Canterbury Tales

In writing The Miller’s Prologue and Tale, Chaucer uses comedy to challenge of the social hierarchy and rules of the society of his day.  His mocking begins in the prologue when the innkeeper turns to the monk to tell a story after the knight has just finished his romantic tale.  Before the monk can get a word out, the drunken miller interrupts and insists on telling his story that will supposedly best that of the knight.  This would most likely be highly inappropriate for a commoner like the miller to interrupt the monk and try to outdo and insult the knight. By allowing the miller to barge in with his crude tale that is basically the antithesis of the knight’s tale of romance, Chaucer shows his contempt for the social hierarchy and its rules.  As the miller gets into his tale, the society’s rules are represented by Absolon, the parish clerk, who tries to court the beautiful Alison by using traditional methods of wooing her with his guitar and song.  Even when she refuses his advances, he continues to come to sing to her from beneath her window.  As must be the custom of traditional courting rules, Absolon requests a kiss from Alison in acknowledgement of his guitar playing and singing even though Alison has made it clear that she has no interest in his advances.  Again, Chaucer shows his contempt for the traditional social hierarchy and its practices by having Absolon unknowingly kiss Alison’s rear end instead of her face.  He goes so far as to have Nicholas, Alison’s lover, pass gas in Absolon’s face when he returns for a second kiss.  The commoner’s show of disrespect for society’s traditional methods of courtship speak mirrors Chaucer’s own views on the subject.

The Tale of Genji

I really enjoyed reading the chapter selections from The Tale of Genji because through this work, I felt like I was given a pretty accurate account of what life was really like for the aristocracy of Japan at this time.  In previous readings, like Gilgamesh or the Ramayana, many descriptions of the characters were exaggerated, and the heroes were often portrayed as godlike.  This is not the case in the two chapters that we read from The Tale of Genji.  The first chapter that we read is a long, detailed dialogue between Genji, his friend, and two other gentleman during which they discuss what each likes and does not like in a woman and also recount some of their previous exploits.  Being able to hear each gentleman’s stories and opinions, I am given great insight into the how the aristocracy of Japan at this time truly behaved.  The men used their status to satisfy their lust for women, which they did many times over with many different women.  Women, for the most part, stayed and home by themselves and tended to the children and home, while their husbands were out with other wives and mistresses.  It doesn’t appear that the author worries about having her characters adhere to a moral code as we have seen many times in previous works we have read.  Instead, she seems to be more focused on providing and accurate, realistic account of life in the Japanese aristocracy and the way men and women of the time interacted with one another.

The Man'yoshu

My favorite poem from The Man'yoshu is Dialog of the Destitute. The poet uses several literary devices, such as imagery and irony, to paint an agonizingly painful picture of life of the poor in Japan. The author's desperation to find food and drink is illustrated when he describes how he must "lick black lumps of salt and suck up melted dregs of sake (lines 8-9)." His torn clothes are mere "tattered rags" that are "thin as strips of seaweed (lines 44-45)." These illustrative lines bring the speaker to life for the reader, making it very easy to sympathize with him.

The most poignant line in the entire work comes in the form of irony at the very end of the poem. About midway through the poem, the speaker reminds himself and the reader that at least he was born human so he may have a chance of attaining enlightenment and escaping the cycle of death and rebirth that has landed him in his current state of poverty and despair. Then, in the very last lines of the poem, he laments that he is not a bird, a level that cannot even attain enlightenment as a human can, so that he could at least fly away to escape the cruel world in which he lives.

The Tragedy of Sohrab and Rostam

One of the major themes of The Tragedy of Sohrab and Rostam is fate.  From the beginning of the story, Sohrab and Rostam are both portrayed as men of unusually large size and strength.  Rostam pulls a tree from the ground and uses it to spit a burrough, and Sohrab is so big and strong for his age that he is mistaken for a grown man when he is only ten years old.  Despite their size and strength, both men realize that they are virtually powerless against the whims of fate.  As Rostam is preparing for the second day’s fight, he says to Kavus, “…though I strive, I don’t know who will win.  Nor do I know what choice Yazdan will make.  Strength, victory, and fame all come from Him…”  After Sohrab is mortally wounded by his father, he does not blame him for his impending death.  Instead, he says to Rostam, “This was the fate allotted me.  The heavens gave my key into your hand.  It’s not your fault.  It was this hunchback fate, who raised me up then quickly cast me down.”  This story clearly shows that not even the biggest or strongest of humans is a match for fate and the will of the gods.

Lysistrata

The play Lysistrata tackles many serious issues such as war, the role of women in society, obedience, and reconciliation.  However, the play’s writer, Aristophanes, does not use a serious, dramatic tone make his point.  Instead, he incorporates humor to bring light to the serious issues facing Athens at that point in history.  When the men come to the Akropolis to try and force the women out, the Koryphaios of Men and the Koryphaios of Women engage in a comical exchange short bursts of heated words.

               

Koryphaios of Men: Why the water, you sink of iniquity?  More sedition?

            Koryphaios of Women:  Why the fire, you walking boneyard?  Self-cremation?

Koryphaios of Men:  I brought this fire to ignite a pyre and fricassee your friends.

            Koryphaios of Women:  I brought this water to douse your pyre.  Tit for tat.

Koryphaios of Men:  You’ll douse my fire?  Nonsense!

            Koryphaios of Women:  You’ll see, when the facts soak in.

     

     In addition to verbal comedy, Aristophanes also incorporates physical comedy into the play.  For example, the points at which Lysistrata dresses the Commissioner as a women or when one of the women uses the helmet of Athene to fake being pregnant are comedic actions that make the audience laugh out loud.  And, of course, there are many sexual jokes to keep the audience entertained, such as sexual innuendos and phallic symbols.  As Kinesias enters the Akropolis to try and see Myrrhine, the dialogue between him and Lysistrata is filled with sexual innuendos.

               

            Lysistrata:  WHO GOES THERE?  WHO PENETRATES OUR POSITIONS?

            Kinesias:  Me.

            Lysistrata:  A Man?

            Kinesias:  Every inch.

Lysistrata:  Then inch yourself out of here.  Off Limits to Men.

            

     By incorporating an array of comical devices, Aristophanes is able to draw his audience in and keep his audience’s attention while still being able to illustrate that the war between Athens and Sparta is a senseless waste of time that is detrimental to Greece.

Antigone

Sophocles tackles many ideas in Antigone that resonate just as strongly with audiences today as they did with the people of Sophocles’ Athens.  One of the most important themes of the play and the downfall of the play's tragic heroes, Antigone and Creon, is hubris, which is excessive pride and arrogance.  At the opening of the play, Antigone decides to defy Creon’s decree to leave the body of Polyneices unburied.  When she is caught, she doesn’t try to hide what she has done.  On the contrary, Antigone is so proud of her defiance and her loyalty to her brother that she eagerly throws her defiance in Creon’s face and becomes enraged which Ismene tries to take partial credit for Polyneices’ burial.  Antigone’s pride leads to her being sentenced to death by Creon for violating his orders.

Hubris also leads to Creon’s eventual downfall and to the demise of several of his loved ones.  Creon believes that all of his people should unwaveringly follow all of his orders and be severely punished for disobedience.  As the play progresses, several people ask Creon to spare Antigone’s life, but Creon’s pride will not allow him to retract the death sentence he has issued for Antigone.  Not even Tereisias’ foreboding vision of evil and trouble for Thebes is enough to coerce Creon to change his policies.  Because of his unwavering hubris, Creon ultimately loses his son, Haemon, and his wife, Eurydice, to suicide.  The downfalls of Antigone and Creon serve as lessons for the reader that, as the Chorus notes, the more arrogance a person has, the greater the revenge of God.

The Classic of Poetry

The Classic of Poetry was one of my favorite pieces that we have read so far in this class.  Like Gilgamesh and Ramayana, the Classic of Poetry discusses many issues that people commonly deal with at various points in their life.  Unlike Gilgamesh and Ramayana, which are epic tales, the Classic of Poetry is a collection of lyric poetry written from the viewpoints of many different people from various stations in life.  What I find so great about this collection of poetry is that it uses fairly simple vernacular and direct statements to make some very profound comments about life and how to deal with its various challenges.  In “Plums Are Falling,”  a women laments that just as the plum trees produce less and less fruit as time passes, she, too, loses her ability to bear children as more time passes without finding a husband to marry.   In “Quince,” the poet examines the disparity between the beautiful gems that he bestows upon his lover and the meager fruit that she gives to him.  He justifies this inequality by noting that he receives her lasting love in return.  In “Chung-tzu, Please,” the poet examines the issue of proper courtship in the eyes of society.  She obviously cares for Chung-tzu and doesn’t mind him courting her, but she wants him to properly court her so as not to upset her family or cause the neighbors to talk poorly of her.  The entire collection of poetry eloquently addresses a myriad of life events, joyous, mundane, and terrifying alike, in a way that allows the reader to examine them in the context of what is socially and morally acceptable.  The reader can rely upon the poems for guidance when faced with similar events in their own lives.

Ramayana...part two

Like many stories in various cultures, the Ramayana deals with many dilemmas that the human race constantly tries to cope with.  A central theme of the Ramayana is that of the struggle between good and evil.  For Hindus, following one’s dharma is good, and not following one’s dharma is evil.  If you are good, you are rewarded, but if you are evil, you will be punished.  When the story begins, the reader may struggle to understand why Rama, who has always lived his life in accordance with his dharma, would be forced into exile by his father instead of being crowned king as was planned.  For many people, if something bad like this happened, they would become angry and upset because of the unjust action and may stray from the righteous path.  Rama, however, does not do this.  He accepts his exile with grace and dignity.  Another terrible misfortune befalls Rama when Sita is stolen away by the evil Ravana.  Through this difficult situation, Rama lives in accordance with his dharma as he works to find Sita and rescue her from Ravana.  In the end, Rama is rewarded for always following his dharma when he eventually frees Sita and comes back home to rule as king.  Ravana, who has acted against his dharma by splitting up Sita and Rama, is ultimately punished by death at Rama’s hand.  At its core, the Ramayana is a moral lesson that reminds the reader to always strive to do good, not evil, and, if successful, one will be rewarded.    

The Ramayana

The Ramayana, with its various themes, was a fascinating epic poem that I really enjoyed reading.   Perhaps the most interesting theme of the text was that of dharma and its various meanings for each individual.  At the beginning of the poem, Rama, who is supposed to become the crowned prince of Ayodhya, has no qualms with leaving for the forest and living there in exile for fourteen years when his mother (who is not biologically related to him) explains to him that his father, the king, commands it so.  Rama says, “…I am devoted to the truth.  Even if father had not commanded me, and you had asked me to go the forest I would have done so!”  When his biological mother, Kausalya, commands him to stay in the city, Rama cites his unwavering devotion to dharma and says, “…I cannot swerve from the path of dharma which demands that I should implicitly obey our father.”  Distressed by her son’s imminent, unplanned departure, Kausalya declares that she will accompany him during his exile.  Rama, however, opposes this idea by citing his mother’s obligation to adhere to her own dharma.  “It is not right for you, mother, to abandon father and follow me to the forest, as if you are a widow.”

                                 When Sita, Rama’s wife, learns of his banishment, she pleads to come with him.  Knowing of Rama’s dedication to dharma, she reminds him of her own duty as his wife.  “…the wife alone shares the life of her husband … in fact you have often declared that a righteous wife will not be able to live separated from her husband.”  As the story continues, Sita continues to prove her commitment to her own dharma by remaining virtuous and pious and then proving her purity to Rama before he will take her back to Ayodhya. 

Gilgamesh.... still relevant after all of these years

The Epic of Gilgamesh is one of the oldest works of literature known to man.  Composed in the Akkadian language, it was written in ancient Mesopotamia more than 4,000 years ago and tells the story of the great king of Uruk, Gilgamesh.  Through his exploits, the reader examines some of the fundamental characteristics of human nature and questions about the mortality of humans that still remain somewhat unclear to people in modern society.

The story opens with a description of the great Gilgamesh.  He has built a massive, beautiful  city that has no equal on Earth.  He is two-thirds god and one-third human.  He’s bigger, stronger, more handsome than any other man on Earth.  He epitomizes everything than humans strive to be.  He’s also a big jerk.  His grandiose achievements that have made him famous are overshadowed by his disregard for his human brethren.  His people plead with the gods to save them from the terrible acts of Gilgamesh, and they oblige by creating Enkidu.  The story continues on to document how Gilgamesh and Enkidu change from wanting to fight one another to becoming the closest of friends who set out on a adventure to find and defeat Humbaba.  These two great men think that they are so big and unstoppable that they can take down anything in their path -- even nature itself.  

They do defeat Humbaba, and when they return to Uruk, they are showered with praise for their heroic acts of bravery and strength.  Ishtar even offers her hand in marriage to Gilgmesh after hearing of his slaying of Humbaba which he promptly declines.  It’s ironic that a man who values so greatly how people think of him and wants to be great in everything he does refuses a marriage which could bear him children.  Some could argue that raising children to be good people and make a positive mark on society is one of the greatest legacies that a person could leave behind in death.

As the story continues, the gods decide that one of the two heroes must be punished for their acts, and Enkidu is condemned to death, which shortly follows.  Gilgamesh, overcome with grief because of his friend’s death, mourns for many days.  More importantly, his friend’s death makes Gilgamesh painfully aware of his own mortality.  In fact, I’m not sure if he was more upset that his friend was gone forever or that he would one day suffer the same fate.  Nevertheless, as humans love to do, Gilgamesh decides to challenge nature and the fate that he has been dealt and seek out the Uta-napishti in order to find the secret to immortality.

While this story was written many years ago, the concepts that it tries to tackle are timeless.  Humans will always try to circumvent nature because we never seem to be satisfied with what nature has dealt us.  Death, however, is inevitable and will eventually come for us all.  It’s up to each individual to decide if he wants to be remembered for the material things he possessed, which will eventually decay just like our frail bodies, or the the great deeds we did that make the world just a little better for future generations.