Tales of Egypt

Thoth	Read: Princess Ahura: The Magic Book

Hymn to the Nile

Read
below -- an ancient Egyptian hymn to the Nile.   There is a little more information here.

The longest surviving hymn to the Nile flood is a literary composition in Middle Egyptian, of uncertain date. All surviving copies were written in the New Kingdom (about 1550-1069 BC), and some scholars have argued that it was composed in the New Kingdom. However the style of language and echoes of other literary compositions, such as laments of the order overturned, suggest that it may date to the Middle Kingdom (about 2025-1700 BC). No author is named on the surviving sources.

Hymn to the Nile

Adoration to the Nile!
Hail to thee, O Nile!

Who manifestest thyself over this land,

Who cometh to give life to Egypt!
Mysterious is thy issuing forth from the darkness,
On this day whereon it is celebrated!

Watering the orchards created by Ra

To cause all the cattle to live
Thou givest the earth to drink, O inexhaustible one!

Loving the fruits of Seb

And the first fruits of Nepera
Thou causest the workshops of Ptah  to prosper.

Lord of the fish, during the inundation,

No bird alights on the crops !
Thou createst corn, thou bringest forth the barley,
Assuring perpetuity to the temples.
If thou ceasest thy toil and thy work,
Then all that exists is in anguish.
If the gods suffer in heaven,
Then the faces of men waste away. . . .

If the Nile smiles the earth is joyous,
Every stomach is full of rejoicing,
Every spine is happy,
Every jawbone crushes its food. . . .


A festal song is raised for thee on the harp,

With the accompaniment of the hand.

The young men and thy children acclaim thee

And prepare their long exercises.

Thou art the august ornament of the earth,
Letting thy bark advance before men,
Lifting up the heart of women in labor,
And loving the multitude of the flocks.

When thou shinest in the royal city,
The rich man is sated with good things,
The poor man even disdains the lotus,
All that is produced is of the choicest,
All the plants exist for thy children.
If thou hast refused to grant nourishment,
The dwelling is silent, devoid of all that is good,
The country falls exhausted.

O inundation of the Nile,
Offerings are made unto thee,
Oxen are immolated to thee,
Great festivals are instituted for thee,
Birds are sacrificed to thee,
Gazelles are taken for thee in the mountain,

Pure flames are prepared for thee. . . .

O Nile, come and prosper!
O thou who makest men to live through his flocks,
Likewise his flocks through his orchards,

Come and prosper, come,

O Nile, come and prosper!

Iliad Book VIII

Listen to Book VIII
(scroll down to find the MP3 for that book)

Read Along

Try the quiz on characters in the Iliad

Notes and Questions

Zeus bans further divine intervention.
Note the magnificent image of Zeus' scales (80); this will return later.

Zeus signals the Greeks' collapse, but still pities (280ff.): is he confused?

Given that the proem told us that these events are the will of Zeus, what does Zeus really want?

400 Athena and Hera rebel, but Zeus recalls them, with the sudden first account of the fated death of Patroclus. Is this what Achilles and Thetis had in mind?

Why "must? Patroclus die?

580 Hector, flush with glory, decides to camp on the plain; is he being reckless here? Note the beautiful, yet somehow ominous, simile at the end of the book. What effect does this simile have?

Things to Know:

Genre‚ Epic
Literary works are divided into various categories called genres in accordance with their characteristic form and content. The Iliad¹ belongs to the genre of epic. An epic is a long poem which tells a story involving gods, heroes and heroic exploits. Since the epic is by its very nature lengthy, it tends to be rather loosely organized. Not every episode is absolutely necessary to the main story and digressions are not uncommon. You will notice how different in this regard is the genre of drama, in which every episode tends to be essential to the plot and digressions are inappropriate. The events narrated in epic are drawn from legend rather than invented by the poet and are typically of great significance as in the case of the Iliad, which relates an important incident centering around the greatest hero of the Greeks in the Trojan War, the most celebrated war of Greek legend. The epic poet tends to present his narrative impersonally, not drawing attention to himself except occasionally, as in the first line of the Iliad when Homer addresses the goddess who is the Muse² of epic poetry. ¹The word Iliad means "a poem about Ilion [another name for Troy]."
²In Greek myth a Muse is one of the nine daughters of Zeus, who are goddesses of the arts. See line 604 of the first book of the Iliad.

Iliad Book VII

choose:

Listen to the Iliad by Homer book VII (scroll down)

or read it online or from book at home.

Literature Review

Gilgamesh #4

Read chapters 9-10 of Gilgamesh the Hero

Also, read about the discovery of the Gilgamesh tablets

Try:
A very simple comprehension quiz.
Another quiz (the version is somewhat different so you might miss some of the answers)

Gilgamesh the Hero #3

Read chapters 7-8 of Gilgamesh the Hero

A symbol is a person, place, or thing comes to represent an abstract idea or concept -- it is anything that stands for something beyond itself.

Symbolism is "the investing of outward things or actions with an inner meaning"

symbol (from Etymology Dictionary)

early 15c., "creed, summary, religious belief," from L.L. symbolum "creed, token, mark," from Gk. symbolon "token, watchword"... literally. "that which is thrown or cast together," from syn- "together" + bole "a throwing, a casting, the stroke of a missile, bolt, beam," from bol-, nom. stem of ballein "to throw" (see ballistics). The sense evolution in Greek is from "throwing things together" to "contrasting" to "comparing" to "token used in comparisons to determine if something is genuine." Hence, "outward sign" of something. The meaning "something which stands for something else" first recorded 1590 (in "Faerie Queene").

There is much use of the idea of "symbols" in literary works -- tracking down symbols in literature can certainly be overdone, but having the idea in mind can be useful in understanding what is going on in literary works. For example, in Lord of the Rings, the Ring is a real thing, but it also seems to represent something besides just a powerful magical item.

We will probably talk more about this in future literature lessons.

Here's a Scatter with some possible symbols from Gilgamesh. Can you see anything in common between these symbols and the use of similar "signs" in other works?

Gilgamesh #2

Read Chapter 5-6, about death and fear.

Try this Scatter on the characters in Gilgamesh. It might help you to keep the names straight if you are having trouble.

Also, review the Heroic Journey flashcards.

Gilgamesh #1

Read chapter 1-2 of Gilgamesh the Hero if you haven't already.

Here is a Scatter on the Heroic Journey. Gilgamesh doesn't contain all these elements, but as most "heroic" stories do, it does contain some. Can you think of examples of these themes from different stories you have read?

Gilgamesh #5

Read chapters 11-2 of Gilgamesh the Hero


That should bring you to the end.

Here are 10 Epic Conventions.   They apply more to Greek (Homeric) epics than Gilgamesh.  Do you see any of these conventions in Gilgamesh?

Try the Scatter

Gilgamesh and the Story of the Flood

If you didn't understand it well the first time, reread the story of the flood in the last tablet of the Epic of Gilgamesh

As you read, try to get a sense of what is happening, and look for the answers to these questions. We will discuss them together.

The Iliad

Listen to the Iliad

Try to listen to a book at a time. Leave a comment below whenever you finish a book (KTR-1, KTR-2, etc)

Podcast of the Iliad by Homer (Librivox)
(scroll down on the page and load up the -- let me know if your computer has any problems with the MP3 format that you can't solve on your own)

You can follow along on the screen: The Iliad

Book I [47k] Book II [63k] Book III [36k] Book IV [42k] Book V [66k] Book VI [42k] Book VII [38k] Book VIII [44k]

Book IX [53k] Book X [45k] Book XI [65k] Book XII [40k] Book XIII [65k] Book XIV [43k] Book XV [57k] Book XVI [68k]

Book XVII [57k] Book XVIII [48k] Book XIX [35k] Book XX [42k] Book XXI [49k] Book XXII [44k] Book XXIII [68k] Book XXIV [62k]

Other Resources (just for reference right now)

• Some questions to discuss as we read the epic.
• Listen to the epic in ancient Greek.

The Iliad

A Nice Study Guide
Study Guide

Another Study Guide

1. I Summary.
   Supplication. Plague. Quarrel.
   Major Characters of the Book.
   English Translation.
   Cultural Notes on Iliad Book I
2. II Summary.
   Greeks and Trojans get ready for battle.
   Major Characters of the Book.
   English Translation.
   Cultural Notes on Iliad Book II
3. III Summary.
   Paris single combat with Menelaus.
   Major Characters of the Book.
   English Translation.
   Cultural Notes on Iliad Book III
4. IV Summary.
   Quarrel among the gods.
   Major Characters of the Book.
   English Translation.
   Cultural Notes on Iliad Book IV
5. V Summary.
   Athena helps Diomedes. He injures Aphrodite and Ares.
   Major Characters of the Book.
   English Translation.
6. VI Summary.
   Andromache begs Hector not to fight.
   Major Characters of the Book.
   English Translation.
7. VII Summary.
   Ajax and Hector fight, but neither wins. Paris refuses to give up Helen.
   Major Characters of the Book.
   English Translation.
8. VIII Summary.
   2nd battle; Greeks beaten back.
   Major Characters of the Book.
   English Translation.
9. IX Summary.
   Agamemnon returns Briseis to Achilles.
   Major Characters of the Book.
   English Translation.
10. X Summary.
    Odysseus and Diomedes capture a Trojan spy.
    Major Characters of the Book.
    English Translation.
11. XI Summary.
    Nestor urges Patroclus to persuade Achilles to lend him his armor and his men.
    Major Characters of the Book.
    English Translation.
12. XII Summary.
    Trojans get through Greek walls.
    Major Characters of the Book.
    English Translation.
13. XIII Summary.
    Poseidon helps the Greeks.
    Major Characters of the Book.
    English Translation.
14. XIV Summary.
    Largely through the shenanigans of the gods, the Trojans are driven back. Hector is wounded.
    Major Characters of the Book.
    English Translation.
15. XV Summary.
    Apollo sent to heal Hector. Hector burns Greek ships.
    Major Characters of the Book.
    English Translation.
16. XVI Summary.
    Achilles lets Patroclus wear his armor and lead his Myrmidons. Hector kills Patroclus.
    Major Characters of the Book.
    English Translation.
17. XVII Summary.
    Achilles learns Patroclus is dead.
    Major Characters of the Book.
    English Translation.
18. XVIII Summary.
    Achilles mourns. Shield of Achilles.
    Major Characters of the Book.
    English Translation.
19. XIX Summary.
    Reconciled with Agamemnon, Achilles agrees to lead the Greeks.
    Major Characters of the Book.
    English Translation.
20. XX Summary.
    Gods join the battle. Hera, Athena, Poseidon, Hermes, and Hephaestus for the Greeks. Apollo, Artemis, Ares, and Aphrodite for the Trojans.
    Major Characters of the Book.
    English Translation.
21. XXI Summary.
    Achilles winning. Trojans retreat.
    Major Characters of the Book.
    English Translation.
22. XXII Summary.
    Hector and Achilles meet in single combat. Death of Hector.
    Major Characters of the Book.
    English Translation.
23. XXIII Summary.
    Funeral Games for Patroclus.
    Major Characters of the Book.
    English Translation.
24. XXIV Summary.
    Hector desecration, return, and burial.
    Major Characters of the Book.
    English Translation.

Literature Index

Other Reading Here

First Term:

• start listening to Iliad
• Gilgamesh the Hero
  

Iliad
Book 1 (overview)
Book 2
Book 3
Book 4
Book 5
Book 6
Book 7
Book 8

Top Ten Quotes
Second Term
Read Odyssey

Book I [35k] Book II [36k] Book III [40k] Book IV [62k] Book V [39k] Book VI [31k] Book VII [31k] Book VIII [46k]

Book IX [46k] Book X [45k] Book XI [48k] Book XII [38k] Book XIII [36k] Book XIV [43k] Book XV [44k] Book XVI [38k]

Book XVII [47k] Book XVIII [36k] Book XIX [48k] Book XX [34k] Book XXI [36k] Book XXII [39k] Book XXIII [33k] Book XXIV [43k]

Third Term:

start reading Poetics.

Section 1 [44k]

Section 2 [41k]

Section 3 [44k]

Read Theban plays
Read Oresteian trilogy.


Read Plato's dialogues