Please read Ch. 5 & 6
Post one thought provoking question for each chapter, then respond to one of your peer's questions. Therefore you will make 4 posts, two questions and two responses.
There will be a prize for the best question and best response.
Due: Monday, 3.11 (before class)
Post one thought provoking question for each chapter, then respond to one of your peer's questions. Therefore you will make 4 posts, two questions and two responses.
There will be a prize for the best question and best response.
Due: Monday, 3.11 (before class)
Ch.5
ReplyDeleteWhy was Anu so simple minded about his decision to sacrifice hundreds of lives to satisfy his daughters needs?
Ch.6
What drove Gilgamesh to desire immortality so much?
(no questions to answer yet) ;(
Ch.5 Answer
DeleteIf he refused, Ishtar would smash the gates of the underworld and the bolts of heaven. She would make the dead rise and make them zombies.
Ch.6 Answer
Because of Enkidu's death, he is afraid of becoming clay.
Chapter 6:
DeleteAfter Enkidu died, death seemed a lot more real to Gilgamesh, something that was close to home, not distant and detached. Through out the story Gilgamesh always yearned to be immortal. In the beginning it wasn't the fear of death that drove him, but the fear of being forgotten, and he slayed Humbaba to be remembered for his heroism. But when he saw Enkidu dead, part of him died too, and he feared feeling that pain eternally. He saw everything that Enkidu did and thought reduced to a body, and that scared him. I also think he believes that part of Enkidu lives on inside of him and with his immortality Enkidu can survive forever.
Chapter 5.
DeleteAnu wasn't simple minded but if he had refused giving the bull to Ishtar, she would of smashed the gates of the underworld and causing the dead to rise.
Chapter 6.
Since Enkidu died, he knew he was going to die soon. He did not want to be clay yet so he desired to be immortal.
Chapter 5
ReplyDeleteHow does Enkidu first react to his sickness, and what changes his behavior?
Chapter 6
How have these events changed Gilgamesh's feelings about death?
Chapter 5
DeleteAfter he dreams about the gods choosing to kill him, Enkidu can only see his life as a path to this death, not one towards respect and immortality. He starts to blame the people who got him there, the hunter, the woman of the temple, etc. He loses his appreciation for the city of Uruk and for Gilgamesh. He prays for Shamash to curse them all. Shamash gently convinces Enkidu that these people did nothing but good and Gilgamesh cares deeply about him. In the end Ishtar did not get in the way of Gilgamesh and Enkidu's relationship.
Chapter 6;
DeleteAfter Enkidu has died, Gilgamesh becomes afraid of dying. He fears death and what happens after he has left the world.
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ReplyDeleteChapter 6:
ReplyDeleteDoes Ishtar represent all forms of romantic love or only on side of it? What does this say about Gilgamesh's and Enkidu's relationship?
Chapter 5:
Why do we fear weakness and impermanence?
I would argue Ishtar does not represent romantic love. She bribes noble men to marry her, and causes great distress for them afterwards. Romantic love to me is when two lovers, unaffected by external causes or desires, admire each other from the bottom of their heart. However, Gilgamesh and Enkidu's relationship is interestingly romantic. Before Enkidu dies, the two exchange words full of imagery and emotion. After he dies, Gilgamesh is filled with grief and loneliness, and expresses the importance of his lost friend.
DeleteWe fear weakness because we have a desire to prove ourselves capable of enduring hardships. We fear impermanence because life would be so much simpler if everything remained the same. However, without impermanence we would not value positive occasions over negative events.
Chapter 5:
ReplyDeleteIshtar is the goddess of love and fertility, yet she is ironically cruel and arrogant. Why is this? Does it play a role in illustrating the imperfection of love?
Chapter 6:
Is fear real or is it something that we picture in our minds?
5: Thats a good question louis, and I personally think that there is imperfections wihtin every entity. In all myths you can see that immortals are keepers of order, who inturn go around having affairs. All the gods are shown to reflect human characters, they hold great talents which are accompanied with demerits, to help us visualize and differentiate between good and bad.
Delete6: In my opinion, fear is real and we feel it, it alerts us in danger, gives us barriers, shows us tasks we can surpass. It supplies us with the perpetual motion to acheive and fray away from certain objects, activites, people, etc...
Chapter 6;
DeleteI think fear is a response a body activates instantly when it perceives danger, whether it's a real danger or not meaning that if the danger is imagined or not. Also, while our bodies have an immediate on switch, they do not have an immediate off switch. This inconsistency causes a variety of problems. So I think fear is a real response that is a part of the brain, but the dangers it recognizes might or might not be real.
Chapter 6:
ReplyDeleteFear is not real. It is a product of thoughts you create.Danger how ever is very real. But fear is a choice in which us humans can make.
Chapter 5:
ReplyDeleteHow can someone become so selfish like Ishtar?
Chapter 6:
Why do we always go through certain difficulties or obstacles to get what we want?
(Related to Gilgamesh going through difficulties to find Utanapishtim)
Chapter 5;
ReplyDeleteWhy does Enkidu change his mind to take back all his curses?
Chapter 6;
What is the significance of Gilgamesh wearing animal skins?
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DeleteChapter 5: Enkidu changes his mind to take back all his curses because Shamash persuades him by using Gilgamesh as support.
DeleteChapter 6: Gilgamesh wearing animal skin signifies regression from being civilized to uncivilized which is caused by the death of Enkidu.
Chapter 5.
ReplyDeleteWhy do you think Anu accepted Ishtar's wish and gave her the bull?
Chapter 6.
After Enkidu's death, how has Gilgamesh's perspective towards death change?
Joshua
DeleteChapter 5: To be honest, I have no idea why. Probably he either had faith in her, or he just loved her too much, that he allowed her to make the wrong decision, which caused distress for the people around her. In the modern society, we can think of it as parents giving little children iphone's or games, which is obviously too much responsibility for him/her, which he/she is capable of.
Chapter 6: Before he wanted to die in honor, wanted to be remembered for eternity by the people, and ultimately did not fear death. After Enkidu's death, things he never knew were revealed, which caused fear for him. By the end of Chapter 5, he realizes that "death" meant the end to him.
Chapter 5:
ReplyDeleteWhy does Gilgamesh repeat his speech in a series of cliches whenever he is in a state of fear or depression?
Chapter 6:
If Gilgamesh can kill 2 large beasts, why does he tremor in fear when he gazes at the scorpion-men?
Chapter 5:
DeleteI think Gilgamesh repetitively does that to express his main feelings by words. I actually see his behavior quite annoying because he says a lot of things as if he is the best person alive. When Enkidu dies, Gilgamesh repeats a set of cliches. I find this action quite cowardly because he doesn't do anything to avoid Enkidu's death. If Enkidu and Gilgamesh are BFFs, then Gilgamesh would help Enkidu from this situation.
Chapter 6:
Further in his journey, I think Gilgamesh realizes that death is a scary thing, and he starts to fear more things than usual after experiencing Enkidu's death.
Chapter 5 Question:
ReplyDeleteIt really got me curious why Ishtar, the goddess of love and fertility, would fall in love with many men, then would make them suffer as soon as she lost her interest in them. I mean there clearly should be a reason for her never truly committing to anybody, but of course nothing was ever mentioned in the story.
Chapter 6 Question:
I honestly cannot consider Gilgamesh as a hero. He needs to man up and accept his fate. I understand he is very upset about Enkidu's death, but why would he just decide to go look for immortality and leave the people of Uruk without a king? I mean c'mon, it's something called responsibility and maturity.
Replies to Jonah's Questions:
1. This whole book is very trivial and strange, so it doesn't surprise me that Anu would just let out the Bull and give it to his daughter just because she desired too. He is also a god, so I don't think we will be able to understand their decisions. Also he had a deal with Ishtar if there's enough grain to feed people, then she could have the bull.
2. Well, I suppose losing his dearest friend, scarred him so much that now Gilgamesh never wanted to die. It doesn't make sense though. He lost his friend, but wants to find immortality, so that means he didn't really care about Enkidu's death as much as he did about his own life. Enkidu dying just made Gilgamesh realize that he doesn't want to die. Also, Gilgamesh has many connections to gods plus he's 2/3 god himself, so he probably just wants to be like them.
Questions
ReplyDeleteChapter 5:
If Ishtar is the goddess of fertility and love, why does she have such an sadistic characteristic?
Chapter 6:
How does Gilgamesh's personality reveal after fearing Enkidu's death? What kind of characteristic can we see about Gilgamesh?
Joshua:
ReplyDeleteChapter 5: From the text, we obviously see that Ishtar has an egoistic and selfish characteristic. She deceived many people, and acts as if she can get anything she wishes for. She is arrogant, a sadist, and a complete tart. Why do men always fall for pure beauty itself?
Chapter 6: What does Enkidu's death have to do with Gilgamesh's hope of becoming immortal for eternity?
Chapter 5: I don't think I am answering this question right, but not all men fall for pure beauty, because we can already know that from other myths, God Zeus (not human but used as an example) marries with many goddess but not marry with Aphrodite, god of love. Zeus did not marry with Aphrodite, because he was told that the birth of child between Zeus and Aphrodite will cause some kind of death to him.
DeleteChapter 6: I think Gilgamesh have this pride that he will live and become immortal, and the fear of dying just like Enkidu. Enkidu died because of curse from Ishtar, and probably Gilgamesh didn't want to die by Ishtar's curse. "Yet he has found everlasting life and has joined the assembly of the heavenly gods" (p. 191) Maybe Gilgamesh are trying to learn immortality from the human who survived the great flood and want to attend the assembly of the heavenly gods to tell something about Ishtar.
Chapter 5:
ReplyDeleteDoes Ishtar, the goddess of live have true "love"? Something she can stick together forever?? Isn't she a goddess of love?
Chapter 6:
How did Scorpion-woman knew these information about Gilgamesh? Is he so famous? Or did the Rumors spread quickly?
Chapter 5 Question:
ReplyDeleteWhy would the Mother Goddess, the goddess of fertility and love, be so negative? Firstly, she sends the Bull of Heaven too cause destruction because she thought she was insulted; and when Gilgamesh & Enkidu killed it, she considered it even more disrespectful. Don't you think it's weird because that's like me throwing a pie at someone's face and when they clean it up, I consider it insulting?
Chapter 6 Question:
Do you think the environment mentioned is serving as a metaphor? I mean when Gilgamesh has crossed the tunnel, it seems like he has entered heaven or heaven-like place. Also, the description of his journey through the tunnel was the one which reminded me of people trying to reach heaven: dark and then there is a faint light which gets brighter as you walk closer. Also, once Gilgamesh crosses the sea, does he enter a heavenly place? Because as we see, the immortal Utanapishtim tells Gilgamesh how everything is temporary but that makes me curious if is he a god and has Gilgamesh entered heaven, where Utanapishtim lives, or not...
Answers to Seng Rang's Questions
Chapter 5 Answer:
Well we see in all the myths so far, there has not been any sort of "true love", at least not anything which matches my definition of "true love". Her love is very immature and childlike, which tells us about the views the Sumerians had about love too. On the other hand it also makes sense, because gods will always find human beings imperfect and therefore Ishtar was never satisfied with any of her partners. But this also shows us how much more dominance a woman carried in a Sumerian household.
Chapter 6 Answer:
I do not know about rumours. But again it might be true, because ours gods are very childlike, which again shows how the Sumerian society was not very developed and mature yet. But I can assuringly say that he was very famous and therefore the Scorpion-woman knew everything about him. As the story goes, you can sort of get the idea that he is the "famous king of the strong-walled Uruk". Since him and Enkidu have also killed Humbaba and the Bull, his fame is expected to spread.
Chapter 5: Why did the gods decide that Enkidu should die, while he was a "good" person who killed the deadly monster? In the beginning of the story the guard of the Cedar Forest was considered a bad person and that was why Enkidu and Gilgamesh decided to kill him.
ReplyDeleteChapter 6: I think Gilgamesh is a "kind" person who wouldn't kill wild animals unless he must. He says to Enkidu that wild animals, including leopards and lions, would cry in sorrow for him, but why does he later in the story takes his axe and kills a lion for food and its warm skins?
Reply to Rohan's questions
Chapter 5 Answer: I think the goddess just wanted people to forget about her sins and make everyone think she was the one being insulted.
Chapter 6 Answer: In the text people can never come back after touching the lake of death, so I think he actually went to the place of the gods.