LitWiki - User contributions [en]

Clytemnestra

2005-04-14T14:11:12Z

Dbulmer:

Clytemnestra (also spelled "Clytaemnestra") is the daughter of Leda and the Spartan King Tyndareus and she is the sister of Helen of Troy and Timandra. Because her father had neglected a certain sacrifice to Aphrodite the goddess cursed him, saying all three daughters would be adulteresses. Clytemnestra was initially married to Thyestes' son Tantalus. Either Atreus or Agamemnon killed him soon after there wedding. With her second husband Agamemnon Clytemnestra had two sons, Orestes and Chrysothemis, and two daughters, Electra and Iphigenia. Clytemnestra's importance in Greek mythology comes from her marriage to Agamemnon, Menelaus' brother. Agamemnon leaves for Troy, to help to avenge his brother Menelaus. He appoints Aegisthus to guard his wife Clytemnestra. As the years passed, and there was no word that the war was anywhere near an end, Clytemnestra weakened and welcomed the sensuous advances of Aegisthus. They had an affair and when Agamemnon does return, Aegisthus (the son of Atreus) and Clytemnestra plotted to kill him. They tricked him on to an island where they left him to rot. Aegisthus then took Clytemnestra and ruled Mycenane for seven years. Orestes, Agamemnon's and Clytemnestra's son kills Aegisthus to avenge his father's death. Clytemnestra disappears or is killed but Homer does not go into to much detail about her.

http://www.in2greece.com/english/historymyth/mythology/names/clytemnestra.htm

Article created on 03 March 1997; last modified on 16 May 1999.
© MCMXCV - MMV Encyclopedia Mythica. All rights reserved.
by Mia Gibson

http://www.pantheon.org/articles/c/clytemnestra.html

http://www.mun.ca/english/firstyear/odplot.html

Clytemnestra

2005-04-14T14:10:11Z

Dbulmer:

Clytemnestra (also spelled "Clytaemnestra") is the daughter of Leda and the Spartan King Tyndareus and she is the sister of Helen of Troy and Timandra. Because her father had neglected a certain sacrifice to Aphrodite the goddess cursed him, saying all three daughters would be adulteresses. Clytemnestra was initially married to Thyestes' son Tantalus. Either Atreus or Agamemnon killed him soon after there wedding. With her second husband Agamemnon Clytemnestra had two sons, Orestes and Chrysothemis, and two daughters, Electra and Iphigenia. Clytemnestra's importance in Greek mythology comes from her marriage to Agamemnon, Menelaus' brother. Agamemnon leaves for Troy, to help to avenge his brother Menelaus. He appoints Aegisthus to guard his wife Clytemnestra. As the years passed, and there was no word that the war was anywhere near an end, Clytemnestra weakened and welcomed the sensuous advances of Aegisthus. They had an affair and when Agamemnon does return, Aegisthus (the son of Atreus) and Clytemnestra plotted to kill him. They tricked him on to an island where they left him to rot. Aegisthus then took Clytemnestra and ruled Mycenane for seven years. Orestes, Agamemnon's and Clytemnestra's son kills Aegisthus to avenge his father's death. Clytemnestra disappears or is killed but Homer does not go into to much detail about her.

http://www.in2greece.com/english/historymyth/mythology/names/clytemnestra.htm

Article created on 03 March 1997; last modified on 16 May 1999.
© MCMXCV - MMV Encyclopedia Mythica. All rights reserved.

http://www.pantheon.org/articles/c/clytemnestra.html

http://www.mun.ca/english/firstyear/odplot.html

Clytemnestra

2005-04-14T14:09:25Z

Dbulmer:

Clytemnestra (also spelled "Clytaemnestra") is the daughter of Leda and the Spartan King Tyndareus and she is the sister of Helen of Troy and Timandra. Because her father had neglected a certain sacrifice to Aphrodite the goddess cursed him, saying all three daughters would be adulteresses. Clytemnestra was initially married to Thyestes' son Tantalus. Either Atreus or Agamemnon killed him soon after there wedding. With her second husband Agamemnon Clytemnestra had two sons, Orestes and Chrysothemis, and two daughters, Electra and Iphigenia. Clytemnestra's importance in Greek mythology comes from her marriage to Agamemnon, Menelaus' brother. Agamemnon leaves for Troy, to help to avenge his brother Menelaus. He appoints Aegisthus to guard his wife Clytemnestra. As the years passed, and there was no word that the war was anywhere near an end, Clytemnestra weakened and welcomed the sensuous advances of Aegisthus. They had an affair and when Agamemnon does return, Aegisthus (the son of Atreus) and Clytemnestra plotted to kill him. They tricked him on to an island where they left him to rot. Aegisthus then took Clytemnestra and ruled Mycenane for seven years. Orestes, Agamemnon's and Clytemnestra's son kills Aegisthus to avenge his father's death. Clytemnestra disappears or is killed but Homer does not go into to much detail about her.

http://www.in2greece.com/english/historymyth/mythology/names/clytemnestra.htm

Article created on 03 March 1997; last modified on 16 May 1999.
© MCMXCV - MMV Encyclopedia Mythica. All rights reserved.
by Mia Gibson
http://www.pantheon.org/articles/c/clytemnestra.html

http://www.mun.ca/english/firstyear/odplot.html

Nestor

2005-01-31T13:58:26Z

Dbulmer:

Nester’s place in the Iliad was important because he is a wise counselor, and because he motivates the plot. He is the wise old man who only Odysseus equals in his ability to bring order out of disorder. The Greeks believed that an elder man knew more, and here, the Achaians listened to the wisdom that old Nester has gained through age. Nester’s digressive tails frequently motivate a character to perform some necessary action or reveal relevant cultural ideas. His tales are usually paradigmatic (showing parallels by examples) and serve as examples in present situations. Consequently, Nester’s tales and advice continue to challenge the young Greek men to live up to the heroic ideals that Nester upheld in the past. He first attempts to settle the dispute between Achilles and Agamemnon. He then advises the Achaians to build a wall, and afterward, to bury the dead. Next, he suggests the spy mission. Fourth, he advises Agamemnon to send good will ambassadors to Achilles with gifts. He then inspires Patroklos to persuade Achilles to return to battle. Nester has been proven to be wise and those that he counsels to be wise recognizes his wisdom. There are links to the Odyssey and the Iliad. Nester becomes the transmitter of memory, which is critical for the immortality of their heroes.

Greek Mythology Link, created and maintained by Carlos Parada.

Cliff Notes: The Iliad: Book Summary and Study Guide

Nestor

2005-01-31T13:58:09Z

Dbulmer:

Ajax

2005-01-31T13:57:43Z

Dbulmer:

AJAX, the “great” or “Telamonian AJAX”, son of Telamon, was the more important of the two. He was a legendary hero of Ancient Greece and the king of Cypress. In the Iliad, he is described as being of colossal frame and great stature. He was second only to Achilles in strength and bravery, and the “bulwark of the Achaeans.” He fought Hector in single combat, and with the aid of Athene, rescued the body of Achilles from the hands of the Trojans. There was a competition between AJAX and Odysseus for the armor of Achilles. Athene influenced the decision of Agamemnon to award the prize to Odysseus. The enraged AJAX so much that it caused his death (Odyssey, xi. 541). According to a later more definitive story, his disappointment drove him mad. He rished out of his tent and fell upon the flocks of sheep in the camp under the impression that they were the enemy; uncoming to his senses, he slew himself with the sword which he had received as a present from Hector. This is the account of his death given in the AJAX of Sophocles (Pindar, Nemea, 7; Ovid, Met. xiii. i).

AJAX, the “lesser”, son of Oileus, he was called the “lesser” or “Locrian AJAX”. He was the king of Locris. Although he was small in stature, he held his own among the strongest heroes before Troy. He was very brave, only second to Achilles in swiftness of foot and in fame for throwing the spear. But he was boastful, arrogant, and quarrelsome; like the Telamonian AJAX, he was the enemy of Odysseus. In the end, he was the victim of the vengeance of Athene, who wrecked his ship on his homeward voyage (Odyssey, iv. 499). A later story gives the account of his guilt. It was said that after the fall of Troy, he dragged Cassandra away by force from the statue of the goddess, at which she had taken refuge as a suppliant, and even violated her (Lycophron, 360, Quintus Smyrnaus xiii. 422). For this, the ship was wrecked in a storm, and he himself was struck by lightning.

“AJAX, SON OF TELAMON.” LoveToKnow 1911 Online Encyclopedia. Copyright 2003, 2004 LoveToKnow

Nestor

2005-01-31T13:57:06Z

Dbulmer:

Ajax

2005-01-31T13:50:05Z

Dbulmer:

Ajax

2005-01-31T13:47:58Z

Dbulmer: Ajax and Ajax

The Iliad Summary:Book 6

2005-01-26T20:58:39Z

Dbulmer:

In book VI Hector returns to Troy. Book VI is when the Trojans rally, and successfully gain momentum against the Greeks. The Greeks were driven back to there barracades around there ships. With there new found succcess the Trojans were plaaning another attack in the morning.

The book also reveals an interesting story of Sisyphus. Sisyphus was the "Wildest man alive".

Epic of Gilgamesh

2005-01-18T18:59:30Z

Dbulmer: /* See Also */

[[Image:Gilgamesh.jpg|thumb|Gilgamesh]] While composed nearly five thousand years ago (2500-1500 BCE), ''Gilgamesh'' seems very as contemporary in its thematic concerns as it is alien in many of its cultural practices. Many of these themes emerge from a lost mythological tradition and a culture that is equally non-extant, the bonds of friendship, fear of death, and the quest for worldly renown still strike chords with us even in the twenty-first century.

== Historical Context ==

''Gilgamesh'' is a primary epic, composed over a thousand years by cultural stories of the legendary king, Gilgamesh, who is thought to have historically ruled Uruk circa 2700 BCE. The oral stories were probably assembled by a poet and cast into the narrative form of the epic between 2000 and 1600 BCE and finally written on clay tablets in cuneiform during the reign of Assurbanipol in 668-627 BCE.

== Gilgamesh as Epic ==

== The Role of Enkidu ==
In my eyes Enkidu is the real hero of the epic.On most of the sites I visited for research, I've found that majority of the people tend to downplay Enkidus role.Some call him a wild man made noble by the "great" Gilgamesh and others say he forced Gilgamesh into his adventures or misadventures. Even the gods looked at him as a sidekick and never equal to Gilgamesh, when deciding that he must die for the killing of the Bull of Heaven, and not Gilgamesh.
The reason the Bull was killed was because Gilgamesh was mouthing off to Ishtar and like a true solider Enkidu had to step in a save Gilgamesh. On all the adventures and in all the battles Enkidu was all was the stronger warrior, but Gilgamesh would always receive the praise.Enkidu was brought in as a counterweight to Gilgamesh and ended up being his saviour.Enkidu saves the life of Gilgamesh many times and ends up giving his life for him.

== Thematic Concerns ==

The [[Epic Poetry | epic]] takes as its primary concern Gilgamesh’s wisdom that he acquires during his journeys and the monuments that he constructs upon his return. Like the Homeric epics, Gilgamesh begins ''in medias res'' during the rule of a wild king, two-thirds god and one-third man. While Gilgamesh is strong and an obvious stud — at least in his own mind, his is cruel and naive, needing to discover what it means to be human if he is to become a good ruler and father.

=== Bonds of Friendship ===

His first lesson is one of friendship through the wild man Enkidu, more of an animal than man. Like all good, lasting friendships (at least those that I have had), Gilgamesh and Enkidu first attempt to kill each other when the latter comes to Uruk. Fortunately, they do not, yet Gilgamesh does get the slight upper-hand, and they become great friends. Indeed, while there is an implicit suggestion of Gilgamesh’s superiority over Enkidu, something akin most friendships, there is one who is dominant, choosing adventures, making decisions, and directing the ultimate course of the friendship. Gilgamesh, since he is the [[heroic ideal | epic hero]], seems to take this role, perhaps also suggesting the superiority of the cultured and civilized to the animal, or natural. This motif becomes even more apparent in their first adventure.

=== Quest for Worldly Renown ===

Now that we are friends, we have to party. Enkidu soon gets bored in Uruk — “I am oppressed by idleness” (23) — and Gilgamesh suggests they go get medieval of some evil: Humbaba. This feat will also prove Gilgamesh a real hero by allowing stories to be told about his great feats of manhood:

: I will set up my name in the place where the names of famous men are written, and where no man’s name is written yet I will raise a monument to the gods.

[[Image:Grendel.jpg|thumb|Humbaba]] While Humbaba lives in the Country of the Living, seemingly quite far from Uruk, and is apparently not an immediate threat to Gilgamesh’s people, this endeavor might seem a bit dubious. Perhaps this is a commentary on what men will do when they are bored: let’s go kill something. When we are at peace, we long for war? Humbaba might also represent a “holdfast,” something that while alive or existing — whether an idea or an actual threat — restricts a culture from developing beyond a certain point. Many such holdfasts pop up in western literature, cf. the dragon in Beowulf for one.

While Gilgamesh and Enkidu are successful in killing Humbaba — through episodes of fainting and friendly gibes — its death suggests more of an ambiguity in their success, as if something precious has been slain all for the pride of man (and I do mean man, here). Notice that when Humbaba is killed, the heroes begin cutting down trees: “They attacked the cedars . . . [and] cleared their roots as far as the banks of the Euphrates” (30). Like Enkidu’s education through the wiles of the harlot, this victory suggests that while the heroes accomplished their great victory, something is irrevocably lost because of their endeavor. Through the harlot, Enkidu forever loses his innocence, but what is lost in the killing of Humbaba is a bit more ambiguous. Perhaps this is an ecological statement about clearing rain forests millennia before we knew what effect that practice would have.

The ambiguity continues in the gods’ reaction to the death of Humbaba and the felling of the cedars: Enkidu must die. OK, maybe it has more to do with Gilgamesh’s arrogant dismissal of Ishtar, but regardless, the Bull of Heaven is sent to punish the heroes and Uruk. Even though the bull is defeated, Enkidu must die which precipitates Gilgamesh’s search for immortality — an escape from death. Notice that while Enkidu lays dying that he curses the city (civilization), the harlot (women that led to the destruction of his innocence), and the trapper (who precipitated the education of Enkidu). Enkidu’s curses further call into question the necessity of civilization and heroic quests: perhaps fame is not worth death.

=== Escape from Death ===

After Enkidu’s death, Gilgamesh rips his clothes from his body and dons animal skins, symbolic of his repudiation of civilization and renown — that which caused the death of his friend. Gilgamesh’s subsequent journey is a psychological descent into his own psyche to discover his own meaning in a life that must end in death. His epic journey is pretty pathetic as far as epic journeys go: full of tantrums and failed tasks, Gilgamesh seems to return to Uruk empty-handed. Yet, he brings the story of his travel and carves it on the bricks that make up the foundation of Uruk, suggesting that civilization is ultimately built on stories: the written text is the key to progress, friendship, and immortality. Gilgamesh, then, becomes a scapegoat: he journeyed to meet Utnapishtim so his people did not have to. Though his journeys proved ostensibly unsuccessful, he returned humanized, ready to accept his place in the world and finally death when it would come.

''Gilgamesh'' leaves us with its moral: Do not abuse power, “deal justly with your servants in the palace, deal justly before the face of the Sun” (46). ''Gilgamesh'' is both “the darkness and the light of mankind” in that he brought suffering, but ultimately brought life to his people in the form of the story. What directions for life are contained within the epic? How many of these myths do we still live with today? These stories represent the good and the bad of humanity. What do we ultimately think of the stories, myths, codes for life that ''Gilgamesh'' ultimately passes on?

== Importance of Food and Drink ==

== Attitudes Toward Women ==

== Archetypes in Gilgamesh ==

== Gilgamesh Variations ==

There are many different Gilgamesh interpretations. Some representations of the story have Gilgamesh as an old man. This is incorrect, the reason behind that is whoever wrote that interpretation did not read the original. This is unfortunate because if Gilgamesh was read in the wrong interpretation; a novice reader would not understand one of the major themes of humility throughout Gilgamesh.

== External Links ==

* [http://litmuse.maconstate.edu/~glucas/archives/000360.shtml The Taming of Nature in Gilgamesh]
* [http://litmuse.maconstate.edu/~glucas/archives/000449.shtml Ecological Themes in Gilgamesh]
* [http://litmuse.maconstate.edu/~glucas/archives/000297.shtml Friendship and Two Epics]
* [http://novaonline.nv.cc.va.us/eli/eng251/gilgameshstudy.htm Gilgamesh Study Guide]

[[Category:World Literature]]

Epic of Gilgamesh

2005-01-18T18:57:29Z

Dbulmer: /* See Also */

[[Image:Gilgamesh.jpg|thumb|Gilgamesh]] While composed nearly five thousand years ago (2500-1500 BCE), ''Gilgamesh'' seems very as contemporary in its thematic concerns as it is alien in many of its cultural practices. Many of these themes emerge from a lost mythological tradition and a culture that is equally non-extant, the bonds of friendship, fear of death, and the quest for worldly renown still strike chords with us even in the twenty-first century.

== Historical Context ==

''Gilgamesh'' is a primary epic, composed over a thousand years by cultural stories of the legendary king, Gilgamesh, who is thought to have historically ruled Uruk circa 2700 BCE. The oral stories were probably assembled by a poet and cast into the narrative form of the epic between 2000 and 1600 BCE and finally written on clay tablets in cuneiform during the reign of Assurbanipol in 668-627 BCE.

== Gilgamesh as Epic ==

== The Role of Enkidu ==
In my eyes Enkidu is the real hero of the epic.On most of the sites I visited for research, I've found that majority of the people tend to downplay Enkidus role.Some call him a wild man made noble by the "great" Gilgamesh and others say he forced Gilgamesh into his adventures or misadventures. Even the gods looked at him as a sidekick and never equal to Gilgamesh, when deciding that he must die for the killing of the Bull of Heaven, and not Gilgamesh.
The reason the Bull was killed was because Gilgamesh was mouthing off to Ishtar and like a true solider Enkidu had to step in a save Gilgamesh. On all the adventures and in all the battles Enkidu was all was the stronger warrior, but Gilgamesh would always receive the praise.Enkidu was brought in as a counterweight to Gilgamesh and ended up being his saviour.Enkidu saves the life of Gilgamesh many times and ends up giving his life for him.

== Thematic Concerns ==

The [[Epic Poetry | epic]] takes as its primary concern Gilgamesh’s wisdom that he acquires during his journeys and the monuments that he constructs upon his return. Like the Homeric epics, Gilgamesh begins ''in medias res'' during the rule of a wild king, two-thirds god and one-third man. While Gilgamesh is strong and an obvious stud — at least in his own mind, his is cruel and naive, needing to discover what it means to be human if he is to become a good ruler and father.

=== Bonds of Friendship ===

His first lesson is one of friendship through the wild man Enkidu, more of an animal than man. Like all good, lasting friendships (at least those that I have had), Gilgamesh and Enkidu first attempt to kill each other when the latter comes to Uruk. Fortunately, they do not, yet Gilgamesh does get the slight upper-hand, and they become great friends. Indeed, while there is an implicit suggestion of Gilgamesh’s superiority over Enkidu, something akin most friendships, there is one who is dominant, choosing adventures, making decisions, and directing the ultimate course of the friendship. Gilgamesh, since he is the [[heroic ideal | epic hero]], seems to take this role, perhaps also suggesting the superiority of the cultured and civilized to the animal, or natural. This motif becomes even more apparent in their first adventure.

=== Quest for Worldly Renown ===

Now that we are friends, we have to party. Enkidu soon gets bored in Uruk — “I am oppressed by idleness” (23) — and Gilgamesh suggests they go get medieval of some evil: Humbaba. This feat will also prove Gilgamesh a real hero by allowing stories to be told about his great feats of manhood:

: I will set up my name in the place where the names of famous men are written, and where no man’s name is written yet I will raise a monument to the gods.

[[Image:Grendel.jpg|thumb|Humbaba]] While Humbaba lives in the Country of the Living, seemingly quite far from Uruk, and is apparently not an immediate threat to Gilgamesh’s people, this endeavor might seem a bit dubious. Perhaps this is a commentary on what men will do when they are bored: let’s go kill something. When we are at peace, we long for war? Humbaba might also represent a “holdfast,” something that while alive or existing — whether an idea or an actual threat — restricts a culture from developing beyond a certain point. Many such holdfasts pop up in western literature, cf. the dragon in Beowulf for one.

While Gilgamesh and Enkidu are successful in killing Humbaba — through episodes of fainting and friendly gibes — its death suggests more of an ambiguity in their success, as if something precious has been slain all for the pride of man (and I do mean man, here). Notice that when Humbaba is killed, the heroes begin cutting down trees: “They attacked the cedars . . . [and] cleared their roots as far as the banks of the Euphrates” (30). Like Enkidu’s education through the wiles of the harlot, this victory suggests that while the heroes accomplished their great victory, something is irrevocably lost because of their endeavor. Through the harlot, Enkidu forever loses his innocence, but what is lost in the killing of Humbaba is a bit more ambiguous. Perhaps this is an ecological statement about clearing rain forests millennia before we knew what effect that practice would have.

The ambiguity continues in the gods’ reaction to the death of Humbaba and the felling of the cedars: Enkidu must die. OK, maybe it has more to do with Gilgamesh’s arrogant dismissal of Ishtar, but regardless, the Bull of Heaven is sent to punish the heroes and Uruk. Even though the bull is defeated, Enkidu must die which precipitates Gilgamesh’s search for immortality — an escape from death. Notice that while Enkidu lays dying that he curses the city (civilization), the harlot (women that led to the destruction of his innocence), and the trapper (who precipitated the education of Enkidu). Enkidu’s curses further call into question the necessity of civilization and heroic quests: perhaps fame is not worth death.

=== Escape from Death ===

After Enkidu’s death, Gilgamesh rips his clothes from his body and dons animal skins, symbolic of his repudiation of civilization and renown — that which caused the death of his friend. Gilgamesh’s subsequent journey is a psychological descent into his own psyche to discover his own meaning in a life that must end in death. His epic journey is pretty pathetic as far as epic journeys go: full of tantrums and failed tasks, Gilgamesh seems to return to Uruk empty-handed. Yet, he brings the story of his travel and carves it on the bricks that make up the foundation of Uruk, suggesting that civilization is ultimately built on stories: the written text is the key to progress, friendship, and immortality. Gilgamesh, then, becomes a scapegoat: he journeyed to meet Utnapishtim so his people did not have to. Though his journeys proved ostensibly unsuccessful, he returned humanized, ready to accept his place in the world and finally death when it would come.

''Gilgamesh'' leaves us with its moral: Do not abuse power, “deal justly with your servants in the palace, deal justly before the face of the Sun” (46). ''Gilgamesh'' is both “the darkness and the light of mankind” in that he brought suffering, but ultimately brought life to his people in the form of the story. What directions for life are contained within the epic? How many of these myths do we still live with today? These stories represent the good and the bad of humanity. What do we ultimately think of the stories, myths, codes for life that ''Gilgamesh'' ultimately passes on?

== Importance of Food and Drink ==

== Attitudes Toward Women ==

== Archetypes in Gilgamesh ==

== See Also ==
* [[Gilgamesh Summary]]
There are many different Gilgamesh interpretations. Some representations of the story have Gilgamesh as an old man. This is incorrect, the reason behind that is whoever wrote that interpretation did not read the original. This is unfortunate because if Gilgamesh was read in the wrong interpretation; a novice reader would not understand one of the major themes of humility throughout Gilgamesh.

== External Links ==

* [http://litmuse.maconstate.edu/~glucas/archives/000360.shtml The Taming of Nature in Gilgamesh]
* [http://litmuse.maconstate.edu/~glucas/archives/000449.shtml Ecological Themes in Gilgamesh]
* [http://litmuse.maconstate.edu/~glucas/archives/000297.shtml Friendship and Two Epics]
* [http://novaonline.nv.cc.va.us/eli/eng251/gilgameshstudy.htm Gilgamesh Study Guide]

[[Category:World Literature]]