The Literature of Ancient Mesopotamia Mesopotamia The land

The Literature of Ancient Mesopotamia

Mesopotamia - “The land between the rivers” • Mesopotamia is the name given by the Greeks to an ancient area of the Middle East now known as modern-day Iraq, Iran, Turkey, and Syria. • This region is also known as the Fertile Crescent, an agriculturally rich land watered by the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers.

The Sumerians were the first people to dominate this region, settling here sometime between 5000 and 4000 BC.

The Sumerians : • Grew crops and raised cattle for a living • Were successful merchants and traders • Were known for their stonework, metalwork, and sculpture

The Sumerians lived in citystates, much like the Greeks: • City-states were walled for protection against invaders • Pyramid-like temples, called Ziggurats, were the center of the cities • The priests of the ziggurats were considered the earthly representatives of the gods

Sumerian society was based upon a strict Class system • Upper Class = priests, government officials • Middle Class = merchants, artisans, doctors • Lower Class = peasants, farmers, slaves

The Sumerians achieved a high level of culture and learning • Knowledge of architecture • Developments in science, math, astrology • Created one of the world’s first systems of writing, known as cuneiform, consisting of a wedgeshaped marking made with a stick on clay tablets

The largest city-states, such as Ur, Uruk, and Lagash, had populations in tens of thousands. • Many city-states were in sight of each other • But the Sumerians never organized a strong central government • They often competed against each other for land resources • This made it easy for stronger enemies to capture and control them later

Because the Sumerians failed to form a unified government, they were vulnerable to the attacks of different nations: • Akkadians (~2500 BC) • Babylonians (~2000 BC) • Hittites (~1600 BC) • Assyrians (~900 BC) • Chaldeans (~612 BC) • Persians (~539 BC)

It was during the reign of the Babylonians that the story of a great king called “Gilgamesh” became translated and preserved • The story was written ~ 4000 years ago • It takes the form of an epic poem • Tells of a king who actually reigned over the city-state of Uruk sometime between 2700 and 2500 BC • The story was originally found on broken Sumerian tablets and restored / translated by the Babylonians

The epic tells of the superhuman adventures of the legendary king • Legend has it that Gilgamesh is two parts god and one part human, thus possessing both supernatural powers and human weaknesses • Though he was a great leader of a mighty city, he suffered from excessive pride (hubris). • His anger at the gods over the death of a friend leads him to seek eternal life • Though he confronts obstacles along the way, he must ultimately accept his human limitations

The selections of Gilgamesh we will read are based upon 12 clay tablets of cuneiform script. • These tablets were among 25, 000 discovered in modern Iraq at Ninevah in the buried ruins of the library of King Assurbanipal of Assyria • The original tablets were damaged in a fire during a Persian raid around 612 BC, but recent discoveries of older versions of the epic helped to reclaim the parts of the story that were missing.

The epic was so widely known that scholars believe it served as an archetype, or model, for hero myths around the world • Greece, India, and Persia would later model characters and adventures after those portrayed in Gilgamesh • The epic reveals a great deal about the ancient Mesopotamians’ sometimes pessimistic (negative) views of existence • But it also shows us the sensitivity and humanity of these ancient peoples, who are not unlike us in their joys, sorrows, and strivings

Background of the Sumerian Beliefs reflected in the Epic of Gilgamesh • Though they were advanced for their time, the Sumerian and Babylonian civilizations were powerless against ever-present threats of floods, droughts, and invaders. • They worshipped a pantheon, or “family, ” of unpredictable gods and goddesses who could bring misfortune as well as favor. • Regardless of social status or level of goodness, there was no joyful afterlife to look forward to. • No wonder these people had a negative outlook on life!

These pessimistic (negative) beliefs are evident in the Epic of Gilgamesh • Gilgamesh, in spite of his great powers, suffers a life-changing loss. When the person who means the most to him dies, the proud Gilgamesh must come to terms with the reality that he himself will not live forever. • Because, in the Sumerian view, death offers only emptiness, Gilgamesh rebels against it, and sets off on a quest to attain immortality (eternal life).

Gilgamesh is the earliest known of the Epic Heroes • All epic heroes are human beings • All have supernatural strength and spiritual powers • All are mighty leaders of their people • Most of them are of mixed divine and human birth • Most of them possess human weakness, which forces them to accept human limitations in spite of their power

Why are Epic Heroes so important to us? • We admire them for their divine, supernatural powers, and often wish to be like them • We sympathize with them because their human weaknesses and difficulties remind us of our own