collection of Egyptian mortuary prayers, hymns, and spells
intended to protect a dead king or queen and ensure life and
sustenance in the hereafter.
·The texts, inscribed on the walls of the inner chambers of
pyramids.
 Middle kingdom (1991-1668 BC, Dynasties 12-13)

·The literature of this era reflected the added depth and maturity
that the country now gained as a result of the civil wars.
·The Middle Kingdom is considered the classical age of Egyptian
literature.
· During this time the script known as Middle Egyptian was
created, considered the highest form of hieroglyphics and the one
most often seen on monuments and other artifacts in museums in
the present day
 Late Kingdom (1570-1070 BC, Dynasties 18-20)

·New Kingdom literature, developed in a period when Egypt had

founded an empire. It give emphasis on the importance of the
scribal tradition. Scribes had always been considered an
important aspect of Egyptian daily life.
·During the New Kingdom these works were largely hymns,
prayers, instructions in wisdom, praise songs, love poems, and
stories.
Hieroglyphic Writing
- is a script and not a language.
-sacred writing of Egyptians
Four Different Scripts

· Hieroglyphs
· Hieratic
· Demotic
· Coptic
 1. Hieroglyphs - a character used in a system of
pictorial writing, particularly that form used on
ancient Egyptian monuments.

2. Hieratic - used for administrative and business

purposes, as well as for literary, scientific and religious
texts.
 3. Demotic - a Greek word meaning "popular
script", was in general use for the daily
requirements of the society.

4. Coptic - Coptic is the Egyptian language

written with Greek letters including some few
additional signs not known in Greek.
 EGYPTIAN LITERATURE

1.Autobiographies
-Which start to appear as early as 2500 BCE, constitute the earliest,
simpliest, and most significant genre of Egyptian literarture, out of which
instruction and narrative develop. In the Ptolemaic period
autobiographies were composed in late classical Egyptian, but
occasionally also in demotic. They were written on stele or statue, and
commissioned only by high ranking priest and officials for themselves or
family members as part of their burial equipment or votive to a diety.
2. Narratives
-Represent the most popular and productive genre of
literature. Develop around a main character,
frequently a historic figure, who is a man of
extraordinary abilities, either as a ritual specialist or
as a warrior, and usually serving at, or in the royal
court.
3.Instruction text
-It is made of self-contained aphorism or maxims written
on a single line each, and they display only a very loose
sense of coherence and unity.

4.Dialogues
-The format consist of two people discussing a topic of a
moral nature, which setting allows for a difference of
opinion, objections being raised, and further elaborations.
This type of literature is rather concerned with
documenting the process of acquiring knowledge and
insight.
5.Lamentations and prophies
-An inspired speaker delivers a dramatic monologue in front of an
audience, usually the royal court, which listens without intervening to
the speaker’s descriptions of cosmic and social upheaval.

6.Satirical songs
-Stand out for their metrical form and bawdy character. These demotic
composition celebrate sexuality, gluttony, and drunkenness.

7.The book of the dead

-Is part of the Egyptian religion. It contains all of the information that is
needed for the spirit of someone who has died to get through the trials
and test and emerge to their afterlife.
Contribution to the world
-Architecture
-Art deco
-Astronomy, astrology and time
-Geometry and land value
-Medicine
HE WALKETH BY DAY, by ANONYMOUS

I AM Yesterday, To-day, and To-morrow,

The Divine Hidden Soul who created the gods,
And who feedeth the blessed.

I am Lord of the Risers from Death,

Whose Forms are the lamps in the House of the Dead
Whose shrine is the Earth.
 When the sky is illumined with crystal,
Then gladden my road and broaden my path
And clothe me in light.

Keep me safe from the Sleeper in Darkness,

When eventide closeth the eyes of the god
And the door by the wall.

In the dawn I have opened the Sycamore;

My Form is the form of all women and men,
My spirit is God.