Papers by Fabio Frizzo
Revista de História, 2020
Scholars have traditionally interpreted the relationships between Egyptians and Nubians on the gr... more Scholars have traditionally interpreted the relationships between Egyptians and Nubians on the grounds of the superiority of Egyptian social norms and culture, which were imposed onto Nubia in the New Kingdom. I argue that this perspective finds its roots in the intellectual setting of the XIX century, which consistently emphasized the inferiority of the cultures of Sub-Saharan Africa. On the contrary, a more careful analysis of the Egyptian imperialism in Nubia should consider the dynamics and conflicts inherent to the Nubian society. Following this perspective, this paper investigates how the Egyptian imperialism stimulated the appearance of strict social hierarchies in Lower Nubia in order to create an effective system to explore local natural resources, which would play an important role in the keeping of the empire. In this context, Egyptian relations of production were preferred over Nubian ways of organizing society.
RESUMO: Até recentemente, a literatura especializada na Núbia do Reino Novo (1.550-1.070 a.C.) en... more RESUMO: Até recentemente, a literatura especializada na Núbia do Reino Novo (1.550-1.070 a.C.) enfatizava a egipcianização das populações núbias, isto é, a adoção, quase que completa, de práticas culturais egípcias por tais populações. Nuanças desse tipo de abordagem incluíam identificar focos de resistência especialmente por parte dos chefes núbios, que escolheriam se egipcianizar como forma de obter, entre outras coisas, poder e prestígio. Hoje em dia, pelo contrário, novas pesquisas e escavações no Sudão, em sítios que datam do Reino Novo, estão revelando interações mais complexas entre as culturas egípcias e núbias no cotidiano dessas populações. Tais interações materializavam-se, entre outros tipos de objetos, em potes e pratos associados aos atos de armazenar, preparar e servir comida encontrados em sítios urbanos, sobretudo na Alta Núbia. Este artigo busca analisar as interações entre egípcios e núbios com base na coleção cerâmica produzida por escavações em diferentes sítios do Sudão e em dados bioarqueológicos relativos à dieta dessas populações à luz de uma teoria da consubstancialidade das relações de gênero, raça e classe. O objetivo é demonstrar como práticas culturais tão enraizadas como preparar, servir e consumir alimentos são difíceis de serem modificadas e guardam, portanto, um potencial de resistência cultural frente à imposição imperial de determinados costumes.
The pharaonic state is mainly seen in a modern way always from a jusnaturalist point of analisys,... more The pharaonic state is mainly seen in a modern way always from a jusnaturalist point of analisys, in what we can call a idealist perspective of reading of the ancient egyptian state organization. Starting from works like Critique of Hegel's Philosophy of Right (1843), Economic and Philosophic Manuscripts (1844) and The German Ideology (1845/46), we will try to design a marxist theory of precapitalist state, focusing in the II millennium B.C. ancient Egypt, using concepts like Material state and Political state or state fetishism to look at the state both as a form of social organization and an institutional apparatus disputed by fractions of ruler class
Marxism became less present in the recent debates on the kinds of social control acting in ancien... more Marxism became less present in the recent debates on the kinds of social control acting in ancient Egypt, namely, as its society was massively agrarian, those pertaining to the control of peasants. In recent years, it is feasible to perceive several competing models. One of these returns to the old contrast between ‘Western’ and ‘Oriental or tributary’ societies, albeit in a way which differs from what was written in this line during the nineteenth or early twentieth centuries, as authors are aware of a considerable heterogeneity of the ancient Egyptian agrarian structures through time and space. This interpretation invokes more recent models, like those of Chris Wickam or Miquel Barceló (J. C. Moreno García). Another model, proposed by Christopher Eyre, presents, when compared to the former one, a strong contrast in its epistemological ground and interpretive line alike. It insists on local actions of individuals, according to an enterpreneurial logic, those actions affecting peasants who were mostly sharecroppers. It denies any bucreaucratic, global organization of the Egyptian economy and society, sees a sort of separation between the state, solely interested in collecting tribute, and the villages, and believes in a private managing system able to react to the vastly variable ecological local realities. As a third example, Marcelo Campagno proposes, for the study of the forms of social control and political existence, to associate the complementary logics of the State, kin and patron-client relationships. This paper, based on selected primary Egyptian sources from the second millenium BC, tries to evaluate these models (and others), in order to propose an interpretation which the author deems viable. Excepting most “formalist” models, the remainder present useful elements, in many cases complementary, which ought to be associated, being in fact compatible.
In a paper published a decade ago, Ciro Cardoso stated that the Egyptology was a kind of knowledg... more In a paper published a decade ago, Ciro Cardoso stated that the Egyptology was a kind of knowledge unsympathetic to theoretical debate, devoting itself primarily to the studies of kingship and religion. The present paper aims to propose the idea that the pharaonic economic structures could only be understood rightly with the elaboration of theoretical models based in the qualitative difference between the pre capitalist societies and the capitalist society. These models are even more important in a context of scant evidences related to the Egyptian
economics.
Approaching the relationships between Egypt and Nubia in the 18th Dynasty is a complex
enterprise... more Approaching the relationships between Egypt and Nubia in the 18th Dynasty is a complex
enterprise. Since the beginning of the 18th Dynasty these relationships were marked by demonstrations of
force and resistance. Examples are the Theban military campaigns against Kush and the incorporation of
Wawat under the Egyptian administration. In this context of domination, it seems to be crucial to realise
asymmetric relations of cultural interchanges. This paper privileges the notion of conflict over integration.
Therefore, it argues for the utilisation of the term Egyptianisation as a conceptual instrument to explain the
whole social reality. The concept is especially useful when combined with a complex view of Nubian society,
composed by different classes with their own interests. These interests were expressed in various relations
among local classes and imperial administration.
The paper analyzes the final decades of the Second Intermediate Period and the beginning of the N... more The paper analyzes the final decades of the Second Intermediate Period and the beginning of the New Kingdom of Ancient Egypt, our aim being to show the creation of the political, economical and military bases to the construction
of the Egyptian empire in the Near East.
In "Arab Spring" of 2011, the Egyptian people became protagonist of popular uprisings that attrac... more In "Arab Spring" of 2011, the Egyptian people became protagonist of popular uprisings that attracted
the world's attention to the Tahrir Square in Cairo. This movement revived the memory of the only well-documented
social revolt of the Pharaonic period, which occurred in IIIth Millennium BC, and known from a text called
"Admonitions of Ipu-Ur." The aim of this paper is to construct, from the work of Walter Benjamin, a link between these
two social upheavals starting from a critique of both the historiography and a certain concept of progress identified with
the technical and technological advancement.
In spite of the tradicional statement about the inseparability of religion, politics and economic... more In spite of the tradicional statement about the inseparability of religion, politics and economics in the ancient egyptian society, some egyptologists keep analysing the religion as a independent and selfdetermined structure or just focus the obvious link beteween religion and politics. This paper tries to analise the bibliography published in portuguese to demonstrate some of the political, economical and ideological implications of the ancient egyptian religion in the New Kingdom.
MPhil Thesis by Fabio Frizzo
The main hypothesis of this master degree dissertation is as follows: the control of Lower Nubia ... more The main hypothesis of this master degree dissertation is as follows: the control of Lower Nubia by the Egyptian State was a relevant and specific factor in the construction of Egyptian imperialism, and as well in allowing Egypt to became an "hegemonic power" in the Near East during the New Kingdom (1550-1069 B.C.). In order to develop this hypothesis, we choose to study te Eighteenth Dinasty, as it was the period when a reunified Egypt knew its maximum territorial expansion. The sources used include the tomb inscriptions of Egyptian officials and Nubian princes, texts relating military campaigns and such diplomatic correspondence of the time as survived (know as Amarna Letters).
PhD Thesis by Fabio Frizzo
State, Empire and Economical Exploitation in New Kingdom Egypt
The main objective of the current ... more State, Empire and Economical Exploitation in New Kingdom Egypt
The main objective of the current thesis is to build a model of the Egyptian imperial
domination. This model is based on the maintenance of local structures and it is built
according to the experiences of the internal economy of Egypt. This economy is
structured on the extraction of surplus self-sufficient villagers’ communities. In this
sense, the thesis tried to analyze the structure of the pharaonic state, especially during
the New Kingdom, based on its class dynamics and decomposing it into two
expressions: the material state and political state. From this perspective, the thesis
addressed the imperial political economy to demonstrate that local structures have been
maintained and subsumed by the Pharaonic imperialism.
Books by Fabio Frizzo
Artigos sobre diferentes sociedades pré-capitalistas publicados em homenagem ao professor Ciro Fl... more Artigos sobre diferentes sociedades pré-capitalistas publicados em homenagem ao professor Ciro Flamarion Cardoso.
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Papers by Fabio Frizzo
economics.
enterprise. Since the beginning of the 18th Dynasty these relationships were marked by demonstrations of
force and resistance. Examples are the Theban military campaigns against Kush and the incorporation of
Wawat under the Egyptian administration. In this context of domination, it seems to be crucial to realise
asymmetric relations of cultural interchanges. This paper privileges the notion of conflict over integration.
Therefore, it argues for the utilisation of the term Egyptianisation as a conceptual instrument to explain the
whole social reality. The concept is especially useful when combined with a complex view of Nubian society,
composed by different classes with their own interests. These interests were expressed in various relations
among local classes and imperial administration.
of the Egyptian empire in the Near East.
the world's attention to the Tahrir Square in Cairo. This movement revived the memory of the only well-documented
social revolt of the Pharaonic period, which occurred in IIIth Millennium BC, and known from a text called
"Admonitions of Ipu-Ur." The aim of this paper is to construct, from the work of Walter Benjamin, a link between these
two social upheavals starting from a critique of both the historiography and a certain concept of progress identified with
the technical and technological advancement.
MPhil Thesis by Fabio Frizzo
PhD Thesis by Fabio Frizzo
The main objective of the current thesis is to build a model of the Egyptian imperial
domination. This model is based on the maintenance of local structures and it is built
according to the experiences of the internal economy of Egypt. This economy is
structured on the extraction of surplus self-sufficient villagers’ communities. In this
sense, the thesis tried to analyze the structure of the pharaonic state, especially during
the New Kingdom, based on its class dynamics and decomposing it into two
expressions: the material state and political state. From this perspective, the thesis
addressed the imperial political economy to demonstrate that local structures have been
maintained and subsumed by the Pharaonic imperialism.
Books by Fabio Frizzo
economics.
enterprise. Since the beginning of the 18th Dynasty these relationships were marked by demonstrations of
force and resistance. Examples are the Theban military campaigns against Kush and the incorporation of
Wawat under the Egyptian administration. In this context of domination, it seems to be crucial to realise
asymmetric relations of cultural interchanges. This paper privileges the notion of conflict over integration.
Therefore, it argues for the utilisation of the term Egyptianisation as a conceptual instrument to explain the
whole social reality. The concept is especially useful when combined with a complex view of Nubian society,
composed by different classes with their own interests. These interests were expressed in various relations
among local classes and imperial administration.
of the Egyptian empire in the Near East.
the world's attention to the Tahrir Square in Cairo. This movement revived the memory of the only well-documented
social revolt of the Pharaonic period, which occurred in IIIth Millennium BC, and known from a text called
"Admonitions of Ipu-Ur." The aim of this paper is to construct, from the work of Walter Benjamin, a link between these
two social upheavals starting from a critique of both the historiography and a certain concept of progress identified with
the technical and technological advancement.
The main objective of the current thesis is to build a model of the Egyptian imperial
domination. This model is based on the maintenance of local structures and it is built
according to the experiences of the internal economy of Egypt. This economy is
structured on the extraction of surplus self-sufficient villagers’ communities. In this
sense, the thesis tried to analyze the structure of the pharaonic state, especially during
the New Kingdom, based on its class dynamics and decomposing it into two
expressions: the material state and political state. From this perspective, the thesis
addressed the imperial political economy to demonstrate that local structures have been
maintained and subsumed by the Pharaonic imperialism.