1. Literature of the Middle East
Unit 4

2. Mesopotamia
A term commonly used to refer to the geographical area between the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers Today most of Mesopotamia falls within the borders of Iraq
It’s often referred to as the “cradle of civilization” because society and culture possibly first emerged from this area, especially during the Bronze Age
Bronze Age: 3200 B.C. – 1200 B.C.
Several civilizations developed in Mesopotamia around this time period, starting with the Sumerians in B.C.

3. Mesopotamia After the flood, kings like Gilgamesh ruled the land
Divided their history into two parts: Before and after the Great Flood
Before the flood, priests and sages ruled the land receiving their instruction from their god, Ea, the god of waters and wisdom
After the flood, kings like Gilgamesh ruled the land

4. Mesopotamia / Sumerians
Sumerians became the first literate culture in Mesopotamia, and the first to develop schools
Developed a number system based on 60
Today, our 60 second minute and our 60 minute hour originate with the ancient Sumerians (as does our 360 degree circle)
Cities built around six or seven story stepped temples that served as staircases used by the gods when descending from the heavens

5. Mesopotamia
Between 2500 and 500 BCE Mesopotamia was filled with ongoing wars between the ever-populating cultures
In 2300 BCE, the Babylonians defeated the Sumerians and adopted their culture
The Babylonians were the first culture to record Gilgamesh in its present form

6. Cuneiform
From the Latin meaning “wedge-shaped”, a system of writing used throughout the Near East during the first three millennia BCE

7. Akkadian
A Semitic language (i.e., from the same language family as Hebrew and Arabic) that was the common tongue of ancient Mesopotamia

8. http://www.learner.org/courses/worldlit/ gilgamesh/watch/
Intro to Gilgamesh
gilgamesh/watch/

9. The Epic of Gilgamesh
Cuneiform tablets first discovered by archaeologists in the 19th century CE among ruins in Ninevah (Once the capital city of the Assyrian Empire
Other copies and versions found throughout the area now corresponding to the Ancient Near East

10. The Epic of Gilgamesh Story of a Sumerian king
Originally written in Akkadian
Earliest form known to us dates back to around 1900 BCE and is Babylonian
About 75 different copies of this version survive, although fragmented, such that the text cannot be reconstructed in full

11. The Epic of Gilgamesh
Legends state that Gilgamesh ruled for 126 years, although a “year” may have been measured in seasons or moon phases, or perhaps the length of reign was embellished to make his legacy larger than life
Gilgamesh is 2/3 god and 1/3 man, being the son of the goddess Ninsun and the Priest Kullub

12. Literary Significance
Gilgamesh is a historical figure
A Sumerian king who ruled Uruk almost a millennium before The Epic of Gilgamesh was composed (ca BCE)

13. The Epic of Gilgamesh
The stories preserved in the literary tale(s), however, are not historical in any strict sense,although some elements may trace back to the myths and legends that began to spread (in both written and oral form) in his own time and perhaps even soon after his death

14. The Epic of Gilgamesh
Reflection of editing and combination of earlier and smaller Sumerian tales into what we now know as an “epic”
What we know as The Epic of Gilgamesh has multiple unknown authors who have woven these tales into a single story/larger narrative with sustained themes.

15. The Epic of Gilgamesh Composed in verse, rather than prose
Concerns humankind and the gods, but not a sacred text in the sense of a text used in liturgies(public worship)or religious festivals.

16. Narrative Structure
Preface: a celebration of the achievements of Gilgamesh throughout his life
Tablets I - VI: Gilgamesh’s heroic deeds, including the conquest of the demon Humbaba and the Bull of Heaven; major subplot involves Enkidu and his journey from nature to civilization
Tablets VII - XI: Gilgamesh’s attempt to grapple with death, as sparked by the death of Enkidu; Gilgamesh’s mourning and his journey searching for the secret immortality; major subplot is the story-within-a-story recounting the Flood

17. Narrative Structure Tablet XII is a later addition to the epic
Not narratively connected to the earlier plot, but picks up and further explores the theme of immortality and mortality by means of a tale about Enkidu’s journey to the underworld

18. Thematic Elements DIVINE vs. HUMAN (Tablets I - VI)
Gilgamesh is perched uncomfortably between divine and human
The gods are forced to intercede because of his arrogance
Mortality as reminder of his humanity
Humanization of Enkidu
DIVINE vs. HUMAN vs. Animal (Tablets VII - XI)
Reflections on human mortality and hopes for immortality
The text gives answers as to what constitutes immortality for humans: civilization and fame
Purpose of mortal lives: friendship and wisdom

19. Thematic Elements CITY vs WILDERNESS (Tablets I - VI)
Enkidu’s entry into civilization is marked by his geographical movement from the wilderness to the city
His participation in the battle against Humbaba, signifies his switch in loyalties
Enkidu’s death causes Gilgamesh to make the opposite move, from city to wilderness on his journey
CITY vs WILDERNESS (Tablets VII - XI)
It is only through journeying through uncertainty and and darkness that he arrives at wisdom
Returns in the end to the city, a more mature and better king having experienced not just strength and victory, but also loss and failure

20. Plot Epic begins with the oppressive despotism of Gilgamesh
Compared to a wild bull in both strength and lack of control; also a lack of care for the weak
The complaints of his people create first conflict and move the first action of the text
The gods hear the pleas of the people and decide to create Gilgamesh’s double- Enkidu - as an equal for him to fight

21. Plot (Cont’d) Enkidu raised in the wilderness Lives like the animals
The Stalker (unnamed hunter who moves between - and mediates - the worlds of the wilderness and the city) sees Enkidu and tells Gilgamesh
Gilgamesh has The Stalker bring the temple courtesan to Enkidu, so he will be drawn to her and “his animals will turn from him”

22. Plot (Cont’d)
The process of relations with the courtesan results in the animals recoil from Enkidu
After talks of Gilgamesh and his power (and Uruk and its riches), she convinces Enkidu to travel to Uruk to try and conquer Gilgamesh

23. Plot (Cont’d) Enkidu comes to Uruk Gilgamesh and Enkidu fight
Gilgamesh wins, but the two become friends
The two set off in search of adventure and fame
They fight Humbaba, the guard of the cedar forest
They are victorious and return to Uruk as heros

24. Plot (Con’t)
The goddess Ishtar, impressed, asks Gilgamesh to marry her
He refuses and she unleashes the Bull of Heaven upon him
For Gilgamesh’s hubris, the gods decide that Enkidu must die
Enkidu becomes ill, laments his departure from the wilderness, then comes to accept its goods

25. Plot (Cont’d) Gilgamesh is devastated by the loss of his friend
He now begins to question mortality/immortality and the inevitability of death

26. Plot (Cont’d)
Gilgamesh speaks to Utnapishtim, who is rumored to be the only human to have escaped death
Gilgamesh’s journey is filled with imagery of hardship and darkness, together with repetition, which serves to evoke the journey’s length as well as to underline its key points

27. Plot (Cont’d)
Gilgamesh tells the story to all whom he encounters. Each time, he retells his reason- stressing that he is compelled by a need to KNOW
All tell him his journey is pointless - humankind is mortal- there are no exceptions and no act of heroism can change this
The extreme repetition serves to highlight the endurance and persistence of Gilgamesh (foil to the hero seen in the earlier part of the tale)

28. Plot (Cont’d)
Gilgamesh succeeds in seeing Utnapishtim, who tells him the story of the Flood
The god Enil sends the Flood to humankind without consulting the rest of the gods
The god Ea gets around the requirement to not tell any humans by speaking to Utnapishtim through a reed wall and helps him think of a way to explain why he is building a big boat
Utnapishtim and his family survive, carrying with them seeds of animals as well

29. Plot (Cont’d)
After the flood, Ea convinces Enil to only punish the wicked, not all humans, in the future and there is a trade-off; instead of the threat of total destruction, humankind receives hardship in life

30. Plot (Cont’d) Only one man, Utnapishtim, is spared the fate of death
Utnapishtim tells Gilgamesh that he too can can ask the council of the gods for eternal life, provided that he pass a test of not sleeping for six days and seven nights
Gilgamesh fails

31. Plot (Cont’d)
Utnapishtim then tells him of a plant, the eating of which may bring immortality.
Gilgamesh fails again. He finds the plant, but a serpent eats it
Gilgamesh returns to Uruk, still mortal but wiser for the journey