Schema: Quiz on Stages of Grief

I really enjoyed the work many of you did on your ark drawings. Many showed that they understood the text and were able to creatively demonstrate their understanding.

We finished our reading, comparing and contrasting of the flood narratives in Gilgamesh and Genesis. One can see why there was such a uproar in the Biblical world when the Mesopotamian narrative was discovered. The similarities are startling: both have detailed descriptions of how to build the ark (Noah’s is a rectangle, Utnapishtim’s a square); both save their immediate families and the animals of the world (Utnapishtim includes craftsmen as well, very practical); both use birds to confirm dry land (raven and doves); and both finally end up on a mountaintop.

There are also differences, the days it rained, the names of the mountain, etc. The most telling differences reflect the cultures that eventually wrote down the stories. Gilgamesh comes from a polytheistic culture where the gods are more feared than loved and represent natural phenomenon. The gods of Gilgamesh are not attractive at all – they are compared to ‘curs’ and ‘flies’ and even become afraid of the flood they created. They decide to destroy humanity because they are too loud and interrupt Enlil's sleep. Ea does not tell Utnapishtim directly to prepare for the disaster (some say he was scared of Enlil) but through a dream. In the end, they all regret the decision to kill everyone and make Utnapishtim immortal.

The God of Genesis (a monotheistic deity) feels that mankind is wicked and that this wickedness and evil needs to be destroyed. He is portrayed as a just God, one who spares Noah because he is a good man. He walks with Noah and tells him to prepare. He is direct and has a personal relationship. There is a different, loving, respectful relationship than seen in Gilgamesh. After the flood, God decides that there is evil in all men and makes a covenant with Noah not to destroy mankind again, and He puts a rainbow in the sky as proof and a reminder.

The final sections have Gilgamesh failing the test for immortality to stay awake for six nights and seven days (remember that bread is used to measure the time he sleeps). The wife of Utnapishtim suggests that Gilgamesh be given a break and Utnapishtim tells him about the flower of everlasting life at the bottom of a clear pool (water archetype = rebirth). The serpent steals the flower, and sheds his skin, and Gilgamesh loses his last shot at immortality. Keep in mind that it was a serpent that tricked Adam and Eve and they lost their immortality. I guess the message is to stay away from serpents.

We watch the Noah video tomorrow and you get an essay assignment. Unit test on Monday or Tuesday.