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Oedipus Rex

2005-04-19T19:51:32Z

Wbarras: /* Themes and Motifs */

[[Image:Oedipus.png|thumb|Oedipus and the Sphinx]]''Oedipus the King'', by the tragedian [[Sophocles]], is based on a legend deeply rooted in the cultural identity of Athens. The myth of Oedipus contains a historical and religious authority based on the cultural values of an oral tradition. It concerns the relationship between humans and their gods and, perhaps more importantly, primal hopes and fears that unearth a terror and despair normally buried in human consciousness. Oedipus is a typical Athenian who commits the most egregious of human taboos: incest and patricide. Within the character of Oedipus are both the faults and virtues of the Athenian people. Some critics suggest that Oedipus might be a warning to Athenians that have ushered in a new era of intellectualism.

== Summary ==

There is a plague in Thebes. Oedipus has sent Creon to find out news from the gods how they can get rid of the plague. When Creon returns, he tells them that Apollo told them to get rid of the murderers of Laius, their first king. Oedipus wants to find out who killed him so they call on the prophet Tiresias. He tells them that Oedipus is the murderer. Oedipus is offended by this nonsense, and after intense arguing, he sends the prophet home. Oedipus then starts arguing with Creon, because he blames him for what has happened. Jocasta enters the room and stops them from arguing. Jocasta tells Oedipus that the prophets told her that her husband would be killed by their child, and the slave told them this did not happen either because he was killed by thieves. Jocasta said her son was only a child, like three years old. While Jocasta is praying, a messenger from Corinth comes and tells her that Oedipus’ father, Polybus, is dead. They first rejoice at this news because it appears that the prophets did not know what they were talking about, because this meant that Oedipus could not be his father’s murderer. Later, the messenger informs Oedipus, that Polybus was no more a father to him than he was. They learn that this man had received Oedipus as a child, from a Shepard. He was a Shepard of Laius. He had been given to him by the queen (Oedipus’s wife; mother) to go and have killed, because the prophets had told her that her child would kill his parents. The Shepard didn’t have the heart to kill a baby, so that’s how Oedipus ended up in Corinth. Oedipus trying to keep from fulfilling the prophecy of killing his parents, left Corinth and ran into Laius on the triple road, and killed him not knowing that this was really his father.

Jocasta began to put the pieces of the puzzle together, and ran off to her room telling Oedipus he should just let it die. Leave it alone. But Oedipus was determined to find out his birthright. Jocasta hung herself, while Oedipus was learning of his cursed destiny, and he took the brooches from her dress and gouged his eyes out. After being blinded, he faced his people and told them to get Creon so that he could be put to death. Oedipus asks Creon to take care of his daughters because he knows that no man would want to marry them. He asks to see his daughters one last time, and then Creon separates them and takes Oedipus to be executed.

== Character Traits ==

* Conscientious and patriotic ruler
* Quick to rage — anger — does not listen to anyone
* Confidence in human intelligence — self-confidence
* Man of action and decisiveness, even if imprudent
* Obdurate — Jocasta says “You’re so unbending” (l. 769).
* Courage in the face of despair
* Impiety — disdainful and supercilious
* Wants to know the truth at all costs

Much of the tension in ''Oedipus the King'' revolves around dramatic irony: the gap between the one meaning known by the audience and the other known to the players:

* Every step prompted by his intelligence is one step closer to tragedy
* His knowledge is ignorance
* His clear vision is blindness

Oedipus falls because of the man that he is, not through some random event in nature or fated outcome. His self-discovery comes at a huge cost: his own destruction. Although the oracle predicts what Oedipus will do, it does not determine the latter’s actions. Oedipus has erred in his faith in human intelligence; there are powers in the universe that are beyond our control and our understanding.

Aristotle mentions ''Oedipus'' eleven times in his ''Poetics''. Aristotle’s obvious favor of Sophocles’ play suggests that it is the measure of all [[tragedy]].

== Free Will versus Fate ==

“Even if everything is determined, we have no way of knowing what the total pattern is, so we must act on our own best judgment; free will is, therefore, a necessary illusion. Apparently wise men attain some insight into this pattern (or are given it by the gods), but all of us have the freedom to disregard such insight, follow our own desires, and suffer the consequences.” Walter Agard’s ''The Humanities for Our Time'' (1949).

The concept of human suffering loses all significance if humans have no free will.

“The central idea of a [[Sophocles|Sophoclean]] [[tragedy]] is that through suffering a man learns to be modest before the gods.” Bowra

“His ''Oedipus'' stands for human suffering, and he neither attempts, like [[Aeschylus]], to justify the evil, nor presumes, like [[Euripides]], to deny its divine origin” J.T. Sheppard

“[[Sophocles]]’ difficulty is the problem of suffering, as Aeschylus’ is the problem of sin.” A. Zimmerman

“It’s all chance, chance rules our lives.” Jocasta, l. 1070

“I count myself the son of Chance.” Oedipus, l. 1188

== Themes and Motifs ==

* Sight and blindness
Oedipus’ life could be called a train wreck; that is, two trains were moving head-on toward each other—one oblivous to the truth and one with knowledge of the truth. When these trains met, the wreck took the {emotional and/or physical} lives of everyone close to Oedipus. Although he could physically see, he was blind to who he really was. Oedipus had no idea that his wife was actually his mother, that the people who raised him were not his biological parents, that his daughters were also his half-sisters, and that he had murdered his biological father. First, he brought in the blind prophet, Tiresias, who revealed the future. Second, he blindly denied these revealations. And third, after he could see the revealations were true, Oedipus blinded himself physically.

In the beginning of the play, Oedipus has perfect physical vision. However, he is blind and ignorant to the truth about himself and his past. He desperately wants to know, to see, but he cannot (Hibbison). Ironically, Tiresias, the blind soothsayer, saw the future from the beginning. Neither Oedipus nor his wife, Jocasta, knew how devastating their lives were. When their true history was revealed by Tiresias, they refused to believe him. Tiresias meant two different things when he referred to sight. First, he knew Oedipus was blessed with the gift of perception; he was the only man who could "see" the answer to the Sphinx's riddle (verse 501). Second, he could not see what was right before his eyes. He was blind to the truth he sought (Little).

Oedipus, furious at the suggestion of his guilt, berated the prophet, who retorted by insisting that Oedipus was yet blind to the truth and would soon learn of his guilt (Awerty). In verse 478, Tiresias told Oedipus that “…darkness shrouding your eyes that can see the light”. Oedipus angrily dismissed the sightless old man, accused him of conspiring with Jocasta's brother, Creon, to overthrow him (Awerty). Although blind to the truth, as the facts became clear, Oedipus was forced to open his eyes: Oedipus did, in fact, kill his father, Larius, and marry his mother. Oedipus’ slaying of Laius at the crossroads was an intentional act, but also an unconscious one; therefore a “pure” one. Later, when Oedipus blinds himself, the audience is capable of exhibiting the correct emotional response: that of pity and fear. This act, after Oedipus’ recognition of his error, proves that he feels remorse for his actions and shows the audience that he would never have performed them had he known the facts (Lucas). Oedipus was responsible for the bad times in Thebes. The truth was then so obvious to him that he had to confront it.

Oedipus furthered [[Sophocles]]’ sight metaphor when he defended his decision to humble himself through blindness: “What good were eyes to me? Nothing I could see could bring me joy” (verse 1473). When Oedipus finally discovered the truth, ironically, he was so distressed that he ran pins into his eyes (verse 1405). Oedipus’ self-inflicted blindness is, in effect, his “purification” of his pathos and makes him a proper recipient for the audience’s pity and fear (Lucas). He had been blinded to the truth too long. Oedipus would forever walk in physical darkness, though the truth was now visible. With nothing to look at, Oedipus was forced to think about his life and what had happened. The darkness and the physical pain he had inflicted on himself was just as agonizing as his blindness to the truth.

Figurative blindness can be harder to deal with then literal blindness. A person who is physically blind knows that it will probably be life-long will learn to accept the blindness. However, if a person is blind to the truth, there is nothing that person can do until they learn and acknowledge the truth. The person may not even know that their situation is wrong. When that person does learn the truth, he tends to feel ignorant. That person wonders if things could have been avoided had the truth only been known sooner. When Oedipus learned the truth, his way of dealing with his figurative blindness was to physically blind himself. In this play, blindness led to the truth, and the truth led to blindness. Oedipus and Jocasta were blinded, yet found the truth.

* Light and darkness
* Historia — a free spirit of inquiry
* Knowledge comes only through suffering
* The responsibility of humans for their own acts
* The error of setting human reason above obedience to the gods
* Consequences of excessive pride
* Ship and navigation metaphors (e.g., ll. 1010-11; 1454)

Chorus — present and objectively severe and conventional, gradually growing more troubled and anxious, and finally into utter despair.

Archetype of drama? Hero’s quest for himself.

Works Cited:
Little, Jennifer. “Oedipus Rex / Oedipus the King.” Gradesaver. July 19, 2000. Retrieved March 31, 2005. <http://www.gradesaver.com/ClassicNotes/Titles/oedipus/summ2.html>.

No author. “Oedipus Rex by Sophocles (c. 496-406 B.C.)” Awerty Notes. Retrieved March 31, 2005. <http://www.awerty.com/oedipus2.html>.

Lucas, Gerald, Ed. “Poetics and Purgation”. Dr. Gerald Lucas. July 16, 2003. Retrieved April 12, 2005. <http://litmuse.maconstate.edu/~glucas/archives/000252.shtm>.

Hibbison, Eric, Ed. “Oedipus the Wreck – Blindness in Oedipus Rex”. VCCS Litonline. Virginia Community College System. Last Updated February 21, 2005. Retreived April 18, 2005. <http://vccslitonline.cc.va.us/OedipustheWreck/blindness.htm>.

== Questions for Consideration ==

# Many consider ''Oedipus the King'' as the greatest of the Western [[tragedy|tragedies]]. Even if you are not familiar with other Greek [[tragedy]], consider the greatness of ''Oedipus the King'' from your own perspective. What themes common in the [[tragedy]] resonate for us today?
# All of the crucial action of the play takes place off stage: Oedipus' killing of his father, etc. Consider the dramatic effect of this decision: what is, therefore, highlighted if not the egregious acts committed by the protagonist?
# Even though during his investigation, Oedipus begins to suspect the truth of the situation, yet he pushes on to prove the terrible truth. What does this say about Oedipus specifically and the [[tragedy|tragic]] hero in general? Does this shed any light on Oedipus' eventual death?
# What is Oedipus' [[hamartia|tragic flaw]]? Is there only one?
# Professor Literary Critic states that "to Sophocles, man has become an emancipated individual with a free will who cannot excuse his deeds by blaming Fate, the gods, or oracles. Reason is thus man's highest possession and greatest power." Discuss the contrast of fate verses free will in ''Oedipus the King''.
# When Oedipus discovers his crimes, he blinds himself. Discuss the symbolic significance of this action. What does this act say about vision in general? (Perhaps start by thinking about that other blind character have we met this semester...)
# If Oedipus represents both the best and the worst of his culture, what values can we infer from our reading of the tragedy?

[[Category:World Literature]]

Oedipus Rex

2005-04-19T19:50:15Z

Wbarras: /* Themes and Motifs */

[[Image:Oedipus.png|thumb|Oedipus and the Sphinx]]''Oedipus the King'', by the tragedian [[Sophocles]], is based on a legend deeply rooted in the cultural identity of Athens. The myth of Oedipus contains a historical and religious authority based on the cultural values of an oral tradition. It concerns the relationship between humans and their gods and, perhaps more importantly, primal hopes and fears that unearth a terror and despair normally buried in human consciousness. Oedipus is a typical Athenian who commits the most egregious of human taboos: incest and patricide. Within the character of Oedipus are both the faults and virtues of the Athenian people. Some critics suggest that Oedipus might be a warning to Athenians that have ushered in a new era of intellectualism.

== Summary ==

There is a plague in Thebes. Oedipus has sent Creon to find out news from the gods how they can get rid of the plague. When Creon returns, he tells them that Apollo told them to get rid of the murderers of Laius, their first king. Oedipus wants to find out who killed him so they call on the prophet Tiresias. He tells them that Oedipus is the murderer. Oedipus is offended by this nonsense, and after intense arguing, he sends the prophet home. Oedipus then starts arguing with Creon, because he blames him for what has happened. Jocasta enters the room and stops them from arguing. Jocasta tells Oedipus that the prophets told her that her husband would be killed by their child, and the slave told them this did not happen either because he was killed by thieves. Jocasta said her son was only a child, like three years old. While Jocasta is praying, a messenger from Corinth comes and tells her that Oedipus’ father, Polybus, is dead. They first rejoice at this news because it appears that the prophets did not know what they were talking about, because this meant that Oedipus could not be his father’s murderer. Later, the messenger informs Oedipus, that Polybus was no more a father to him than he was. They learn that this man had received Oedipus as a child, from a Shepard. He was a Shepard of Laius. He had been given to him by the queen (Oedipus’s wife; mother) to go and have killed, because the prophets had told her that her child would kill his parents. The Shepard didn’t have the heart to kill a baby, so that’s how Oedipus ended up in Corinth. Oedipus trying to keep from fulfilling the prophecy of killing his parents, left Corinth and ran into Laius on the triple road, and killed him not knowing that this was really his father.

Jocasta began to put the pieces of the puzzle together, and ran off to her room telling Oedipus he should just let it die. Leave it alone. But Oedipus was determined to find out his birthright. Jocasta hung herself, while Oedipus was learning of his cursed destiny, and he took the brooches from her dress and gouged his eyes out. After being blinded, he faced his people and told them to get Creon so that he could be put to death. Oedipus asks Creon to take care of his daughters because he knows that no man would want to marry them. He asks to see his daughters one last time, and then Creon separates them and takes Oedipus to be executed.

== Character Traits ==

* Conscientious and patriotic ruler
* Quick to rage — anger — does not listen to anyone
* Confidence in human intelligence — self-confidence
* Man of action and decisiveness, even if imprudent
* Obdurate — Jocasta says “You’re so unbending” (l. 769).
* Courage in the face of despair
* Impiety — disdainful and supercilious
* Wants to know the truth at all costs

Much of the tension in ''Oedipus the King'' revolves around dramatic irony: the gap between the one meaning known by the audience and the other known to the players:

* Every step prompted by his intelligence is one step closer to tragedy
* His knowledge is ignorance
* His clear vision is blindness

Oedipus falls because of the man that he is, not through some random event in nature or fated outcome. His self-discovery comes at a huge cost: his own destruction. Although the oracle predicts what Oedipus will do, it does not determine the latter’s actions. Oedipus has erred in his faith in human intelligence; there are powers in the universe that are beyond our control and our understanding.

Aristotle mentions ''Oedipus'' eleven times in his ''Poetics''. Aristotle’s obvious favor of Sophocles’ play suggests that it is the measure of all [[tragedy]].

== Free Will versus Fate ==

“Even if everything is determined, we have no way of knowing what the total pattern is, so we must act on our own best judgment; free will is, therefore, a necessary illusion. Apparently wise men attain some insight into this pattern (or are given it by the gods), but all of us have the freedom to disregard such insight, follow our own desires, and suffer the consequences.” Walter Agard’s ''The Humanities for Our Time'' (1949).

The concept of human suffering loses all significance if humans have no free will.

“The central idea of a [[Sophocles|Sophoclean]] [[tragedy]] is that through suffering a man learns to be modest before the gods.” Bowra

“His ''Oedipus'' stands for human suffering, and he neither attempts, like [[Aeschylus]], to justify the evil, nor presumes, like [[Euripides]], to deny its divine origin” J.T. Sheppard

“[[Sophocles]]’ difficulty is the problem of suffering, as Aeschylus’ is the problem of sin.” A. Zimmerman

“It’s all chance, chance rules our lives.” Jocasta, l. 1070

“I count myself the son of Chance.” Oedipus, l. 1188

== Themes and Motifs ==

* Sight and blindness
[[Oedipus]]’ life could be called a train wreck; that is, two trains were moving head-on toward each other—one oblivous to the truth and one with knowledge of the truth. When these trains met, the wreck took the {emotional and/or physical} lives of everyone close to Oedipus. Although he could physically see, he was blind to who he really was. Oedipus had no idea that his wife was actually his mother, that the people who raised him were not his biological parents, that his daughters were also his half-sisters, and that he had murdered his biological father. First, he brought in the blind prophet, Tieresias, who revealed the future. Second, he blindly denied these revealations. And third, after he could see the revealations were true, Oedipus blinded himself physically.

In the beginning of the play, Oedipus has perfect physical vision. However, he is blind and ignorant to the truth about himself and his past. He desperately wants to know, to see, but he cannot (Hibbison). Ironically, Tiresias, the blind soothsayer, saw the future from the beginning. Neither Oedipus nor his wife, Jocasta, knew how devastating their lives were. When their true history was revealed by Tiresias, they refused to believe him. Tiresias meant two different things when he referred to sight. First, he knew Oedipus was blessed with the gift of perception; he was the only man who could "see" the answer to the Sphinx's riddle (verse 501). Second, he could not see what was right before his eyes. He was blind to the truth he sought (Little).

Oedipus, furious at the suggestion of his guilt, berated the prophet, who retorted by insisting that Oedipus was yet blind to the truth and would soon learn of his guilt (Awerty). In verse 478, Tiresias told Oedipus that “…darkness shrouding your eyes that can see the light”. Oedipus angrily dismissed the sightless old man, accused him of conspiring with Jocasta's brother, Creon, to overthrow him (Awerty). Although blind to the truth, as the facts became clear, Oedipus was forced to open his eyes: Oedipus did, in fact, kill his father, Larius, and marry his mother. Oedipus’ slaying of Laius at the crossroads was an intentional act, but also an unconscious one; therefore a “pure” one. Later, when Oedipus blinds himself, the audience is capable of exhibiting the correct emotional response: that of pity and fear. This act, after Oedipus’ recognition of his error, proves that he feels remorse for his actions and shows the audience that he would never have performed them had he known the facts (Lucas). Oedipus was responsible for the bad times in Thebes. The truth was then so obvious to him that he had to confront it.

Oedipus furthered [[Sophocles]]’ sight metaphor when he defended his decision to humble himself through blindness: “What good were eyes to me? Nothing I could see could bring me joy” (verse 1473). When Oedipus finally discovered the truth, ironically, he was so distressed that he ran pins into his eyes (verse 1405). Oedipus’ self-inflicted blindness is, in effect, his “purification” of his pathos and makes him a proper recipient for the audience’s pity and fear (Lucas). He had been blinded to the truth too long. Oedipus would forever walk in physical darkness, though the truth was now visible. With nothing to look at, Oedipus was forced to think about his life and what had happened. The darkness and the physical pain he had inflicted on himself was just as agonizing as his blindness to the truth.

Figurative blindness can be harder to deal with then literal blindness. A person who is physically blind knows that it will probably be life-long will learn to accept the blindness. However, if a person is blind to the truth, there is nothing that person can do until they learn and acknowledge the truth. The person may not even know that their situation is wrong. When that person does learn the truth, he tends to feel ignorant. That person wonders if things could have been avoided had the truth only been known sooner. When Oedipus learned the truth, his way of dealing with his figurative blindness was to physically blind himself. In this play, blindness led to the truth, and the truth led to blindness. Oedipus and Jocasta were blinded, yet found the truth.

* Light and darkness
* Historia — a free spirit of inquiry
* Knowledge comes only through suffering
* The responsibility of humans for their own acts
* The error of setting human reason above obedience to the gods
* Consequences of excessive pride
* Ship and navigation metaphors (e.g., ll. 1010-11; 1454)

Chorus — present and objectively severe and conventional, gradually growing more troubled and anxious, and finally into utter despair.

Archetype of drama? Hero’s quest for himself.

Works Cited:
Little, Jennifer. “Oedipus Rex / Oedipus the King.” Gradesaver. July 19, 2000. Retrieved March 31, 2005. <http://www.gradesaver.com/ClassicNotes/Titles/oedipus/summ2.html>.

No author. “Oedipus Rex by Sophocles (c. 496-406 B.C.)” Awerty Notes. Retrieved March 31, 2005. <http://www.awerty.com/oedipus2.html>.

Lucas, Gerald, Ed. “Poetics and Purgation”. Dr. Gerald Lucas. July 16, 2003. Retrieved April 12, 2005. <http://litmuse.maconstate.edu/~glucas/archives/000252.shtm>.

Hibbison, Eric, Ed. “Oedipus the Wreck – Blindness in Oedipus Rex”. VCCS Litonline. Virginia Community College System. Last Updated February 21, 2005. Retreived April 18, 2005. <http://vccslitonline.cc.va.us/OedipustheWreck/blindness.htm>.

== Questions for Consideration ==

# Many consider ''Oedipus the King'' as the greatest of the Western [[tragedy|tragedies]]. Even if you are not familiar with other Greek [[tragedy]], consider the greatness of ''Oedipus the King'' from your own perspective. What themes common in the [[tragedy]] resonate for us today?
# All of the crucial action of the play takes place off stage: Oedipus' killing of his father, etc. Consider the dramatic effect of this decision: what is, therefore, highlighted if not the egregious acts committed by the protagonist?
# Even though during his investigation, Oedipus begins to suspect the truth of the situation, yet he pushes on to prove the terrible truth. What does this say about Oedipus specifically and the [[tragedy|tragic]] hero in general? Does this shed any light on Oedipus' eventual death?
# What is Oedipus' [[hamartia|tragic flaw]]? Is there only one?
# Professor Literary Critic states that "to Sophocles, man has become an emancipated individual with a free will who cannot excuse his deeds by blaming Fate, the gods, or oracles. Reason is thus man's highest possession and greatest power." Discuss the contrast of fate verses free will in ''Oedipus the King''.
# When Oedipus discovers his crimes, he blinds himself. Discuss the symbolic significance of this action. What does this act say about vision in general? (Perhaps start by thinking about that other blind character have we met this semester...)
# If Oedipus represents both the best and the worst of his culture, what values can we infer from our reading of the tragedy?

[[Category:World Literature]]

Oedipus Rex

2005-04-19T19:46:46Z

Wbarras: /* Themes and Motifs */

[[Image:Oedipus.png|thumb|Oedipus and the Sphinx]]''Oedipus the King'', by the tragedian [[Sophocles]], is based on a legend deeply rooted in the cultural identity of Athens. The myth of Oedipus contains a historical and religious authority based on the cultural values of an oral tradition. It concerns the relationship between humans and their gods and, perhaps more importantly, primal hopes and fears that unearth a terror and despair normally buried in human consciousness. Oedipus is a typical Athenian who commits the most egregious of human taboos: incest and patricide. Within the character of Oedipus are both the faults and virtues of the Athenian people. Some critics suggest that Oedipus might be a warning to Athenians that have ushered in a new era of intellectualism.

== Summary ==

There is a plague in Thebes. Oedipus has sent Creon to find out news from the gods how they can get rid of the plague. When Creon returns, he tells them that Apollo told them to get rid of the murderers of Laius, their first king. Oedipus wants to find out who killed him so they call on the prophet Tiresias. He tells them that Oedipus is the murderer. Oedipus is offended by this nonsense, and after intense arguing, he sends the prophet home. Oedipus then starts arguing with Creon, because he blames him for what has happened. Jocasta enters the room and stops them from arguing. Jocasta tells Oedipus that the prophets told her that her husband would be killed by their child, and the slave told them this did not happen either because he was killed by thieves. Jocasta said her son was only a child, like three years old. While Jocasta is praying, a messenger from Corinth comes and tells her that Oedipus’ father, Polybus, is dead. They first rejoice at this news because it appears that the prophets did not know what they were talking about, because this meant that Oedipus could not be his father’s murderer. Later, the messenger informs Oedipus, that Polybus was no more a father to him than he was. They learn that this man had received Oedipus as a child, from a Shepard. He was a Shepard of Laius. He had been given to him by the queen (Oedipus’s wife; mother) to go and have killed, because the prophets had told her that her child would kill his parents. The Shepard didn’t have the heart to kill a baby, so that’s how Oedipus ended up in Corinth. Oedipus trying to keep from fulfilling the prophecy of killing his parents, left Corinth and ran into Laius on the triple road, and killed him not knowing that this was really his father.

Jocasta began to put the pieces of the puzzle together, and ran off to her room telling Oedipus he should just let it die. Leave it alone. But Oedipus was determined to find out his birthright. Jocasta hung herself, while Oedipus was learning of his cursed destiny, and he took the brooches from her dress and gouged his eyes out. After being blinded, he faced his people and told them to get Creon so that he could be put to death. Oedipus asks Creon to take care of his daughters because he knows that no man would want to marry them. He asks to see his daughters one last time, and then Creon separates them and takes Oedipus to be executed.

== Character Traits ==

* Conscientious and patriotic ruler
* Quick to rage — anger — does not listen to anyone
* Confidence in human intelligence — self-confidence
* Man of action and decisiveness, even if imprudent
* Obdurate — Jocasta says “You’re so unbending” (l. 769).
* Courage in the face of despair
* Impiety — disdainful and supercilious
* Wants to know the truth at all costs

Much of the tension in ''Oedipus the King'' revolves around dramatic irony: the gap between the one meaning known by the audience and the other known to the players:

* Every step prompted by his intelligence is one step closer to tragedy
* His knowledge is ignorance
* His clear vision is blindness

Oedipus falls because of the man that he is, not through some random event in nature or fated outcome. His self-discovery comes at a huge cost: his own destruction. Although the oracle predicts what Oedipus will do, it does not determine the latter’s actions. Oedipus has erred in his faith in human intelligence; there are powers in the universe that are beyond our control and our understanding.

Aristotle mentions ''Oedipus'' eleven times in his ''Poetics''. Aristotle’s obvious favor of Sophocles’ play suggests that it is the measure of all [[tragedy]].

== Free Will versus Fate ==

“Even if everything is determined, we have no way of knowing what the total pattern is, so we must act on our own best judgment; free will is, therefore, a necessary illusion. Apparently wise men attain some insight into this pattern (or are given it by the gods), but all of us have the freedom to disregard such insight, follow our own desires, and suffer the consequences.” Walter Agard’s ''The Humanities for Our Time'' (1949).

The concept of human suffering loses all significance if humans have no free will.

“The central idea of a [[Sophocles|Sophoclean]] [[tragedy]] is that through suffering a man learns to be modest before the gods.” Bowra

“His ''Oedipus'' stands for human suffering, and he neither attempts, like [[Aeschylus]], to justify the evil, nor presumes, like [[Euripides]], to deny its divine origin” J.T. Sheppard

“[[Sophocles]]’ difficulty is the problem of suffering, as Aeschylus’ is the problem of sin.” A. Zimmerman

“It’s all chance, chance rules our lives.” Jocasta, l. 1070

“I count myself the son of Chance.” Oedipus, l. 1188

== Themes and Motifs ==

* Sight and blindness
Oedipus’ life could be called a train wreck; that is, two trains were moving head-on toward each other—one oblivous to the truth and one with knowledge of the truth. When these trains met, the wreck took the {emotional and/or physical} lives of everyone close to Oedipus. Although he could physically see, he was blind to who he really was. Oedipus had no idea that his wife was actually his mother, that the people who raised him were not his biological parents, that his daughters were also his half-sisters, and that he had murdered his biological father. First, he brought in the blind prophet, Tieresias, who revealed the future. Second, he blindly denied these revealations. And third, after he could see the revealations were true, Oedipus blinded himself physically.

In the beginning of the play, Oedipus has perfect physical vision. However, he is blind and ignorant to the truth about himself and his past. He desperately wants to know, to see, but he cannot (Hibbison). Ironically, Tiresias, the blind soothsayer, saw the future from the beginning. Neither Oedipus nor his wife, Jocasta, knew how devastating their lives were. When their true history was revealed by Tiresias, they refused to believe him. Tiresias meant two different things when he referred to sight. First, he knew Oedipus was blessed with the gift of perception; he was the only man who could "see" the answer to the Sphinx's riddle (verse 501). Second, he could not see what was right before his eyes. He was blind to the truth he sought (Little).

Oedipus, furious at the suggestion of his guilt, berated the prophet, who retorted by insisting that Oedipus was yet blind to the truth and would soon learn of his guilt (Awerty). In verse 478, Tiresias told Oedipus that “…darkness shrouding your eyes that can see the light”. Oedipus angrily dismissed the sightless old man, accused him of conspiring with Jocasta's brother, Creon, to overthrow him (Awerty). Although blind to the truth, as the facts became clear, Oedipus was forced to open his eyes: Oedipus did, in fact, kill his father, Larius, and marry his mother. Oedipus’ slaying of Laius at the crossroads was an intentional act, but also an unconscious one; therefore a “pure” one. Later, when Oedipus blinds himself, the audience is capable of exhibiting the correct emotional response: that of pity and fear. This act, after Oedipus’ recognition of his error, proves that he feels remorse for his actions and shows the audience that he would never have performed them had he known the facts (Lucas). Oedipus was responsible for the bad times in Thebes. The truth was then so obvious to him that he had to confront it.

Oedipus furthered Sophocles’ sight metaphor when he defended his decision to humble himself through blindness: “What good were eyes to me? Nothing I could see could bring me joy” (verse 1473). When Oedipus finally discovered the truth, ironically, he was so distressed that he ran pins into his eyes (verse 1405). Oedipus’ self-inflicted blindness is, in effect, his “purification” of his pathos and makes him a proper recipient for the audience’s pity and fear (Lucas). He had been blinded to the truth too long. Oedipus would forever walk in physical darkness, though the truth was now visible. With nothing to look at, Oedipus was forced to think about his life and what had happened. The darkness and the physical pain he had inflicted on himself was just as agonizing as his blindness to the truth.

Figurative blindness can be harder to deal with then literal blindness. A person who is physically blind knows that it will probably be life-long will learn to accept the blindness. However, if a person is blind to the truth, there is nothing that person can do until they learn and acknowledge the truth. The person may not even know that their situation is wrong. When that person does learn the truth, he tends to feel ignorant. That person wonders if things could have been avoided had the truth only been known sooner. When Oedipus learned the truth, his way of dealing with his figurative blindness was to physically blind himself. In this play, blindness led to the truth, and the truth led to blindness. Oedipus and Jocasta were blinded, yet found the truth.

* Light and darkness
* Historia — a free spirit of inquiry
* Knowledge comes only through suffering
* The responsibility of humans for their own acts
* The error of setting human reason above obedience to the gods
* Consequences of excessive pride
* Ship and navigation metaphors (e.g., ll. 1010-11; 1454)

Chorus — present and objectively severe and conventional, gradually growing more troubled and anxious, and finally into utter despair.

Archetype of drama? Hero’s quest for himself.

Works Cited:
Little, Jennifer. “Oedipus Rex / Oedipus the King.” Gradesaver. July 19, 2000. Retrieved March 31, 2005. <http://www.gradesaver.com/ClassicNotes/Titles/oedipus/summ2.html>.

No author. “Oedipus Rex by Sophocles (c. 496-406 B.C.)” Awerty Notes. Retrieved March 31, 2005. <http://www.awerty.com/oedipus2.html>.

Lucas, Gerald, Ed. “Poetics and Purgation”. Dr. Gerald Lucas. July 16, 2003. Retrieved April 12, 2005. <http://litmuse.maconstate.edu/~glucas/archives/000252.shtm>.

Hibbison, Eric, Ed. “Oedipus the Wreck – Blindness in Oedipus Rex”. VCCS Litonline. Virginia Community College System. Last Updated February 21, 2005. Retreived April 18, 2005. <http://vccslitonline.cc.va.us/OedipustheWreck/blindness.htm>.

== Questions for Consideration ==

# Many consider ''Oedipus the King'' as the greatest of the Western [[tragedy|tragedies]]. Even if you are not familiar with other Greek [[tragedy]], consider the greatness of ''Oedipus the King'' from your own perspective. What themes common in the [[tragedy]] resonate for us today?
# All of the crucial action of the play takes place off stage: Oedipus' killing of his father, etc. Consider the dramatic effect of this decision: what is, therefore, highlighted if not the egregious acts committed by the protagonist?
# Even though during his investigation, Oedipus begins to suspect the truth of the situation, yet he pushes on to prove the terrible truth. What does this say about Oedipus specifically and the [[tragedy|tragic]] hero in general? Does this shed any light on Oedipus' eventual death?
# What is Oedipus' [[hamartia|tragic flaw]]? Is there only one?
# Professor Literary Critic states that "to Sophocles, man has become an emancipated individual with a free will who cannot excuse his deeds by blaming Fate, the gods, or oracles. Reason is thus man's highest possession and greatest power." Discuss the contrast of fate verses free will in ''Oedipus the King''.
# When Oedipus discovers his crimes, he blinds himself. Discuss the symbolic significance of this action. What does this act say about vision in general? (Perhaps start by thinking about that other blind character have we met this semester...)
# If Oedipus represents both the best and the worst of his culture, what values can we infer from our reading of the tragedy?

[[Category:World Literature]]

Oedipus Rex

2005-04-19T19:43:56Z

Wbarras: /* Themes and Motifs */

[[Image:Oedipus.png|thumb|Oedipus and the Sphinx]]''Oedipus the King'', by the tragedian [[Sophocles]], is based on a legend deeply rooted in the cultural identity of Athens. The myth of Oedipus contains a historical and religious authority based on the cultural values of an oral tradition. It concerns the relationship between humans and their gods and, perhaps more importantly, primal hopes and fears that unearth a terror and despair normally buried in human consciousness. Oedipus is a typical Athenian who commits the most egregious of human taboos: incest and patricide. Within the character of Oedipus are both the faults and virtues of the Athenian people. Some critics suggest that Oedipus might be a warning to Athenians that have ushered in a new era of intellectualism.

== Summary ==

There is a plague in Thebes. Oedipus has sent Creon to find out news from the gods how they can get rid of the plague. When Creon returns, he tells them that Apollo told them to get rid of the murderers of Laius, their first king. Oedipus wants to find out who killed him so they call on the prophet Tiresias. He tells them that Oedipus is the murderer. Oedipus is offended by this nonsense, and after intense arguing, he sends the prophet home. Oedipus then starts arguing with Creon, because he blames him for what has happened. Jocasta enters the room and stops them from arguing. Jocasta tells Oedipus that the prophets told her that her husband would be killed by their child, and the slave told them this did not happen either because he was killed by thieves. Jocasta said her son was only a child, like three years old. While Jocasta is praying, a messenger from Corinth comes and tells her that Oedipus’ father, Polybus, is dead. They first rejoice at this news because it appears that the prophets did not know what they were talking about, because this meant that Oedipus could not be his father’s murderer. Later, the messenger informs Oedipus, that Polybus was no more a father to him than he was. They learn that this man had received Oedipus as a child, from a Shepard. He was a Shepard of Laius. He had been given to him by the queen (Oedipus’s wife; mother) to go and have killed, because the prophets had told her that her child would kill his parents. The Shepard didn’t have the heart to kill a baby, so that’s how Oedipus ended up in Corinth. Oedipus trying to keep from fulfilling the prophecy of killing his parents, left Corinth and ran into Laius on the triple road, and killed him not knowing that this was really his father.

Jocasta began to put the pieces of the puzzle together, and ran off to her room telling Oedipus he should just let it die. Leave it alone. But Oedipus was determined to find out his birthright. Jocasta hung herself, while Oedipus was learning of his cursed destiny, and he took the brooches from her dress and gouged his eyes out. After being blinded, he faced his people and told them to get Creon so that he could be put to death. Oedipus asks Creon to take care of his daughters because he knows that no man would want to marry them. He asks to see his daughters one last time, and then Creon separates them and takes Oedipus to be executed.

== Character Traits ==

* Conscientious and patriotic ruler
* Quick to rage — anger — does not listen to anyone
* Confidence in human intelligence — self-confidence
* Man of action and decisiveness, even if imprudent
* Obdurate — Jocasta says “You’re so unbending” (l. 769).
* Courage in the face of despair
* Impiety — disdainful and supercilious
* Wants to know the truth at all costs

Much of the tension in ''Oedipus the King'' revolves around dramatic irony: the gap between the one meaning known by the audience and the other known to the players:

* Every step prompted by his intelligence is one step closer to tragedy
* His knowledge is ignorance
* His clear vision is blindness

Oedipus falls because of the man that he is, not through some random event in nature or fated outcome. His self-discovery comes at a huge cost: his own destruction. Although the oracle predicts what Oedipus will do, it does not determine the latter’s actions. Oedipus has erred in his faith in human intelligence; there are powers in the universe that are beyond our control and our understanding.

Aristotle mentions ''Oedipus'' eleven times in his ''Poetics''. Aristotle’s obvious favor of Sophocles’ play suggests that it is the measure of all [[tragedy]].

== Free Will versus Fate ==

“Even if everything is determined, we have no way of knowing what the total pattern is, so we must act on our own best judgment; free will is, therefore, a necessary illusion. Apparently wise men attain some insight into this pattern (or are given it by the gods), but all of us have the freedom to disregard such insight, follow our own desires, and suffer the consequences.” Walter Agard’s ''The Humanities for Our Time'' (1949).

The concept of human suffering loses all significance if humans have no free will.

“The central idea of a [[Sophocles|Sophoclean]] [[tragedy]] is that through suffering a man learns to be modest before the gods.” Bowra

“His ''Oedipus'' stands for human suffering, and he neither attempts, like [[Aeschylus]], to justify the evil, nor presumes, like [[Euripides]], to deny its divine origin” J.T. Sheppard

“[[Sophocles]]’ difficulty is the problem of suffering, as Aeschylus’ is the problem of sin.” A. Zimmerman

“It’s all chance, chance rules our lives.” Jocasta, l. 1070

“I count myself the son of Chance.” Oedipus, l. 1188

== Themes and Motifs ==

* Sight and blindness
Oedipus’ life could be called a train wreck; that is, two trains were moving head-on toward each other—one oblivous to the truth and one with knowledge of the truth. When these trains met, the wreck took the {emotional and/or physical} lives of everyone close to Oedipus. Although he could physically see, he was blind to who he really was. Oedipus had no idea that his wife was actually his mother, that the people who raised him were not his biological parents, that his daughters were also his half-sisters, and that he had murdered his biological father. First, he brought in the blind prophet, Tieresias, who revealed the future. Second, he blindly denied these revealations. And third, after he could see the revealations were true, Oedipus blinded himself physically.

In the beginning of the play, Oedipus has perfect physical vision. However, he is blind and ignorant to the truth about himself and his past. He desperately wants to know, to see, but he cannot (Hibbison). Ironically, Tiresias, the blind soothsayer, saw the future from the beginning. Neither Oedipus nor his wife, Jocasta, knew how devastating their lives were. When their true history was revealed by Tiresias, they refused to believe him. Tiresias meant two different things when he referred to sight. First, he knew Oedipus was blessed with the gift of perception; he was the only man who could "see" the answer to the Sphinx's riddle (verse 501). Second, he could not see what was right before his eyes. He was blind to the truth he sought (Gradesaver).

Oedipus, furious at the suggestion of his guilt, berated the prophet, who retorted by insisting that Oedipus was yet blind to the truth and would soon learn of his guilt (Awerty). In verse 478, Tiresias told Oedipus that “…darkness shrouding your eyes that can see the light”. Oedipus angrily dismissed the sightless old man, accused him of conspiring with Jocasta's brother, Creon, to overthrow him (Awerty). Although blind to the truth, as the facts became clear, Oedipus was forced to open his eyes: Oedipus did, in fact, kill his father, Larius, and marry his mother. Oedipus’ slaying of Laius at the crossroads was an intentional act, but also an unconscious one; therefore a “pure” one. Later, when Oedipus blinds himself, the audience is capable of exhibiting the correct emotional response: that of pity and fear. This act, after Oedipus’ recognition of his error, proves that he feels remorse for his actions and shows the audience that he would never have performed them had he known the facts (Lucas). Oedipus was responsible for the bad times in Thebes. The truth was then so obvious to him that he had to confront it.

Oedipus furthered Sophocles’ sight metaphor when he defended his decision to humble himself through blindness: “What good were eyes to me? Nothing I could see could bring me joy” (verse 1473). When Oedipus finally discovered the truth, ironically, he was so distressed that he ran pins into his eyes (verse 1405). Oedipus’ self-inflicted blindness is, in effect, his “purification” of his pathos and makes him a proper recipient for the audience’s pity and fear (Lucas). He had been blinded to the truth too long. Oedipus would forever walk in physical darkness, though the truth was now visible. With nothing to look at, Oedipus was forced to think about his life and what had happened. The darkness and the physical pain he had inflicted on himself was just as agonizing as his blindness to the truth.

Figurative blindness can be harder to deal with then literal blindness. A person who is physically blind knows that it will probably be life-long will learn to accept the blindness. However, if a person is blind to the truth, there is nothing that person can do until they learn and acknowledge the truth. The person may not even know that their situation is wrong. When that person does learn the truth, he tends to feel ignorant. That person wonders if things could have been avoided had the truth only been known sooner. When Oedipus learned the truth, his way of dealing with his figurative blindness was to physically blind himself. In this play, blindness led to the truth, and the truth led to blindness. Oedipus and Jocasta were blinded, yet found the truth.

* Light and darkness
* Historia — a free spirit of inquiry
* Knowledge comes only through suffering
* The responsibility of humans for their own acts
* The error of setting human reason above obedience to the gods
* Consequences of excessive pride
* Ship and navigation metaphors (e.g., ll. 1010-11; 1454)

Chorus — present and objectively severe and conventional, gradually growing more troubled and anxious, and finally into utter despair.

Archetype of drama? Hero’s quest for himself.

Works Cited:
Little, Jennifer. “Oedipus Rex / Oedipus the King.” Gradesaver. July 19, 2000. Retrieved March 31, 2005. <http://www.gradesaver.com/ClassicNotes/Titles/oedipus/summ2.html>.

No author. “Oedipus Rex by Sophocles (c. 496-406 B.C.)” Awerty Notes. Retrieved March 31, 2005. <http://www.awerty.com/oedipus2.html>.

Lucas, Gerald, Ed. “Poetics and Purgation”. Dr. Gerald Lucas. July 16, 2003. Retrieved April 12, 2005. <http://litmuse.maconstate.edu/~glucas/archives/000252.shtm>.

Hibbison, Eric, Ed. “Oedipus the Wreck – Blindness in Oedipus Rex”. VCCS Litonline. Virginia Community College System. Last Updated February 21, 2005. Retreived April 18, 2005. <http://vccslitonline.cc.va.us/OedipustheWreck/blindness.htm>.

== Questions for Consideration ==

# Many consider ''Oedipus the King'' as the greatest of the Western [[tragedy|tragedies]]. Even if you are not familiar with other Greek [[tragedy]], consider the greatness of ''Oedipus the King'' from your own perspective. What themes common in the [[tragedy]] resonate for us today?
# All of the crucial action of the play takes place off stage: Oedipus' killing of his father, etc. Consider the dramatic effect of this decision: what is, therefore, highlighted if not the egregious acts committed by the protagonist?
# Even though during his investigation, Oedipus begins to suspect the truth of the situation, yet he pushes on to prove the terrible truth. What does this say about Oedipus specifically and the [[tragedy|tragic]] hero in general? Does this shed any light on Oedipus' eventual death?
# What is Oedipus' [[hamartia|tragic flaw]]? Is there only one?
# Professor Literary Critic states that "to Sophocles, man has become an emancipated individual with a free will who cannot excuse his deeds by blaming Fate, the gods, or oracles. Reason is thus man's highest possession and greatest power." Discuss the contrast of fate verses free will in ''Oedipus the King''.
# When Oedipus discovers his crimes, he blinds himself. Discuss the symbolic significance of this action. What does this act say about vision in general? (Perhaps start by thinking about that other blind character have we met this semester...)
# If Oedipus represents both the best and the worst of his culture, what values can we infer from our reading of the tragedy?

[[Category:World Literature]]

Penelope

2005-04-01T17:32:22Z

Wbarras:

Penelope was the daughter of Icarius and a first cousin of Helen of Troy. She was the faithful, devoted wife of Odysseus in ''The Odyssey''. Though she had not seen her husband in over twenty years, she did not lose faith in him. She passed her days in continuous mourning, finding relief only in tears or sleep (Parada), though she did not know if he was dead or alive. She could have assumed that Odysseus was dead, as many warriers had not returned from Troy and were presumed dead, and she could have moved on with her life. Almost everyone else believed Odysseus to be dead and many new, rich and handsome men were after her, but she stayed true to Odysseus and to her marriage (Horne).

These suitors were attracted to her beauty, as well as vying for the wealth of King Odysseus and were determined to gain it before his son, Telemakhos, comes of age and claims his father's inheritance. They invaded Odysseus's hall, feasted day and night, and abused the laws of hospitality. The suitors tried to force her to choose a new husband. Although she never outright refused to remarry, she rather put off her decision and led them on with promises that she will choose a new husband as soon as certain things occur. Her astute delaying tactics reveal her sly and artful side (Klutch).

For three years, she wove and unwove the burial shroud for Laertes, Odysseus’ father, telling the suitors that she would choose a husband after the shroud was complete. She continued to take it apart nightly and put it back together in the day time. As usually happens, the longer a bad situation goes on, the worse it gets and finally, a confrontation took place. One of her servants revealed her deception to the suitors, and they angrily demanded that she choose one of them for her husband immediately. Penelope did not want to choose any one, and continued to pine for Odysseus, so she asked Athene for assistance. Athene told Penelope to tell the suitors that she would marry the man who could string Odysseus’ bow and shoot an arrow through twelve axes (Hunter). Her great strength was her constancy (Klutch). Penelope showed cunning and shrewdness when she said that she would marry the one who could shoot an arrow through twelve axes knowing that none would be able to complete the task, except Odysseus. Unware that Odysseus had returned and was incognito, her proposal to test the pursuers with the bow of Odysseus gave him the opportunity that he needed.

Penelope played a very important role in Homer's ''Odyssey''. While Penelope’s highest virtue is seen as her fidelity, she is very much like her husband: a wily and wary tactician. She is faithful to Odysseus, but she is also very politically shrewd and calculating in her actions (Lucas). She was famous for her ingenuity and for her faithfulness to her husband (Hunter). Penelope was the image of determination and devotion.

Works Cited:

Horne, Tom. "Penelope in ''The Odyssey'' by Homer". All Experts. February 26, 2004. Retrieved March 31, 2005. <http://experts.about.com/q/697/3426630.htm>

Hunter, James. "Penelope." Encyclopedia Mythica. 2005. Encyclopedia Mythica Online.
30 Mar. 2005 <http://www.pantheon.org/articles/p/penelope.html>.

Klutch, John F., Ed. “Penelope and Her Impact on Greek Art and Culture.” The Role of Women in the Art of Ancient Greece. Last Updated March 2, 2005. March 31, 2005. <http://www.fjkluth.com/penelope.html>

Lucas, Gerald, Ed. “The Odyssey: General Notes.” Dr. Gerald Lucas. September 01, 2003. 30 March 2005. <http://litmuse.maconstate.edu/~glucas/archives/000314.shtml>.

Parada, Carlos. “Suitors of Penelope.” Greek Mythology Links. Retrieved March 30, 2005. <http://homepage.mac.com/cparada/GML/SUITORSPENELOPE.html>

Penelope

2005-04-01T17:23:32Z

Wbarras:

Penelope was the daughter of Icarius and a first cousin of Helen of Troy. She was the faithful, devoted wife of Odysseus in ''The Odyssey''. Though she had not seen her husband in over twenty years, she did not lose faith in him. She passed her days in continuous mourning, finding relief only in tears or sleep (Parada), though she did not know if he was dead or alive. She could have assumed that Odysseus was dead, as many warriers had not returned from Troy and were presumed dead, and she could have moved on with her life. Almost everyone else believed Odysseus to be dead and many new, rich and handsome men were after her, but she stayed true to Odysseus and to her marriage (Horne).

These suitors were attracted to her beauty, as well as vying for the wealth of King Odysseus and were determined to gain it before his son, Telemakhos, comes of age and claims his father's inheritance. They invaded Odysseus's hall, feasted day and night, and abused the laws of hospitality. The suitors tried to force her to choose a new husband. Although she never outright refused to remarry, she rather put off her decision and led them on with promises that she will choose a new husband as soon as certain things occur. Her astute delaying tactics reveal her sly and artful side (Klutch).

For three years, she wove and unwove the burial shroud for Laertes, Odysseus’ father, telling the suitors that she would choose a husband after the shroud was complete. She continued to take it apart nightly and put it back together in the day time. As usually happens, the longer a bad situation goes on, the worse it gets and finally, a confrontation took place. One of her servants revealed her deception to the suitors, and they angrily demanded that she choose one of them for her husband immediately. Penelope did not want to choose any one, and continued to pine for Odysseus, so she asked Athene for assistance. Athene told Penelope to tell the suitors that she would marry the man who could string Odysseus’ bow and shoot an arrow through twelve axes (Hunter). Her great strength was her constancy (Klutch). Penelope showed cunning and shrewdness when she said that she would marry the one who could shoot an arrow through twelve axes knowing that none would be able to complete the task, except Odysseus. Unware that Odysseus had returned and was incognito, her proposal to test the pursuers with the bow of Odysseus gave him the opportunity that he needed.

Penelope played a very important role in Homer's ''Odyssey''. While Penelope’s highest virtue is seen as her fidelity, she is very much like her husband: a wily and wary tactician. She is faithful to Odysseus, but she is also very politically shrewd and calculating in her actions (Lucas). She was famous for her ingenuity and for her faithfulness to her husband (Hunter). Penelope was the image of determination and devotion.

Works Cited:

Horne, Tom. "Penelope in ''The Odyssey'' by Homer". All Experts. February 26, 2004. Retrieved March 31, 2005. <http://experts.about.com/q/697/3426630.htm>

Hunter, James. "Penelope." Encyclopedia Mythica. 2005. Encyclopedia Mythica Online.
30 Mar. 2005 <http://www.pantheon.org/articles/p/penelope.html>.

Klutch, John F., Ed. “Penelope and Her Impact on Greek Art and Culture.” The Role of Women in the Art of Ancient Greece. Last Updated March 2, 2005. March 31, 2005. <http://www.fjkluth.com/penelope.html>

Lucas, Gerald, Ed. “The Odyssey: General Notes.” Dr. Gerald Lucas. September 01, 2003. 30 March 2005. <http://litmuse.maconstate.edu/~glucas/archives/000314.shtml>.

Parada, Carlos. “Suitors of Penelope.” Greek Mythology Links. Retrieved March 30, 2005. <http://homepage.mac.com/cparada/GML/SUITORSPENELOPE.html>

Epic of Gilgamesh

2005-02-24T17:41:36Z

Wbarras: /* Bonds of Friendship */

[[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 ==

Can ''Gilgamesh'' be called an Epic? Yes and No.
No, because the term epic is usually applied to exceptionally long poems that are narrated by someone else. ''Gilgamesh'' has three entries that one may consider to be poems. On page 34 ''Gilgamesh'' cries out to the counsellors of Uruk in what I would call a short prayer. On page 43 Ea speaks to Enlil about his misdeeds, the words that are indented have the characteristics of an epic poem. Ea words center on Enlil whose deeds can control the fate of human mankind.

Then again yes, ''Gilgamesh'' could be called a Primary Epic. The story of Gilgamesh has several episodes that are legendary. The first sentence of the story states, "''Gilgamesh'' is a poem of unparalleled antiquity, the first great heroic narrative of world literature."(The Norton Anthology) On Lit muse you will find that Primary Epic means, "The work focuses on the personal concept of heroism, and the self-fulfillment and identity of the individual hero." Gilgamesh was definitely out for self-fulfillment.

== 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.

When the god Anu heard the city of Uruk lamenting the cruelty of their king, he responded by demanding of the goddess of creation: “You made him, O Aruru, now create his equal; let it be as like him as his own reflection, his second self, stormy heart for stormy heart” (19). Thus Enkindu was created to counterbalance the despotic Gilgamesh: whereas Gilgamesh was two thirds god and one third man, Enkindu was two thirds beast and one third man. Enkindu also acts as a reflection to Gilgamesh in that both must learn what it means to be human. In order to do this, each must distance himself from his animal or godly instincts. As for Enkindu, Jager states that “the wild man who is about to enter the human city must…forego living in a state of absolute unity with a savage and untamed nature.” Enkindu must break the bond between himself and the wilderness in order to be cultured and civilized. Similarly, Jager notes that “The king seeking to humanly inhabit his realm must forego treating that realm as a mere physical extension of himself to which he has completely unrestricted access.” Gilgamesh, like a weaning child, must recognize the break between himself as a ruler and the kingdom he reigns over. Both must learn how to properly inhabit the human realm before they can be considered human.

== 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, 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.

Strong bonds are usually formed when two people have a common goal, ideal, or interest. As stated in the epic, the gods created Enkidu to try to soften Gilgamesh-make him kinder and gentler. It was as if Homer wanted Gilgamesh to be perceived to be a bad little boy and provide an alter-ego to help Gilgamesh mature. People come in and out of one’s life for a purpose--some to be there for a long time and some for just a moment. Some are there to provide a particular purpose--maybe to teach a certain life’s lesson--and some to change lives forever--maybe a child or a teacher. Their time in one’s life may or may not accomplish its purpose because some are blinded by selfish desires. For Enkidu, his time with Gilgamesh was relatively short, but it was a relationship that Gilgamesh would never forget and which would affect him the rest of his own life. Even though their first meeting was stressful, they became best friends. Early in his existence, Enkidu had lost his physical strength through the trickery of sex with an encounter with a harlot. “It was Gilgamesh that sent a priestess to teach Enkidu the power of civilization, whereas by meeting Enkidu Gilgamesh felt for the first time the need to share and grow, it was through their friendship that Gilgamesh becomes less self-absorbed and most certainly, less lonely (Lishtar).” “Shamhat meets Enkidu at the watering-hole where all the wild animals gather; she offers herself to him and he submits, instantly losing his strength and wildness, but he gains understanding and knowledge. He laments for his lost state (Hooker, Tablet 1)”. Homer seemed to be presenting Enkidu in a more animalistic manner at first and then shows him becoming more human.

When Enkidu first came into the city, Gilgamesh, though not the groom, was about to go in and ravish a new bride. “Enkidu stands in front of the door of the marital chamber and blocks Gilgamesh's way. They fight furiously until Gilgamesh wins the upper hand; Enkidu concedes Gilgamesh's superiority and the two embrace and become devoted friends (Hooker, Tablet 2)”. Some believe that Gilgamesh and Enkidu were lovers, but Lishtar noted that, “…it is not implied in the text that Gilgamesh and Enkidu were lovers in the physical sense. They were though the best friends possible in all worlds, and this is a grace beyond measure (Lishtar)”. This is simply a tale, but ”the modern ideas and interpretations have been applied to it. This is not all bad because it helps relate to this ancient text, but when it comes down to it, it is not likely that this story is about sexuality (''Gilgamesh'').” Many friendships that start off with turmoil, wind up being the closest. Their friendship was genuine. Enkidu does seem to enjoy the camaraderie that he shares with Gilgamesh and when they enter the forest to cut down the cedar tress, he is the one who stands up to Humbaba, the great demon. “Enkidu shouts at Humbaba that the two of them are much stronger than the demon (Hooker, Tablet 5)”. “This is the real meaning of the bond between Enkidu and Gilgamesh, ideal self and bright shadow that stands by wherever we are (Lishtar).” This also occurs in one’s friendships today. One person seems to relish in the glory and the other may be just along for the ride or be the one who gets things done behind the scenes--not everyone wants to be king!

Cited Works:
“Gilgamesh.” Conclusion. 16 February, 2004. http://www.auburn.edu/~lundbmc/#Conclusion

Hooker, Richard. “Mesopotamia – Gilagamesh.” World Civilizations. Washington State University. Updated 6, July 1999. Tablets 1, 2, 5.
16 February, 2005. <http://www.wsu.edu/~dee/MESO/GILG.HTM>

Lishtar. “Gilagamesh and Enkidu – The Soul Siblings.” Gateways to Babylon. Updated 26 August, 1999. 16 February, 2005. http://www.gatewaystobabylon.com/gods/partnerships/gilgaenk1.html

=== 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.

=== Humbaba ===

"Humbaba whose name is 'Hugeness,' a ferocious giant. Enlil has appointed Humbaba to guard the forest and has armed him in sevenfold terrors, terrible to all flesh is Humbaba. When he roars it is like the torrent of the storm, his breath is like fire, and his jaws are death itself. He guards the cedars so well that when the wild heifer stirs in the forest, though she is sixty leagues distant, he hears her. Humbaba is a great warrior, a battering ram. Humbaba, the watchman of the forest never sleeps." (The Norton Anthology, 23)

Humbaba was also know as Huwawa. Humbaba is a monster in the epic of Gilgamesh who guards the cedar forest in the Lebanon mountains. He is a giant being and is sometimes shown with lion's claws, long hair, and a monstrous, hairy face. Humbaba is killed by the hero Gilgamesh and his friend Enkidu who journey to the forest to cut down cedar trees. (http://www.mesopotamia.co.uk/gods/explore/humbaba.html, 2005)

=== 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 ==

When we are first introduced to Enkindu, it is when “he was innocent of mankind, he knew nothing of the cultivated land” (19). He also “ate grass in the hills with the gazelle and lurked with wild beasts at the water-holes” (19). Though he is biologically human, he lives like a wild animal. One aspect of his animalism is his eating habits. The food we eat, the ways it is prepared and consumed, and the rituals of hospitality are all forms of culture and civilization. In order for Enkindu to learn to be human, he must learn to eat as one. When the shepherds originally present food to him the text states that, “Enkindu could only suck the milk of wild animals. He fumbled and gaped, at a loss what to do or how he should eat the bread and drink the strong wine” (22). Because he only knows how to eat as an animal, he is an animal.

Immediately after the harlot explains to him the way of human eating, and he consumes the bread and wine like a man, “He rubbed down the matted hair of his body and anointed himself with oil. Enkindu had become a man” (22). His new discovery of human eating has led to his humanization. According to Jager, Enkindu’s “exodus from an older and more primitive and confluent world and his entrance into a human cosmos is marked by a distinctly different way of…eating and drinking.” His new understanding of how humans prepare and eat food has granted him the capacity to act as a man, and therefore be admitted into human civilization. Jager also explains that “Fully human eating begins by domesticating natural grasses, roots and berries and by transforming them into agricultural crops.” Farming shows human advancement and technology. A refined taste for food and drink and an understanding of cultivation reflects cultural appreciation. Now that Enkindu can properly eat human food, he can acknowledge the society which produces it.

== Attitudes Toward Women ==

Gilgamesh's view of women is that of a male chauvinist (according to today’s standards). Not only is he a male chauvinist, but he "is the epitome of a bad ruler: arrogant, oppressive, and brutal." (The Norton Anthology, 17)"His lust leaves no virgin to her lover, neither the warrior's daughter nor the wife of the noble; yet this is the shepherd of the city, wise, comely, and resolute." (The Norton Anthology, 19) The men of Uruk were not happy with his behavior. Even noble Enkidu is upset at the news that Gilgamesh was to take a bride’s virginity before her marriage to her groom.

When Ishtar see Gilgamesh's great beauty she exclaims in glory, "Come to me ''Gilgamesh'', and be my bridegroom; grant me seed of you body, let me be your bride and you shall be my husband."(The Norton Anthology, 30) “She tried to make Gilgamesh her husband, but he refused her and reminded her of her former lovers, whom she mercilessly killed or left injured.” (Lindemans, Micha F. \ “Ishtar” \ www.pantheon.org \ July 25, 2004) He states that he doesn’t just want to be another piece of meat in her escapades of having sex with many men and leaving them. So he declines.

Gilgamesh is a control freak and if he were to marry Ishtar, he would lose that control. Also, Gilgamesh loves virgins and not loose women. This is seen in the opening statments listed above.

As we look at attitudes toward women, we cannot just look at Gilgamesh as an individual but at the whole story. The trapper's son was scared of Enkidu at first. The trapper's son went to Gilgamesh and got a harlot, (loose woman), to take to the watering hole to seduce Enkidu so his peers, the animals, would repel against him.

To humanize Enkidu, the harlot, was sent to seduce him. Enkidu, who ran with the animals and was basically one of them, came upon the harlot at the drinking hole where she exposed her breasts, got naked with him and had sex with him for six days and seven nights. After this, Enkidu had his fill and returned to be with the animals that rejected him and ran off. We hear of Enkidu being weak legged after his sexual escapades and unable to keep up with the animals. (The Norton Anthology, 20)

Women were looked at basically as sexual elements from the beginning of this tale and this has continued throughout time. So, is Gilgamesh really as bad as he was made out to be or is he just the same as some of the men in today's society? Women throughout modern day have used sex to get what they want. This is just an example of how women even back then used sex to get what they desired even if it was for someone else.

== Archetypes in Gilgamesh ==
An archetype in ''Gilgamesh'' was the number seven. The author used this archetype, very deliberately. After taking a closer look at this literary work it was discovered the number seven was used thirty-seven times. (''Norton Anthology'', 18-47) By taking a collaborative view of literary works throughout history it is revealed the continued use of the number seven. The number seven was used 700 times in ''The Bible'' (Harris) and twenty-five times in ''The Qu’ran'' (Sahibzada). There is no mistake about the author’s reference to this particular number based upon its cultural and religious significance. It has become evident the number seven held a sacred or significant meaning. But to better understand the significance of the continued reference to a particular number, one would have to take a closer look at the historical implications.

“Most cultures of the world hold certain numbers to be especially significant, even symbolic, and this is reflected in their religions. In the Abrahamic traditions, which originate in the Middle East, the number seven is of particular importance. Some of its significance stems from the ancient Sumerian and Babylonian civilizations, which identified seven planets and framed seven days of the week around them. Very early among Middle Eastern peoples, seven became known as a "perfect" number, symbolic of completeness and goodness.” (Sahibzada).

It is believed the origin of the number seven was established by the planets that were transformed into deities. The ancient Egyptians had seven original gods; the Phoenicians seven Kabiris; the Persians seven sacred horses of Mithra with seven gates, seven alters, and seven mysteries; the Parsees seven angels opposed by seven demons, seven celestial abodes paralleled by seven lower regions. The seven gods were often represented as one seven-headed deity. The whole heaven was subjected to seven planets; hence, in nearly all the religious systems we find seven heavens. The number seven was also used in demonical religions as well. A contract with the devil had to contain seven paragraphs, was concluded for seven years and signed by the person seven times. (Blavatsky)

Religious peoples were not the only ones to reference this number. There were cultural, architectural, and ceremonial implications as well. The Cherokee Indians regard the number seven as sacred. The ceremonial significance in their culture is captured in their seven ancient ceremonies with the seventh ceremony celebrated every seven years. (Lewis & Kneberg, 175) A few of the ceremonies focus on the number seven. The first moon of spring ceremony is seven days long. The Green Corn ceremony began on the seventh of August. During this ceremony the Chief and his seven councilors fasted while the tribe gathered seven ears of corn, each from a different clan’s field. (Lewis & Kneberg, 176-177) The Cherokee’s also have purification ceremonies in which a person is immersed seven times. (Mooney, 230).

Architecture has also been influenced by the number seven. The famous pagoda of Churingham is surrounded by seven square walls, painted in seven different colors, and in the middle of each wall is a seven storied pyramid. The Buddhist use seven-tier pagoda’s to signify the seven treasures that are the blessings from the seven northern stars. (Blavatsky) Along with the most impressive monuments known to exist, The Seven Wonders of the Ancient World http://ce.eng.usf.edu/pharos/wonders/map.html

The military’s 21-gun salute is centered on the number seven. The use of this symbol is traced to early warriors demonstrating peaceful intentions and was used universally. The act varied with time, place, and the weapon being used. Originally warships fired a seven-gun salute. The number seven was probably used because of astrological and Biblical importance. There were seven planets identified and the moon changed phases every seven days. ''The Bible'' states that God rested on the seventh day after Creation, every seventh year was sabbatical and that the seven times seventh year ushered in the Jubilee year. (Headquarters, Military District of Washington)

Works Cited:

Blavatsky, H. P. “The Number Seven.” ''Theosophist'', (June, 1880.) 12 Feb. 2005 http://theosophy.org/tlodocs/hpb/NumberSeven.htm

Harris, Andrew. “Seven.” (6 July 1999). 12 Feb.2005 http://www.vic.australis.com.au/hazz/number007.html

Headquarters, Military District of Washington, ''Fact Sheet: Gun Salutes'', May 1969.

Lewis, Thomas M. N. and Madeline Kneberg. “Tribes that Slumber Indians of the Tennessee Region.” Knoxville, Tennessee: The University of Tennessee Press,tenth printing (1994).

Mooney, James. ''History, Myths, and Sacred Formulas of the Cherokees''. Asheville, North Carolina, 1992.

Sahibzada, Mehnaz. “The Symbolism of the Number Seven in Islamic Culture and Rituals.” 15 Feb. 2005 http://www.wadsworth.com/religion_d/special_features/symbols/islamic.html

''The Norton Anthology of World Masterpieces''. 7th ed., New York: W. W. Norton & Company, 1998.

== 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]]

== References ==

Jager, Bernd. “Eating as natural event and as intersubjective phenomenon: Towards a phenomenology of eating." Journal of Phenomenological Psychology. Spring 1999, Vol. 30 Issue 1: 66-118. EBSCOhost. GALILEO. 6 Feb. 2005 <http://www.galileo.usg.edu >.

Epic of Gilgamesh

2005-02-18T21:15:52Z

Wbarras: /* Bonds of Friendship */

[[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 ==

Can ''Gilgamesh'' be called an Epic? Yes and No.
No, because the term epic is usually applied to exceptionally long poems that are narrated by someone else. ''Gilgamesh'' has three entries that one may consider to be poems. On page 34 ''Gilgamesh'' cries out to the counsellors of Uruk in what I would call a short prayer. On page 43 Ea speaks to Enlil about his misdeeds, the words that are indented have the characteristics of an epic poem. Ea words center on Enlil whose deeds can control the fate of human mankind.

Then again yes, ''Gilgamesh'' could be called a Primary Epic. The story of Gilgamesh has several episodes that are legendary. The first sentence of the story states, "''Gilgamesh'' is a poem of unparalleled antiquity, the first great heroic narrative of world literature."(The Norton Anthology) On Lit muse you will find that Primary Epic means, "The work focuses on the personal concept of heroism, and the self-fulfillment and identity of the individual hero." Gilgamesh was definitely out for self-fulfillment.

== 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.

When the god Anu heard the city of Uruk lamenting the cruelty of their king, he responded by demanding of the goddess of creation: “You made him, O Aruru, now create his equal; let it be as like him as his own reflection, his second self, stormy heart for stormy heart” (19). Thus Enkindu was created to counterbalance the despotic Gilgamesh: whereas Gilgamesh was two thirds god and one third man, Enkindu was two thirds beast and one third man. Enkindu also acts as a reflection to Gilgamesh in that both must learn what it means to be human. In order to do this, each must distance himself from his animal or godly instincts. As for Enkindu, Jager states that “the wild man who is about to enter the human city must…forego living in a state of absolute unity with a savage and untamed nature.” Enkindu must break the bond between himself and the wilderness in order to be cultured and civilized. Similarly, Jager notes that “The king seeking to humanly inhabit his realm must forego treating that realm as a mere physical extension of himself to which he has completely unrestricted access.” Gilgamesh, like a weaning child, must recognize the break between himself as a ruler and the kingdom he reigns over. Both must learn how to properly inhabit the human realm before they can be considered human.

== 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, 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.

Strong bonds are usually formed when two people have a common goal, ideal, or interest. The gods created Enkidu to try to soften Gilgamesh—make him kinder and gentler, if you will. Even now, people come in and out of life for a purpose—some to be there for a long time and some for just a moment. Their time in one's life may or may not accomplish its purpose because some are sometimes blinded by their own desires. For Enkidu, his time with Gilgamesh was relatively short, but it was a relationship that Gilgamesh would never forget. Even though their first meeting was distressing, they became best friends. Early in his existence, Enkidu had lost his physical strength (due to his encounter with the harlot), but had gained knowledge and insight (1). When Endiku first came into the city, Gilgamesh was about to go in a ravish a new bride. Enkidu knew this was wrong and tried to block him at the door. They had a tremendous fight, but that fight was the beginning of their friendship. Many friendships that start off on the wrong foot, wind up being the closest. Their friendship seems genuine, but only Gilgamesh seemed to gain anything from it. This also occurs in our friendships. One person seems to get all the glory and the other may be just along for the ride or be the one who gets things done behind the scenes—not everyone wants to be king!

Cited Works
(1) http://www.wsu.edu/~dee/MESO/GILG.HTM page 2, Tablet 1

=== 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.

=== Humbaba ===

"Humbaba whose name is 'Hugeness,' a ferocious giant. Enlil has appointed Humbaba to guard the forest and has armed him in sevenfold terrors, terrible to all flesh is Humbaba. When he roars it is like the torrent of the storm, his breath is like fire, and his jaws are death itself. He guards the cedars so well that when the wild heifer stirs in the forest, though she is sixty leagues distant, he hears her. Humbaba is a great warrior, a battering ram. Humbaba, the watchman of the forest never sleeps." (The Norton Anthology, 23)

Humbaba was also know as Huwawa. Humbaba is a monster in the epic of Gilgamesh who guards the cedar forest in the Lebanon mountains. He is a giant being and is sometimes shown with lion's claws, long hair, and a monstrous, hairy face. Humbaba is killed by the hero Gilgamesh and his friend Enkidu who journey to the forest to cut down cedar trees. (http://www.mesopotamia.co.uk/gods/explore/humbaba.html, 2005)

=== 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 ==

When we are first introduced to Enkindu, it is when “he was innocent of mankind, he knew nothing of the cultivated land” (19). He also “ate grass in the hills with the gazelle and lurked with wild beasts at the water-holes” (19). Though he is biologically human, he lives like a wild animal. One aspect of his animalism is his eating habits. The food we eat, the ways it is prepared and consumed, and the rituals of hospitality are all forms of culture and civilization. In order for Enkindu to learn to be human, he must learn to eat as one. When the shepherds originally present food to him the text states that, “Enkindu could only suck the milk of wild animals. He fumbled and gaped, at a loss what to do or how he should eat the bread and drink the strong wine” (22). Because he only knows how to eat as an animal, he is an animal.

Immediately after the harlot explains to him the way of human eating, and he consumes the bread and wine like a man, “He rubbed down the matted hair of his body and anointed himself with oil. Enkindu had become a man” (22). His new discovery of human eating has led to his humanization. According to Jager, Enkindu’s “exodus from an older and more primitive and confluent world and his entrance into a human cosmos is marked by a distinctly different way of…eating and drinking.” His new understanding of how humans prepare and eat food has granted him the capacity to act as a man, and therefore be admitted into human civilization. Jager also explains that “Fully human eating begins by domesticating natural grasses, roots and berries and by transforming them into agricultural crops.” Farming shows human advancement and technology. A refined taste for food and drink and an understanding of cultivation reflects cultural appreciation. Now that Enkindu can properly eat human food, he can acknowledge the society which produces it.

== Attitudes Toward Women ==

Gilgamesh's view of women is that of a male chauvinist (according to today’s standards). Not only is he a male chauvinist, but he "is the epitome of a bad ruler: arrogant, oppressive, and brutal." (The Norton Anthology, 17)"His lust leaves no virgin to her lover, neither the warrior's daughter nor the wife of the noble; yet this is the shepherd of the city, wise, comely, and resolute." (The Norton Anthology, 19) The men of Uruk were not happy with his behavior. Even noble Enkidu is upset at the news that Gilgamesh was to take a bride’s virginity before her marriage to her groom.

When Ishtar see Gilgamesh's great beauty she exclaims in glory, "Come to me ''Gilgamesh'', and be my bridegroom; grant me seed of you body, let me be your bride and you shall be my husband."(The Norton Anthology, 30) “She tried to make Gilgamesh her husband, but he refused her and reminded her of her former lovers, whom she mercilessly killed or left injured.” (Lindemans, Micha F. \ “Ishtar” \ www.pantheon.org \ July 25, 2004) He states that he doesn’t just want to be another piece of meat in her escapades of having sex with many men and leaving them. So he declines.

Gilgamesh is a control freak and if he were to marry Ishtar, he would lose that control. Also, Gilgamesh loves virgins and not loose women. This is seen in the opening statments listed above.

As we look at attitudes toward women, we cannot just look at Gilgamesh as an individual but at the whole story. The trapper's son was scared of Enkidu at first. The trapper's son went to Gilgamesh and got a harlot, (loose woman), to take to the watering hole to seduce Enkidu so his peers, the animals, would repel against him.

To humanize Enkidu, the harlot, was sent to seduce him. Enkidu, who ran with the animals and was basically one of them, came upon the harlot at the drinking hole where she exposed her breasts, got naked with him and had sex with him for six days and seven nights. After this, Enkidu had his fill and returned to be with the animals that rejected him and ran off. We hear of Enkidu being weak legged after his sexual escapades and unable to keep up with the animals. (The Norton Anthology, 20)

Women were looked at basically as sexual elements from the beginning of this tale and this has continued throughout time. So, is Gilgamesh really as bad as he was made out to be or is he just the same as some of the men in today's society? Women throughout modern day have used sex to get what they want. This is just an example of how women even back then used sex to get what they desired even if it was for someone else.

== 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]]

== References ==

Jager, Bernd. “Eating as natural event and as intersubjective phenomenon: Towards a phenomenology of eating." Journal of Phenomenological Psychology. Spring 1999, Vol. 30 Issue 1: 66-118. EBSCOhost. GALILEO. 6 Feb. 2005 <http://www.galileo.usg.edu >.

Epic of Gilgamesh

2005-02-18T21:09:33Z

Wbarras: /* Bonds of Friendship */

Penelope

2005-02-18T21:03:52Z

Wbarras:

Still believing Odysseus is dead, Penelope’s suitors continue to live off his spoils and try to force her choose a new husband. Penelope does what many women would do when they don’t want to make a decision--she puts it off. For three years, she weaves and unweaves the burial shroud for Laertes, Odysseus’ father, telling the suitors that she will choose one after the shroud is complete. She continues to take it apart and put it back together nightly. As usually happen, the longer a bad situation goes on, the worse it gets and finally, a confrontation took place. Her son, Telemachus took over when the assembly met in session and tright to get the suitors to back off. Although possibly moved by their plan, they did not back off. Antonous, one of the main suitors, blamed Penelope for putting off choosing one of them as her husband. Penelope’s situation was basically handled by Zeus, who sent two eagles which swooped down, tearing cheeks and necks with their talons. Like many things in this epic poem, the eagles that Zeus sent were an omen, which a wise man interpreted as impending doom for the suitors. One thing that did happen is that Telemachus became more manly. When his mother became upset, rather than consoling her, he scolded her. "His unsympathetic treatment of her and his stiff reminder that Odysseus was not the only one who perished are sterotypically masculine responses to tragedy that suit him to the demands of running his father's household.(1)" She ''may'' think she has lost Odysseus, but she knows she has lost control of her son.

cited works: (1) [[The Oddyssey ]] Books 1-2"
www.sparknotes.com/lit/odyssey/section1.html

Penelope

2005-02-18T04:00:28Z

Wbarras:

Still believing Odysseus is dead, Penelope’s suitors continue to live off his spoils and try to force her choose a new husband. Penelope does what many women would do when they don’t want to make a decision--she puts it off. For three years, she weaves and unweaves the burial shroud for Laertes, Odysseus’ father, telling the suitors that she will choose one after the shroud is complete. This shows me how absolutely dense these suitors were if they believed it would take her three years to make this shroud. My goodness, she continues to take it apart and put it back together nightly. As usually happen, the longer a bad situation goes on, the worse it gets and finally, a confrontation took place. Her son, Telemachus took over when the assembly met in session and tright to get the suitors to back off. Although possibly moved by their plan, they did not back off. Antonous, one of the main suitors, blamed Penelope for putting off choosing one of them as her husband. Penelope’s situation was basically handled by Zeus, who sent two eagles which swooped down, tearing cheeks and necks with their talons. Like many things in this epic poem, the eagles that Zeus sent were an omen, which a wise man interpreted as impending doom for the suitors. One things that did happen is that Telemachus became more manly. When his mother became upset, rather than consoling her, he scolded her. "His unsympathetic treatment of her and his stiff reminder that Odysseus was not the only one who perished are sterotypically masculine responses to tragedy that suit him to the demands of running his father's household.(1)" She ''may'' think she has lost Odysseus, but she knows she has lost control of her son.

cited works: (1) [[The Oddyssey ]] Books 1-2"
www.sparknotes.com/lit/odyssey/section1.html