The Tao Of Batman

Chapter I:

Is this justice
For crimes committed?
Or is this revenge
For offenses against me?
Justice and revenge
Are separated
By the blade
Of a razor.

Chapter II:

Peace
And justice
And deepest, darkest
Revenge
As sweet
As peace.

Chapter III:

The fruit of justice
Satisfies.
The fruit of revenge
Brings greater
Hunger.

Chapter IV:

Justice found
Outside the law
Justice is societies
Revenge
They need me, they hate me.

Chapter V:

Light out
Of darkness
And whiteness
Without blackness
A world full of
Color
And shades of gray.

Chapter VI:

Darkest without
Light
Nothing
Nothingness
Emptiness
Light is life
Darkness is life
Light is darkness
Without
Struggle.

Chapter VII:

The Joker and I
Are one
We are two faces
Of the Tao
He needs me
I need him
We are nothing
We are Two-Face

Chapter VIII:

Riddle me this
Batman.
What is everywhere
And nowhere?
What is and is not?
What is found by not looking?
What kills and
Saves life?
What brings peace
And strife?
The Tao.

Chapter IX:

The Tao in me,
Through me
Kicks
Strikes
Glides
Swings
Kills evil
Yet, I have never
Killed
Nor will I ever
Kill
I am killing
Evil.

Chapter X:

Gotham
In darkness
In me
Dead metal and asphalt
Crawling with life
And hopes,
And fears
And darkness waiting
In me.

Chapter XI:

I will never die
But I am dying
I am
A shadow
And a world
That screams
For justice, not mercy
For the end
That eternally comes.

Chapter XII:

My car and I
Are two yet one
My suit and I
Are a shark

I am as a Chimera,

Many things yet always one.
My heart and I
Are a shadow
Now
Avenging dark deeds.



Chapter XIII:

The sounds
Of the city beneath me
In darkness
Resound
In my head
As I search
For peace…

The Eternal Game

Go is not only just a simple game. It is a reflection of the eternal Tao. Just like we see by not seeing, learn by not learning, we capture our opponents pieces by not doing so. The moment a mistake is made, it affects the entire game. Through that experience we learn how to play the right way, the Taoist way. By trying not to win, you stand a very good chance of winning. The board game teaches us how we can do things by doing the opposite. We save ourselves not by defending but by endangering others and attacking. By playing this game we are in reality learning the Tao. How we should live according to it. Sometimes we can sacrifice one or a few for the greater good of the whole group. In the game certain rules are provided, restricting moves and strategies. Like the Ko rule the Tao is eternal. The game will go on eternally just as the Tao will go on forever. The game of Go, I have found is simply a reflection of the eternal Tao and what the Tao has taught us.

How Should We Live- The Tao Te Ching

Throughout literature we are confronted with a question that every human being may have a different opinion on. How should we live? The Analects by Confucius were one opinion of living. He called his theory “the Way”. A way we should lead our lives, applying virtues, values, and morals to our everyday lives. The Tao Te Ching inspires it’s readers to follow “the Tao”. These two terms seem very similar. A path or way that one takes to achieve “goodness” as said by Confucius. The Bible is also a similar work or works since it was written by many different people. The Bible inspires us to follow Christ and God in order to attain salvation and, “a place among those who are by faith,” in the Lord. They teach us lessons through passages that we may be able to reflect and apply into our own every day lives.
Many people follow at least one of these “ways” and believe in it extraordinarily. Christians follow Christ, followers of Confucius walk “the Way,” and the people who read and follow the Tao Te Ching, aspire to have aspects found in “the Tao.” Like education different people give us different sides and methods to do certain things. We can either talk back and give them what we think, or we can take what they all say and filter the things that we don’t agree with out, keeping the more important points. We can learn a great deal about life, and the meaning of life from these works and they are absolutely worth reading.

We Have Become Drunk In Our Own Power

What kind of a people have we become? One where social acceptance and status matter more to us than values, virtues, and morals. Have we become so vile and vain that we would push someone else into a bullet to save our own skins, smother our own babies to save our own lives? As we have advanced in technology and power, our morality has dramatically decrease. If you were waling on a crosswalk today and a car were coming, you would know from experience that the car wouldn’t even slow down. The man believes himself superior to everyone else and thinks they should get out of his way or else. This mentality is reflected in mankind today. We believe ourselves superior and more important than everyone else. Be it differences in nationality, skin color, ancestry, or religion, we bicker and argue over who is the best, who is right.

Once man had a code of chivalry, a certain set of rules or expectations society had for man. To be gentlemen was considered a duty and was done without question. Their desire was not for personal gain, self preservation or anything that would promote their social status. It was merely a desire to put others before themselves, and value others the same or more than they would value themselves. Nowadays, society has become corrupt, drunk in its own power. Now attaining the highest social acceptance and status is the most important aspect of life. One today would not help someone out of the kindness of their hearts but for personal gain. We have become a selfish society that is so distracted by image and others opinions of that image that we forget what comes before ourselves. Once we die all of our material belongings, reputations, images, status and life will be taken away and discarded like trash.

We have spoken of equality among men and how we desire to attain that equality no matter our race or religion or social class might be. But the truth is, friends, that we don’t really want those things. The world isn’t fair or equal and we may never be able to treat each other as equals. Before we can have equality we must humble ourselves. If we do so we will realize the value of another person in this world. They might not mean much to you at that time but they may be everything to someone else. We need to let go of the material and precious items that really are worthless and put others before ourselves.

Confucius mentions in the Analects the joy, simplicity, and humility that comes with letting go. He would rather eat bread and drink water and have only an arm as a pillow than live as though he needed the material. The truth is, we don’t. We depend so much on these things that we lose sight of the other, more important aspects of life. If we lost our things, we would mourn for a while. Some would act as though their lives had just gone down the drain but we will come to realize that what was really important was not lost and life was worth much more than unnecessary objects.

Try Things The Hard Way- Confucius Books 7, 8, and 11

Although this topic does not recur much throughout the Analects, it caught my eye more and made me think. The Master said, “Eating plain food and drinking water, having only your bent arm as a pillow- surely there is joy to be found in this! Wealth and eminence attained improperly concern me no more than the floating clouds.” (Confucius pg.20) It made me think of modern society and the basis of social status we all desire to attain. The Master enjoyed simplicity much more than wealth and power.

Nowadays people believe the most important aspect of life is what others think of you and where you are in the world. If you are rich and powerful you doing pretty good for yourself, whereas if you are poor and humble you are a disgrace to society. As our technology expands and advances it seems we are finding new and easier ways to do everything but sometimes, maybe it’s better that we do things the hard way rather than attempt to find a way to make it easier on ourselves.

Iv’e heard that someday we will all have floating chairs or some kind of transportation which will enable us all to never have to stand or walk around. Honestly that does not sound in the least bit appealing to me at all. I would rather walk to school or work rather than take the bus or car. Maybe sometimes as the Master points out, it is better when it is simple and humble.

The Teachings Of A Sage- Confucius Books 4-6

Virtue, Goodness, the Ways, all terms I have heard of but never really understood. Confucius seems to me to be a master of wisdom and Goodness who instructs his disciples in ways they might become Good. As I read through his teachings, though, the passages reminded me of the Bible, or at least a book in the Bible. It brought to mind Proverbs. One of the first passages the master says was, “If one does not choose to dwell among those who are Good, how will one obtain wisdom?” (Confucius pg.10) I was instantly reminded of the proverb passage, “Those who walk with the wise, becomes wiser still but the companion of fools suffers harm.” (Proverbs 13:20) Both of these books seem to be trying to reach out to people and instruct them on the path to Goodness and in the Bible’s case, Godliness. When the Master is confronted with questions about wisdom and Goodness, he responds with his teachings. “The wise take joy in rivers, while the Good take joy in mountains. The wise are active, while the Good are still! The wise are joyful, while the Good are long lived.” (Confucius pg.18) It seems the master has attained Goodness and wishes only that his students might learn from him and become as him. Some people mentioned that these Analects were more direct, but I might disagree. While neither are absolutely direct, the Analects seem to leave more room for interpretation. The Bible also does so but in many cases it is as direct and simple as possible. Follow what God says. Read the Bible and you will know what to do with your life. It’s very simple and easy to understand whereas some of the Analects confused quite a bit. “A gu that is not a proper gu- is it really a gu? Is it really a gu?”(Confucius pg. 18) I’m not really sure what to take from that.

God Bless America-Barrack Acceptance Speech

Barrack Hussein Obama, the president of the United States. At first I didn’t think it would happen. With so many flaws and questionable traits, for sure he would lose. But using what he does best he won over the crowd and the race. I don’t believe he will be that great of a president, but I have to admit that he is an excellent public speaker. He knows how to appeal to the audience and seems to know what they want. Even if he doesn’t believe it he might say something to please his crowd. He uses expressions, gestures, tone, volume, movements, that clarify and emphasize what he wants to say.
I’ve heard that people cry at Obama’s rallies. I don’t think it’s that great but it’s an example of the audience being appeased and satisfied with what he says. Another thing I noticed. Barrack makes a lot of promises. Some of which he very well might not be able to keep. He know this but it deceives the audience into thinking he can and he will do everything possible to help the people. He knows what he’s doing on stage and he’s got his plan for the United States burned into our minds. Change. That’s his plan. He promises change for the greater good. We’ll see how well he can live up to that.

Where Is God Now?

Elie, the main character of the novel “Night” finds himself in the same predicament as Job. He thought to himself, “How I sympathized with Job! I did not deny God existence, but I doubted His absolute existence.” (Night pg. 42) Once he was happy, in a peaceful town, oblivious to pain and suffering. He lived with his family, enjoyed time with his friends, “believed profoundly.” (Night pg. 1) Like Job he was without flaw in God’s eye. He believed and found himself deeply influenced by God in everything he did. Then one day, the inconceivable happened. Everything he knew, everything he loved and had just blew out the window. Job lost his family, land, wealth, purpose. Elie lost the same. His family and him went separate ways, he no longer had a sense of purpose, simply to survive. He was treated like an animal and deprived of every human right. If Elie is to Job, then the Nazis were to Satan. They took everything from the two. After all was taken from them they began to question God. How could a loving God allow imprisonment and torture and the death of so many people? How could God take everything away from a man who was so devoted to the faith? They blamed God for their predicament when all they had to do was be attentive and trust God, trust their brothers and sisters in faith. Moshe the Beadle warned them of what could happen, there were rumors of concentration camps and slavery of all the Jews, but they would not listen. Eventually their pain and suffering came to such an extent they questioned his existence. They asked one another, “Where is God now? … Where is He? Here He is-He is hanging here on this gallows.”(Night pg. 62) Then out of the havoc and pandemonium, out came salvation. For Job, he was shown the light by Elihu the young boy who was wiser than the old men. For Elie it was the Americans who liberated him and freed him from his torment.

Fallacies

1. Obama -I think everybody knows now we are in the worst financial crisis since the Great Depression. And a lot of you I think are worried about your jobs, your pensions, your retirement accounts, your ability to send your child or your grandchild to college.
2. Obama -Part of the problem here is that for many of you, wages and incomes have flat-lined. For many of you, it is getting harder and harder to save, harder and harder to retire.
3. McCain - Well, thank you, Oliver, and that's an excellent question, because as you just described it, bailout, when I believe that it's rescue, because -- because of the greed and excess in Washington and Wall Street, Main Street was paying a very heavy price, and we know that.
4. McCain -And so let's look at our records as well as our rhetoric. That's really part of your mistrust here.

Job’s Worth- Job Chapters 38-42

The entire predicament, the cause of Job’s wealth and prosperity as well as his loss and suffering were a result of Job’s faith. He was as close to perfect as a man can get in God’s eyes and he was well off before the Satan intervened. After the catastrophes set against Job he almost lost all trust and faith in God. His friends unsuccessfully attempted to comfort and open his eyes to the truth. Eventually Elihu was the only one who could do so. Once Job opened his eyes, he begged forgiveness, promised redemption and understood the purpose of the test. As soon as God saw that Job had returned in his trust towards Him, “the Lord made him prosperous again and gave him twice as much as he had before.”(Job 42:10) The test had proved that even Job, as close to perfect as a man can get in God’s eyes, was breakable and the only person who could really understand was a youth. Obviously no man is perfect, we are all born into sin and we all sin thousands of times in our lives, but if we only open our eyes God will bless us and give us what we lose from our ignorance and evildoings. This is yet another side of God and a very frequent case that recurs throughout the Bible. God is forgiving. Job had everything, then lost everything, then was returned everything he had lost and more. God giveth, God taketh away, and God giveth back.

The Old And Ignorant. The Young And Wise- Job Chapters 11-37

Back and forth Job argued with his three friends. They attempted to dissuade Job from his lamentation and mourning but unsuccessful to do so. They come to him with their advice, “they set out from their homes and met together by agreement to go and sympathize with him and comfort him.”(Job 2:11) Job blamed God for his suffering. Was he not perfect in the eyes of the Lord? Did he not follow as much of the word said? He came to a conclusion that, “the arrows of the Almighty are in me, my spirit drinks in their poison; God’s terrors are marshaled against me.”(Job 6:4) None of his friends could do anything to defend God from Jobs curses and complaint. Watching all the time was Elihu, attentive and thoughtful he listened to the elders argue until finally his anger took over. He said to the elder men, “I am young in years, and you are old; that is why I was fearful, not daring to tell you what I know. I thought, Age should speak; advanced in years should teach wisdom. But it is the spirit in a man, the breath of the Almighty, that gives him understanding. It is not only the old who are wise, not only the aged who understand what is right.”(Job 32:6-9) Against the culture of his people he spoke out and gave the truth of God. The young boy was the only one among them who could win the argument with Job, who could dissuade his anger away from God and open his eyes to the truth. In culture today it is not as similar as then. We value the opinion of a younger as much as that of an elder. But sometimes they might be more unbelievable than what the elders say just because of the fact that they are younger. We should take from this that sometimes we should value the opinion of people, less in years, over the opinion of people, “advanced in years.”

God Giveth And God Taketh Away-Job Chapters 1-10

Before I read this I hadn’t really thought about what I would be willing to do if I were in their situations. Abraham had a similar effect, though, making me question my own faith and how far it would stand against torments and suffering. God favored Job and boasted about Job’s unmoving faith in God no matter what happened. He gave him everything, land, sheep, food, servants, money, a wife and children. God’s faith in him reached such an extent that God accepted Satan’s request and allowed him to test Job’s faith by destroying everything around “but on the man himself do not lay a finger.”(Job 1:12). Job did as God expected and held fast against the devil’s torments. So the devil requested that he might harm Job and bring upon him disease and sickness. God said, “Very well, then, he is in your hands; but you must spare his life.”(Job 2:6) Job suffered through all the way and almost broke to the devil’s will. On the verge of collapsing and giving in, a man, Eliphaz the Temanite reassured Job of his faith and strengthened his resolve. He told Job, “Blessed is the man whom God corrects; so do not despise the discipline of the Almighty.”(Job 5:17) Surely if me, or anyone I know were submitted to that kind of suffering, we very well might give in and throw God away as well as our faith in him. That just proves our need to strengthen our relationship with God not to just give in since it won’t be enough. When we truly deeply believe in God, we might someday be able to say that we could be as Job, steadfast, enduring, and forever strong in the face of evil and sin and death.

Selling His Soul

The man who delivered Saul’s people from the hands of destruction is the one man Saul hates most. David first came to know Saul through his work. Samuel anointed him with the Holy Spirit, then Saul declared him as his harpist, to sooth his soul since “the spirit of the Lord had departed from Saul, and an evil spirit from the Lord had troubled him.”(1 Samuel 16:14) David spent his time defending his sheep from the bears and wolves then playing his harp for the king of the nation. He was still a lowly, humble servant and was of no significance to the king. Although he was not beloved of Saul he found favor in God’s eyes and was given the chance to prove himself a significant character in the history of our world. After that battle and victory for David, Saul came to hate his servant whose only desire was to serve him and the Lord. Saul was “afraid of David, because the Lord was with him, and was departed from Saul” (1 Samuel 18:12) and he attempted to hide his fear with hatred and jealousy. David was the one man who had been capable of soothing him and lifting the evil spirit from his soul. This man that was so kind and loyal to his king was then betrayed. Saul let in the spirit and let it take control. David was persecuted and hunted down. Eventually Saul’s hatred proved to God his disloyalty and deservedness of destruction.

Barack Obama Acceptance Speech

Ethos:
“These are not whiners. They work hared, and they get back, and they keep going without complaint. These are the Americans I know!”
“These are my heroes, theirs are the stories that shape my life. On their behalf I intend to lead this country as President of the United States.”

Pathos:
“We love this country too much to let the next four years look too much like the last eight years.”
“Its time for us to change America and that’s why I am running for president of the United States.”

Logos:
“The record is clear, John McCain has voted with George Bush ninety percent of the time. Senator McCain likes to talk about judgment. But what does it say about your judgment when you think George Bush has been right more than ninety percent of the time.
“I will tap our natural gas reserves, invest in clean coal technology, and find ways to safely harness nuclear power.”
“I’ll invest 150 billion dollars in affordable, renewable sources of energy, wind power, solar power and a next generation of biofuels an investments that will lead to 5 million new jobs and pay well and can’t be outsourced.

The Bigger They Are The Harder They Fall-Samuel Chapters 16-31

Then, Goliath said, “Choose you a man for you, and let him come down to me. If he be able to fight with me, and to kill me, then will we be your servants: but if I prevail against him, and kill him, then shall ye be our servants, and serve us.” (Samuel 17:8-9) The giant had spoken. Towering over any Israelites, he challenged any one of them to present themselves and battle him to the death. Goliath was confident, maybe too confident. David, a humble Shepard, was the only man, not even, the only boy to summon the courage to battle the giant. Armed with only a sling and several stones, he hurled one straight at Goliath and struck him in the forehead. Before he could react Goliath stood struck dead by a stone from a young man, a boy! David took no credit for himself but praised the Lord and credited Him for delivering the Israelites from the hands of the Philistines. This concept of David and Goliath recurs throughout the Bible and literature. Some huge force rises up, casting a shadow upon some small doomed force, but out of certain death they prevail. David and Goliath, the battle of Thermopoly, Israel against the world, all are situations in which a petty force battles with a formidable, gigantesque force and prevails. David, claims to have had the power of God behind him and that, not his own strength is what prevailed. Saul had been the same, a favored one in God’s eyes, he conquered many lands and prevailed through God’s power but when he saw David’s success he became jealous. They sang of it, “Saul has slain his thousands, and David his ten thousands.”(Samuel 18:7) As his jealousy grew, he separated himself from God and eventually was struck by God himself. In the Bible the protagonists are those who have found favor in God’s eyes. If they keep the covenants with God and keep His commandments they will do well and come to be successful, but as they grow further and further from God the less they will be blessed and eventually lose everything.

Order and Chaos-Chapters 16-22

What civilization can survive without laws? Without rules? No civilization can do so. Without laws and rules there is no order. If we had no laws everything would be chaos. Every culture in history needs some set of rules and laws for their people. If there were no consequences for murder everyone would kill each other. It would be the same with stealing and all sorts of crimes that exist today would be allowed with no consequence. These rules set limitations and boundaries for people so that they know what they can and can’t do. Many of today’s laws come from the laws in the Bible as well as laws from Rome. Do not kill, steal, commit adultery. All are crimes and all have consequences. Cultures and civilizations require some essential parts in order to function. A set of laws is among those things as well as language. The law is what separates us from order and chaos. God gave the Israelites that set of laws. He called them the Ten Commandments. “These are the ordinances that you must set before them.”(Exodus 21:1) He gave laws about slaves, theft, injuries, crop protection, seduction, capital offenses, honesty, justice, laws protecting the vulnerable. He gave the people these laws so that they would follow them and know the difference between right and wrong. If they were to go against these laws they would go against God. Their sins were all punishable and God told them the consequences of each. Even though we know the difference between good and evil, since Adam ate the fruit, we still go against God. We sin and commit these crimes against Him. God knows this and He will not stop us. He gave us free will to do what we think is right and be judged for it in the end.

The Wrath Of God-Exodus Chapters 8-14

There were ten plagues sent to Egypt. The Pharaoh resisted as many as he could but eventually had no choice but to submit to God and to Moses. Throughout the Bible God demonstrates his power and ability. He creates the world, He creates man, He destroys the world, He plagues Egypt with ten terrible famines, diseases, and tormenting creatures. In the Old Testament God really is wrathful. God is not only loving and caring, He can be angry, vengeful, divine, good, loving caring, all are different aspects of the same person. God may destroy the world, then save it. He may rein fire and ash down on a city or He may send His only son, Christ Jesus to die on the cross to save us. Moses learned over time, more and more God’s power and unending capacity for good and the Pharaoh learned it the hard way. This nature can only be described as divine. Many polytheistic religions have one God to represent different aspects of nature, emotions, places, ideas. In Christianity, though, God represents each and every one of the aspects. He created everything, He is in everything.

The Burning Bush-Exodus Chapters 1-7

Faith is a topic most people try and avoid. As many have said, it is impossible to prove God exists. Is it not, also impossible to disprove His existence? Faith is the belief in an idea that may or may not be true. The pharaoh did not have faith in Moses or in God. The “Pharaoh’s heart hardened, and he did not listen to them”(Exodus 7:13) Moses also did not have faith in God, he asked if Aaron could speak in his stead, where he should have trusted God would attend to that problem as well. In Egypt Moses’ faith was well tested by the pharaoh and by his own people. They did not have faith in God and attacked Moses. They said, “May the lord take note of you and judge.”(Exodus 5:21) In the Latin bible Paul refers to the word “apologia”. What he meant by this was not that Christians would have to apologize for their faith but that we must defend it. He tells Christians to be ready whenever and wherever to defend your faith and defend God. Moses had to be ready, he displayed God’s power to the pharaoh who only countered with arcane magic. The pharaoh was ready to attack Moses as Moses was ready to defend it. When God appeared to Moses as the burning bush, Moses had an overwhelming feeling that told him it was divine. He had no way of proving the feeling but had to have faith in the Lord. Much of the arguments made against Christianity are aggressive, testing your own knowledge of the bible. It is always easier to attack something to defend it. Sometimes you may simply not know the answer, we cannot know God’s will nor His intentions. But we can support our faith with arguments countering the opponent’s. Atheists claim that to have faith in God is to have no reason. Faith is insanity some say. Then one could counter, to believe in Atheism one must believe that everything comes from nothing, intelligent beings can come from non-intelligent cells, information can come from randomness. In the end one may give in, like the pharaoh. Moses eventually displayed God’s awesome power and saved His people from their imprisonment.

A Promise is a Promise-Chapter 17-24

Throughout the Bible we can see how God interacts with mankind, unlike many other religion’s gods. In the story of Noah and the ark, God makes a covenant with Noah never to flood the Earth or wipe it out again. He used the rainbow as a sign of the covenant. “My covenant with you that never again will all the flesh be wiped out by the waters of a deluge; there will never again be a deluge to destroy the earth.”(Genesis 9:11)Then again we can see another covenant with Abraham. “This is My covenant, which you are to keep, between Me and you and your offspring after you: Every one of your males must be circumcised.”(Genesis 17:10) After these God makes more promises with mankind and man begins to do the same amongst each other. Abraham and Abilemech make a covenant. Abraham is given money, land, flock and Abraham blesses Abilemech’s household. No one can say they have kept every promise they have made, but God can. We can be absolutely sure of his honesty and fulfillment in his part of the bargain. Today many people form a sort of covenant although we call them simply a promise. Most cases one of the two people break their end of the bargain and end up paying for it. Throughout the bible God keeps his promises but it is us, mankind that breaks it. In Sodom and Gomorrah we became violent and evil, not even ten innocent, blameless people could be found. Later Moses goes up the mountain to speak with God and when he returns he find the people he just saved from slavery and imprisonment worshipping a golden calf instead of God who delivered them from their previous situation. We should learn from these examples that God keeps his promise with man no matter what. When we make a promise it is our responsibility to hold it up and keep it.

Its For Your Own Good- Genesis chapters 10-16

When all the people came together in the valley of Shinar they made an attempt to build “a city and a tower with its top in the sky.” (Genesis 11:4) At this time all the people of the world spoke the same language with the same vocabulary the same alphabet. God saw their attempt to create this obelisk and He decided it was better to stop their endeavor. He changed each of their languages confusing and scattering them throughout the world. Their progress halted and they were sent back to the beginning in which everyone now had their own culture with its own language. It divided the people and caused feuds between the people. When God scattered the world into groups, all with different languages, He did so for our own good. If they created this immense structure, man would have become arrogant and in their arrogance they would become corrupt and evil. This would eventually lead to our downfall or a war between proud people defending their own pride and nothing else. God kept His covenant with Noah and restrained himself from annihilating mankind as He had done before. Instead He separated us and caused our division. Many times parents tell their children things that are for their own good in the end. Most children have a different perspective and believe it is only against them and not possibly helping. If the parents had not done what they had the children might have been hurt or caused someone else to be hurt. This was the case for the tower of Babylon and God intervened for our own good.

The Fall of Man- Genesis Chapters 3-9

The fall of man is perhaps one of the most important events that recurs throughout literature. Of course most people do not believe in such things literally, as some others do, but it has influenced literature and culture in many ways. Before the fall, man was pure, innocent and without awareness of right and wrong. After the fall we knew the difference between the two and yet we continued on our path of sin. Even though Cain knew murder to be a sin, he slew his own brother in cold blood. Many pieces of literature such as Shakespeare or Gilgamesh, have references to the Bible and events that occurred even though they are not entirely believed in. Enkidu is a character who represented man before the fall, innocent and blind to right and wrong. Once he was introduced to the temple harlot he was changed. This event represented a version of the fall of man. In the bible man “ate it. Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they knew they were naked.”(Genesis 3:6) Once again man grew in arrogance and believed himself all powerful. As I said in my past blog, Power Corrupts, man became engulfed in his own pride and arrogance and became corrupt. Men took whichever and any number of wives that pleased them. They slew one another and stole and lied and broke everything that God stood for. This angered God because man was meant to be in the image of Him and ended up corrupt and evil. He destroyed what he had created only sparing Noah who was innocent compared to his fellow man. Along with man God sent all the animals of the world, in pairs, on the ark. This he did so that man would once again start anew and become what God had originally intended. He made the covenant with Noah not to destroy man or the world as he did again. If He had not made that promise we probably wouldn’t be here today. We are all corrupted nowadays. None of us have claim of innocence except babies who do not know any better. But it is God’s covenant with Noah that keeps us safe even though maybe we deserve his judgment.

Live Life to Its Fullest-God’s Secretaries Chapter 11

John Bois was a man who did not try or want to interact with society. He went his early life with his father learning Greek or Hebrew and in school where he continued his lessons. In his free time he wrote in Greek. Bois was so caught up in writings, in literature, and studies that he became a man that was unknown by most and alone. In his later years he eventually, had children two of which lived. “This perhaps someone you might admire; it is not a man you would love.” (p. 207 God’s Secretaries) Bois loved his work and enjoyed boasting about his collection of books. He worked to help translators who took all the credit for the work he had done for them. He was a strange man and on his death bed cried out “Oh my torment! my torment! my torment!”(p. 215 God’s Secretaries) He held these words inside for so long and they eventually burst from inside him. Sometimes we get caught up in work and things that we loose sight of the important things. We forget about life. We forget about family, about love, about happiness. Bois was a good man and his children loved him but he never really understood how to live. He spent all his life in an office looking at literature, writings, and scripture. He obviously lived in the literal sense but could he say he lived life to its fullest?

The Word of God-God’s Secretaries Chapter 10

In 1521 Martin Luther was excommunicated from the Roman Catholic Church for refusing to submit to the authority of the Emperor. At this time the people began to learn how to read and write instead of the church leaders being the only ones who had such knowledge. One of the first writings was the Bible so the people read it by themselves as well as listening to the church preach it. At this time many of these people such as Martin Luther began to question the church’s honesty and loyalty to God. What the people heard in the preaching was not consistent and had no support from the Bible. Where in the Bible did it say to pray to Mary, or to the saints? Where does the Bible tell us that we may be forgiven by a priest? Martin Luther made a list of 95 Theses and nailed them to the door. All were examples of the Catholic Church’s corruption and their attempt to empower the church and take advantage of the people. Some priests began to tell the people that if they gave the church money they would get a free ticket to heaven. Many Catholics believe that it is your acts that God uses to decide your place in the afterlife whereas the Scrooby Separatists and many Protestants believe differently. They say to “listen to the words of the Bible and you will be saved. Nothing else is necessary.”(p. 175 God’s Secretaries) These beliefs began to overthrow the Catholic Church and many of their people were lost to them. So the Church acted with violence to keep the Separatist groups from rising to power. They prohibited the preaching of their beliefs. The Separatists were persecuted and had three options if found guilty, “subscription to the rule of the church, imprisonment, of exile.”(p. 177 God’s Secretaries) These acts of violence have been sewn into the history of mankind and of the church, a major argument between Christians and Atheists. No one has all the answers and no one can know God’s will but I believe that corruption and self empowerment is definitely not what God intended for us to do.

Adolescent Students 1

In dealing with students on the high-school level - that is, the second, third, and fourth year of high school - we must bear in mind that to some degree they are at a difficult psychological stage, generally called adolescence. Students at this level are likely to be confused mentally, to be subject to involuntary distractions and romantic dreaminess. They are basically timid or self-conscious, they lack frankness and are usually very sensitive but hate to admit it. They are motivated either by great ambition, probably out of all proportion to their capabilities, or by extreme laziness caused by the fear of not succeeding or attaining their objectives. Fundamentally they want to be kept busy but they refuse to admit it. They are frequently the victims of earlier poor training, and this makes every effort doubly hard. They are usually willing to work, but they hate to work without obtaining the results they think they should obtain. Their critical faculties are beginning to develop and they are critical of their instructors and of the materials they are given to learn. They are beginning to feel the pressure of time; and although they seldom say so, they really want to be consulted and given an opportunity to direct their own affairs, but they need considerable guidance.

Why Am I Guilty? Chapter 6 Gods Secretaries

In this chapter of God’s secretaries we can see how King James handles the problem of the government versus religion. Many of the Catholics disagreed with most aspects of James’ government and started to rebel against it. King James handled it well. He did not respond in an aggressive manner, but in a way that would ensure as little violence as possible. Somewhat ineffective, since acts of terrorism and uprisings did occur. James’ attempted this peaceful manner which showed the people a side of their king, one who would protect them in the best ways possible. Sometimes it is not always best to use aggression to make a point. This can lead to a rule of fear and some would say tyranny. In these situations the worst that could happen is that people die and grudges are held against each other.Many of the Catholics were being held suspect with no evidence whatsoever to back the case up. The man accused of the crime was obviously not guilty but the death sentence was carried out in any case. The judge knew this man was “a good man killed for no reason.” (p. 116) These scenarios are very difficult to handle but must be dealt with anyhow.

Power Corrupts

King James, possibly the most powerful man in the world in the time he lived. He was ruler of one of the most powerful nations. Being crowned king of England, James gained a new sense of self confidence in him. This is a good quality in leaders, to be sure of themselves and confident on their political positions. But this self confidence can so easily turn into arrogance which is never a good thing in any case. Abraham Lincoln said, “Nearly all men can stand adversity, but if you want to test a man's character, give him power.” This means that a man can live through any catastrophe and “suck it up”, but if you give a man power or money it will show his true colors. A humble person might not even accept the power or they might give it away to those who really need it. A greedy person will keep the money for him/herself and through that become arrogant and self centered, thinking themselves above the law and everyone else. He does not display much arrogance but in some cases he sets the laws aside. “What can have possessed James? Perhaps he was rattled by the presence of a thief in the midst of all this springtime hope and optimism? Maybe he assumed the English king, so much more powerful the Scottish, could from time to time behave with autocratic authority?”(p.14) In this case he might have been confused but it is an example of what he was capable of. I do not believe this was an act of superiority or arrogance, but a misunderstanding. This would be a huge problem if it were an act of this superiority, especially when found in a leader such as King James. With the amount of power and influence he has over the world he could either send it into chaos or bring it back to order. King James, at least so far in the reading, has not caused the world any pain. He gave to the poor and brought some prosperity to the world, but the longer you remain in that power the easier it is to be corrupted. It would be very difficult to escape from that temptation of power if you in his situation. He has many influences that can either send him to one side or the other. His wife and children, his advisors, his friends and allies, all could influence him to do things to of for the people that he might or might not have wanted from a king were he in their position.

Gods Secretaries

It seems to me that the King James Bible was a translation, commissioned by the king himself, of the Holy Bible. It was written and published not by one man but by a group of scholars, unknown to historians. We can infer who they were, but only that, we cannot know who they really were, not even their names. They fought with each other to determine the exact meaning of each verse, of each chapter, until coming to a decision all agreed upon. This translation is said to be “the greatest work in prose ever written in English.” “It is not the poetry of a single mind, not the effusion of a singular vision, nor even the product of a single moment, but the child of an entire culture stretching back to the great Jewish poets and storytellers of the Near Eastern Bronze Age.” The book was not written by those who manipulate the text for their own benefits, but in honesty and a simplicity that give power to it. It imposes an authority, order that people can follow and believe. This translation took time, years and generations to complete and finalize. It is said that this translation “dethroned the Pope, and enthroned the Bible.” This was a somewhat hard piece to comment on, but I believe this is what we are supposed to retrieve from the reading of the preface.

The Crack in the Wall-Bulfinch’s Mythology Assignment 9

When we have hope, for anything, and it is lost, it can devastate us into the opposite direction we were hoping to go. In the story of Pyramus and Thisbe, Pyramus is sent into a state of devastation, shock, and overwhelming sadness. Upon seeing Thisbe’s veil covered in blood, it was as if he had watched her die. When his hope had been lost he immediately took his own life. Thisbe seeing him dead took her own life. This shows how dangerous hope can be. If we hope for something and it comes true, we are overwhelmed with happiness yet when that hope dies we are overwhelmed with sadness that can bring harm to ourselves and others. Pyramus act was harmful to both him and the one he loved. They both died for nothing, because they thought their only salvation from their dreadful sad lives had been lost. These same stories can also be seen in Romeo of Juliet. Romeo believing Juliet dead kills himself, which in turn leads to Juliet’s demise. Hope can lead to both great things and terrible things. I may be wrong but this myth could be telling us that hope is alright but if you put everything into it with no way out it may lead to terrible consequences. These myths, although being hyperboles of reality, are all true. We see these things every day, in our lives, in other’s lives, in situations we may be in and if you just take a minute to think about them it may determine the outcome of that situation.

The Price of a Glance-Bulfinch’s Mythology Assignment 8

After all his labor and all his work that one glance cost him everything. He was so persistent and determined but his sloppiness and forgetfulness caused him to ruin all of his hard work. Told not to look back into the underworld at the price of losing Eurydice once again, in anxiousness he stole a glance and looked back toward the realm of Hades and Eurydice was taken away once again. He had a perfect easy chance to save his love from death and he ruined it with that glance. Many people in modern days have these opportunities laid out in front of them but throw it away because of their pride or ignorance or, like Orpheus, anxiety. For example, some people have parents who are very wealthy and lay opportunities in front of their children, but their children in pride and ignorance throw it away. They think themselves better than everybody else and ruin their lives. These stories tell us both what we should do but in many cases such as this, they tell us what not to do. I believe this is a very important message. The consequences of this could be minimal but they could also be catastrophic. People have opportunities others could never dream of and when it comes their time to actually step up to it they cower in fear. Orpheus did not cower in some fear of death but in his sloppiness he failed all the same. He did win her back the first time but the deal was made and Orpheus did not keep his part of it. I have a good successful life laid out in front of me, all I must to is step up and take hold of it, and that’s what I intend to do.

The Chariot of Fire-Bulfinch’s Mythology Assignment 7

Unheeding his own father’s advice, Phateon was struck down by the god of gods. Apollo warned his son many times of the dangers of driving the chariot of fire. “It is not honor but destruction you seek. Why do you hang around my neck and still entreat me? You shall have it if you persist -the oath is sworn and must be kept -but I beg you to choose more wisely.”(p.50) On certain occasions in which my father or mother give me advice or input I will ignore what they say. When I do this it usually ends up in disaster and when I do heed their advice, I come out of the situation unscathed and happy with the outcome. In modern day life it is seen as “cool” to ignore one's parents and instead be independent. This is an illusion that can lead to great consequences depending on the circumstances. This story is an example of what people, mainly children, should not do. If we follow Phaeton’s example we could get seriously hurt and the consequences could be disastrous. Sometimes I do realize the logic in my parents advice nut out of my own pride decide not to listen. My own idea being stupid leads me in the opposite direction I want to go.

Pre AP/AP Student Contract

I, Ethan Metzler, hereby understand and will abide by the Pre-AP/AP (Print your name)Academy’s expectations, obligations, and admission/drop policy outlined below with respect to my admission status and standing in the Pre-AP/AP Course, Pre AP English, The QUESTions.(Print the name of the Pre-AP/AP Course)Pre-AP/AP Academy Expectations;• Maintain Acceptable GPA,• Motivated and Positive,• Responsible and Dedicated Work Ethic,• Attend Opportunity Day and/or Additional Review Classes, • Complete AP College Board Exam,• Sign Pre-AP/AP Student Contract. Pre-AP/AP Academy Admission/Drop Policy;• First Progress Report with Teacher’s Signed Approval…receive no course credit,• End of First Semester with Teacher’s Signed Approval…receive only partial course credit for grade of 6.0+. No partial credit will be awarded for any grade below 6.0,• Students who Drop Pre-AP/AP Courses or who Do Not take the College Board AP Exam will have the Pre-AP/AP Designation for that course removed from their transcript and they will not receive any grade or GPA enhancement awarded for taking that Pre-AP/AP course.Please note that at any time during the school year if the teacher deems that you are not meeting the expectations above for any or all reasons, then that teacher will require that you sign an additional academic probation contract. Your admission status and/or removal from the above identified Pre-AP Course will then be re-assessed based on your abiding by the academic probation contract signed and agreed to by you and the respective Pre-AP/AP Teacher.Student Signature of Agreement, Ethan Metzler Date: September23, 2008

Respect and Honor Deserved-Bulfinch’s Mythology Assignment 6

In the myth of Hercules, the half god half mortal is tasked with twelve jobs, the “Twelve Labors of Hercules.” Each seemingly impossible to any man were easily conquered by the hero. Each task Hercules won victory, through his determination and discipline he vanquished the beasts set against him, unraveled the puzzles that would have baffled any other man. Hercules, I believe, was meant to be an example that we are meant to take after. Although everything he did was not perfect, he accomplished the tasks he was given, thoroughly and efficiently. Mankind is not perfect, everyone makes mistakes, but Hercules was always determined to finish the task. He did not complain or seek to avoid the tasks but instead took them on with good spirits and gained victory over all of them. Through these labors Hercules won the respect of many gods and thousands of men. He was on the brink of death but was redeemed by the gods, set in the stars, equal to a god. I saw a great similarity between Gilgamesh, the king of Uruk and Hercules. Both were part god, superior to man, yet they made errors that lead to their own demise. Hercules made many poor choices and decisions throughout the myth as did Gilgamesh. In a way both were self centered believing themselves immortal and realizing their mortality. In the end both gained honor and respect from the gods and from the people of the world. Both of their names live on today, through their acts and stories.

Temptation-Bulfinch’s Mythology Assignment 5

The story of Cupid and Psyche is yet another reflection of man, our nature. Unable to contain her curiosity she unveiled Cupid as being the “monster” and was stripped of her marriage. Her sisters tempted her with their words. “Psyche resisted these persuasions as well as she could but they did not fail to have their effect on her mind, and when her sisters were gone, their words and her own curiosity were too strong for her to resist.”(p. 104) They instilled suspicion and took away her faith in Cupid. Then again she opened the box which she was told to keep sealed under any circumstances. Temptation in both cases led to her own suffering. Mankind has always been susceptible to temptation and curiosity which always leads to our own defeat. Even in religious cases we are defeated by our own hand. In the book of Genesis, Adam and Eve give in to temptation and their own temptation. They eat the fruit from the tree of knowledge of good and evil, Mankind falls. “No! You will not die, the serpent said to the women. In fact, God knows that when you eat it your eyes will be opened and you will be like God, knowing good and evil. Then the women saw that the tree was good for food and delightful to look at, and that it was desirable for obtaining wisdom. So she took some of its fruit and ate it; she also gave some to her husband, who was with her, and ate it.”(Genesis 3:4) The serpent might represent our own temptation, the fruit our desire, and their act of eating it leads to our fall, the fall of man. It is easier to give in to sin than it is to throw it away. But to throw it away is still what we must do. If we give into our own desire and temptation it may do great harm to ourselves and other as Psyche caused her own suffering and that of Cupid.

The Cost of Flight-Bulfinch's Mythology Assignment 4

In the myth concerning the story of Daedelus and his son Icarus we can derive another human flaw and error. Daedelus and his son Icarus were trapped in a tower built by king Minos. Daedelus being somewhat of a genius pondered over a means of escape from the prison. Both the sea and land were well guarded and watched but the air was free. So he constructed two pairs of wings using; feathers big and small, wax and string, one pair for himself and the other for his son. They practiced and when it was time to escape Daedelus instructed his son not to fly to high because the sun’s heat would melt the wax, and not to fly to low because the water would dampen the feathers. They took flight and Icarus followed his father. But as they continued on their way Icarus gained more and more confidence. He soared much too high and the wax melted causing him to plummet towards the crashing waves. He was lost to the sea and the feathers floated above the water where he had fallen. Human nature is at times arrogant, when we gain too much confidence in ourselves; some are pressured to go further until a point where it can become dangerous. This myth teaches us to be mindful of our situation, and to be cautious of the circumstances we find ourselves in. Icarus was careless and died because of it. If we are careless it could easily lead to our death, although more probable, to an injury to ourselves or those around us. It is best to be catious and aware of the situations and circumstances that we find ourselves in so that we may keep ourselves safe as well as those around us.

The Reflection in the Water-Bulfinch's Mythology Assignment 3

Narcissus is a myth that is the perfect example of mankind. Narcissus, a youth whom Echo so desperately loved was only interested in himself, in his own personal gain, in his own image. So much that it resulted in his death. We are narcissistic, self centered and selfish. This story is a reflection of our own image, when mankind looks into the silver stream they see Narcissus, they see themselves. We concern ourselves with only ourselves and our self gain that we end up ignoring the important things that are calling out to us. We are so distracted by our own “beauty” that we miss certain opportunities and things that otherwise could have helped us. “He stooped down to drink, and saw his own image in the water; he thought it was some beautiful water spirit living in the fountain. He stood gazing with admiration,” (pg. 126) this is the kind of race we have “evolved” and turned into. So many of us are that youth, staring at our own reflection, ignoring other things, ignoring people and ignoring ideas. This myth is telling us that there is more to life than just us. There is nature, other people, ideas, a whole world of opportunities that we may pursue. Narcissus missed his chance and died because of it; I’m not saying we will all die but I know it will not end well.

Arrogance Leads to Downfall- Bulfinch’s Mythology Assignment 2

In the story of Bellerophon and the Chimera, I learned of yet another lesson. The message could be interpreted in several ways and different people might have different perspectives. Again we cannot take these stories literally. In the city of Lycia, king Iobates is devastated by a great monster. The Chimera is a great monster with the head of a lion and a tale like a snake and a goat in the middle, fire bursting from its mouth, destroying the city. He is desperate for a hero, someone to vanquish the evil. His son in law then sends someone who fits the picture. Bellerophon comes to the city and requests a chance to defeat the Chimera. The king’s son in law also sent with Bellerophon a letter giving recommendations for Bellerophon as a great hero. The letter also proposed that the king kill Bellerophon after he was used. Now whenever someone is in possession of a message that contains something life threatening to them. So the king planned to use Bellerophon to destroy the Chimera and then kill his guest. This is a characteristic that many humans have. Most people take advantage others and then throw them away. So Bellerophon tamed the winged horse Pegasus and gained a victory over the monster. The king threw all the dangers he had at Bellerophon but he conquered them all with ease. “The hero was a special favorite of the gods.” But soon he became arrogant and thought he could fly into heaven with his great horse. Zues was greatly angered by Bellerophon’s arrogance so he sent a gadfly to bite Pegasus who threw down his rider. Bellerophon roamed for the rest of his life lame and blind. His arrogance led to his downfall. He was ungrateful for his abilities and gifts. The story teaches us to be humble and thankful for what we have or it may lead to a bad end.

The Tales of Gods- Belfinch’s Mythology Assignment 1

Each and every one of these tales had a message written beneath. We obviously cannot take these stories literally, but we can analyze them and find their deeper meaning. For example I found that when Prometheus gave fire to man and Pandora opened the box with all the evil, “Prometheus, who, with the aid of Minerva, went up to heaven, and lighted his torch at the chariot of the sun, and brought down fire to man”, “Pandora was seized with an eager curiosity to know what this jar contained; and one day she slipped off the cover and looked in. Forthwith there escaped a multitude of plagues for hapless man,—such as gout, rheumatism, and colic for his body, and envy, spite, and revenge for his mind.” These represented the fall of man, our descent into evil and sin. It may also represent that all our actions have consequences. These stories should be learned and interpreted well, lest we perceive their messages poorly.
The story of Apollo and Daphne was also written for the hidden message. Apollo insulted Cupid and therefore was cursed. He was struck with the arrow of love and Daphne the opposite, this forced Apollo to forever chase after Daphne which eventually led of her death. “He took his stand on a rock of Parnassus, and drew from his quiver two arrows of different workmanship, one to excite love, the other to repel it.”
The story of Midas tells us to be careful what you wish for, it might turn around into something you didn’t expect or something terrible. He wished that everything he touched would turn to gold, and when he tried to eat it became gold, when he touched his daughter she turned to gold. He believed it was a blessing but it turned into a curse. “Then he found to his dismay that whether he touched bread, it hardened in his hand; or put a morsel to his lips, it defied his teeth. He took a glass of wine, but it flowed down his throat like melted gold.”
The Sphinx was a telling of a man Oedipus, also known as Oedipus Rex. His father was told that his son would kill him when he grew into an adult so the king gave the task of killing his son to a farmer. The farmer left him to die and instead of doing so a poor man found him. One day, when Oedipus was older he unknowingly encountered his father. He refused to stand aside for the king, his father; this led to a fight and eventually the king’s death. The king’s unwillingness to do the job himself was his own demise.
The fifth story I read was that of Perseus and Medusa. Medusa was once a beautiful maiden but in her own arrogance she was turned into a monster. She insulted Minerva and then had her beauty turned into horror. “She was once a beautiful maiden whose hair was her chief glory, but as she dared to vie in beauty with Minerva, the goddess deprived her of her charms and changed her beautiful ringlets into hissing serpents.”
The final story of Orion, the hunter, I believe attempted to tell us of jealousy. All mankind feels jealousy or envy at one time or another. Apollo was so jealous of Orion he caused Diana to accidentally murder Orion. “One day, observing Orion wading through the sea with his head just above the water, Apollo pointed it out to his sister and maintained that she could not hit that black thing on the sea. The archer-goddess discharged a shaft with fatal aim.”
Each and every one of these tales has a message or lesson that we can learn from. All are human defects that we all experience, these stories teach us about them so that we might be able to avoid them from time to time.

Not the Way he Planned- Tablets X and XI

Man has not always been corrupted, evil, and sinful; man once was innocent and good. Gilgamesh is not good or innocent; he is evil, sinful, corrupted. He makes mistakes that cost him dearly. We are Gilgamesh. No man can say they are innocent, they are without flaw. We all sin; we are all corrupted by society. Once we were innocent as Enkidu in the wild, but now we are guilty. Even so we can do good things every once in a while, we can have good intentions, kind thoughts and actions. Gilgamesh could also do such things "Urshanabi, this plant is a plant against decay! By which a man can attain his survival. I will bring it to Uruk-Haven, and have an old man eat the plant” He names the plant “The old man is young again”. Before thinking of him he thinks of others, he was not corrupted at this moment, he was not selfish, he was good and he thought of the old man first. I believe man can once again become good, have kind thoughts and actions. We do not need to be always selfish. The sinful, evil way is easier than the good way; all we have to do is try just a little harder than we have been and we might achieve it. Everyone has the capacity to be good, some just lack the motivation and confidence. Gilgamesh achieved his goal, not the way he had planned it, but his strife was not in vain. He achieved his immortality in a way, he lives on today through the stone tablets he wrote, through his legacy, and his story he lives on. So to can we achieve our goals.

Nature and Mankind

Gilgamesh is a story that presents a man’s life, his quests, and his search for immortality. In the epic a man named Enkidu is presented. He is the foil of Gilgamesh. Enkidu is born and lives in the wild. He roams with the animals, drinks where they drink, hunts where they hunt. Enkidu himself is like an animal. In the story Enkidu represents the “Leavers” as told in the book Ishmael by Daniel Quinn, and Gilgamesh represents the “Takers”. Enkidu also represents mankind in its creation, born in the wild, in nature. The “gods” created mankind as a part of nature not as something that destroys nature, but in the Epic of Gilgamesh mankind is doing exactly that, cutting down the cedar forests, killing nature itself. But man, although he may not realize it, depends on nature just as nature depends on man. We provide gases for the trees and they give us air to breath, animals provide us with food and we provide shelter and a home for some of them. If we were to destroy all of nature we would be destroying ourselves in the process. At one time we were Enkidu, innocent as animals, without knowing good or bad. Some refer to this characteristic as being the “noble savage”, almost superior to evolved humans because of their innocence. But as we evolved we became as Gilgamesh; corrupted, selfish, arrogant, and prideful. We destroy the places we used to call home and by doing so we destroy ourselves.

The Faraway-Gilgamesh Tablets X and XI

As Gilgamesh reaches the land over the Mashu Mountains he encounters an old woman in her house on the beach. She counsels him to turn back, this woman could be a metaphor of doubt, keeping us from striving on, from continuing, but Gilgamesh ignored it and searched for the ferryman. The ferryman was the only one able to cross the great sea and the ocean of death, Gilgamesh built a boat to travel it without being harmed. He persisted until he encountered his ancestor. Gilgamesh questioned “the Faraway”, who advised Gilgamesh not to be foolish. The part of us that is careful and attentive, ever watchful for danger, for sin, for evil. Utnapishtim then told him of his own story, what had befallen him. He told him of “the Flood” and the god’s desire to wipe out man kind for the greater good. And like all stories of “the flood” his involved one man being spared. In this case Ea spares Utnapishtim. We sinned and sinned until soon it became unbearable for the gods. They wipe us all out and begin anew, correcting the flaw and perfecting us. But again we fall into sin and the cycle continues. Enlil had not planned for one to be spared but it was the “all knowing” Ea that decided it was the right choice. Should we be spared, or are we just naturally evil and should we be destroyed? Are we worth saving; are there good people in the world truly attempting to make a difference to save it? How can we know? It is above us, and up to the “gods” to decide whether or not we should live or die.

The Search for Immortality-Tablets 8 and 9

As Enkidu closed his eyes for the last time Gilgamesh mourned, all of Uruk mourned for days on end, they honored him in every way. At the funeral ceremony Gilgamesh spoke to and of the great man. Of his feats, his personality, his epic. This is symbolic for any passing hero, all the people the hero had protected mourn. If a lowly man who worked in the field would have died there would have been nothing but a small funeral including only his close family. But a hero, a giant passing on, is an event in which all the people of the city or village or even country would mourn. As Gilgamesh mourned he questioned his fate. “I am going to die!--am I not like Enkidu?!”, why had he been spared and innocent Enkidu sentenced to death. This got Gilgamesh thinking, was there a way to be exempt from every mortal man’s fate. Could he be exempt from death? There began his search for immortality, to escape human weakness, escape the bonds that restrain us. He traveled far and wide to seek his ancestor and ask him of a way to attain immortality. He wanted to know all and be apart from the rest of mankind. Dangers around every corner confronted him and yet he kept on, persistent and strong he surpassed even the most dangerous threats the great mashu mountains threw at him. After all he is “two thirds a god”.

A New World

Hero Epic- First Draft

My hero epic takes place in the colonization of America and the war against the Indians. The chief’s sun and hero of the story is Redskin is tasked with the job of rallying all neighboring clans to the aid of his father, the chief of the Cherokee clan. At first he is eager to do battle with the invaders but as the story develops he realizes the time of his people is coming to an end and a new world is coming.

Values:
1.Courage
2. Honor
3. Respect
4. Persistence
5. Responsibility
6. Faith
7. Loyalty

Comas 3

1. The problems involved in this operation are, I think, numerous.

2. Celene,who does not usually tell anyone what she feels, said she didn't want to go to the dance.

3. To get tickets for some Broadway musicals, one has to order three months in advance.

4. Listening to the radio, Jun heard an announcement that Spangler, his own dog, was lost.

5. I used to live at 16689 Sutton Avenue, Milpitas, California, but we have since moved to 1895 Holland Way, Dubuque, Iowa.

6. The Valley of the Moon, the name of a section in Napa County, California, is the heart of the state's wine producing area.

7. Chris did not see how he could organize, write, and proofread this paper in only two hours.

8. By the pilings of the old pier, I found four starfish, a clam, and a sea anemone.

9. Yes, Helen did mention that all three of you were coming for lunch.

10. I believe, therefore, that fraternities are good influences on a college campus.

Comas 2

Choose the correctly punctuated versions of the phrases or clauses from the drop down lists in order to complete the sentences below.

1. There was no question that John's painting, a huge, colorful, and ugly mural, was the worst entry in the art exhibit.

2. Werner von Braun, Willy Ley, and Edward Teller, noted authorities in the field of rocket development, have done much to guide the missile program of the United States.

3. Mr. Cready's ability to say the wrong thing at the wrong time is, I believe, amazing.

4. Running around the house, the dog was abruptly stopped by a fence.

5. If the opposition should win,our candidate would never have any political future.

6. Gracefully, lightly, and daintily, the ballerina moved across the stage.

7. Glamour, the woman's fashion magazine, recently incorporated with Charm , another fashion journal.

8. Joe was born on May 7, 1955, and his best friend was born exactly two months later on July 7, 1955.

9. Mr. and Mrs. Kwon ,my parents' best friends, sat in front of us at the football game.

10. November 11, 1918, the armistice ending World War I was signed.

Comas 3

Add commas as needed in the sentences below. On the line to the left of each sentence, write the number of the appropriate comma rule. If the sentence is correct as it is, write C on the line and refer to the appropriate rule in parentheses after the sentence. You may wish to review our handout on Using Commas
__c__ He left the scene of the accident and tried to forget that it had happened.

__3__ Oil, which is lighter than water, rises to the surface.

__6__ Madame de Stael was an attractive, gracious lady.

__1__ Nice is a word with many meanings, and some of them are contradictory.

__c__ The contractor testified that the house was completed and that the work had been done properly.
__c__ Some people refuse to go to the zoo because of pity for creatures that must live in small cages.
__c___ Taxicabs that are dirty are illegal in some cities.

__5__ The closet contained worn clothes, old shoes, and dirty hats.

__c__ The uninvited guest wore a dark blue tweed suit.

__2__ After surviving this ordeal, the trapper felt relieved.

__3__ Mark Twain's early novels, I believe, stand the test of time.

__9__ December 7, 1941, will never be forgotten.

__7__ The field was safe enough, wasn't it?

__9__ Write the editor of the Atlantic 8 Arlington Street, Boston, Massachusetts 02116.

_10__ He replied, "I have no idea what you mean."

__2__ After a good washing and grooming, the pup looked like a new dog.

__2__ Because of their opposition to institutions that force creatures to live in captivity, some
people refuse to go to the zoo.

__c__ Men who are bald are frequently the ones who are the most authoritative on the subject
of baldness.

__3__ Vests, which were once popular, have been out of vogue for several years.

__2__ As a celestial goddess, she regulated the course of the heavenly bodies and controlled the
alternating seasons.

__c__ I hope that some day he will learn how to be polite.

Building up Enkidu

“He is the mightiest in the land, his strength is as mighty as the meteorite”
“You are beautiful, Enkidu, you are become like a god.”
"How the youth resembles Gilgamesh-- tall in stature, towering up to the battlements over the wall!”
“he has seen fighting, has experienced battle. Enkidu will protect the friend, will keep the comrade safe.”
From these quotes I have derived several words that I believe describe Enkidu.

1. Strong
2. Mighty
3. Beautiful
4. Youthful
5. Tall
6. Loyal

Writers Workshop Excercises 2 and 3

1. How can a person find patriotism in a local night club? Well, it did not take me too long. About four weeks ago in a little night club in Louisville, Kentucky, a couple of my friends, Rick and Lon, the duo who were providing the entertainment that night for the club, starting with a patriotic song about America.

2. For the past twenty years, the Survey Research Center at the University of Michigan, has been measuring the level of Americans' trust and confidence in their politicians, quasi-political trust, and confidence in their political institutions and their leaders. "Political" being all levels of government, and "quasi-political" churches, labor unions, large professional/business associations, educational institutions, and the like. The result is that a very sharp decline has taken place every year since 1964.
3. For 200 years Americans believed in better jobs, better homes, a better life for one's children. This confidence no longer exists. Polls now indicate that fewer Americans who feel they are better off today than they were five years ago. A public-opinion analysis group has found that large numbers of Americans, at some times and in some places, see themselves as lower on the ladder. Adding worse living conditions and anticipation of further decline over the next five years. (dependent clause)
For 200 years Americans believed in better jobs, better homes, and a better life for one's children. This confidence no longer exists. Polls now indicate that fewer Americans feel they are better off today than they were five years ago. A public-opinion analysis group has found that large numbers of Americans, at some times and in some places, see themselves as lower on the ladder with worse living conditions and anticipation of further decline over the next five years.

4. Well, in looking at the picture at the left you see an old lady. She has a very funny look on her face, as if she's lonely and just wants to be left alone. She also looks as if she has seen a lot and experienced lots of things.

5. A president is an appointed leader, someone who is a decision maker in the executive branch of our government. This doesn't necessarily mean that the person the people elect is capable. It just hopefully assumes according to his past record as a politician, over the years' buildup of experience and handling situations.
6. My brother was always my best friend when I was a child, especially as we two were almost alone in the world, we lived with our old grandmother in a little house, almost a shack, in the country. Whenever I think of him now I see a solemn, responsible boy, a boy too old for his years who looked out for me no matter what. Once there was a bully, John Anson, who looked enormous to me though he was probably an average twelve-year-old. John had it in for me because he liked Littice Grant, who liked me. He decided to beat me up right before her eyes, I was lucky my brother came by. He didn't interfere any, he just stood there. Somehow though his presence gave me confidence. I licked the stuffing out of John Anson. If my brother hadn't been there, I don't think I could have done it.

Fated to Die- Gilgamesh tablets 6 and 7

Tablet six is also crucial to the development of the story. Gilgamesh upon changing into his royal garments encounters Ishtar who wishes to be his wife. He denies her and that act of defiance is the catalyst of his demise as well as his companion’s. She goes into a rage and sends her monster against him with the consequence of a seven year drought in Uruk. This was a selfish act solely to enact her revenge upon the king. But once again the companions triumph over her evil. They return home to Uruk and are praised for their victories. The people love them for the good they have done for them. Gilgamesh and Enkidu are the heroes to the people of Uruk. I believe a hero is a person who takes the initiative to do what is right. In this case it is the companions. "Who is the bravest of the men? Who is the boldest of the males! Gilgamesh is the bravest of the men, the boldest of the males!” But upon return to the kingdom the gods hold council to decide what may become of the companions, Enlil wishing them dead and Shamash wishing that they be kept safe. Then Enkidu falls ill and laid in his bed for ten days. He has dreams of a man who would take him from the land of the living take him from Gilgamesh and all he loved and take him to the land of the dead. “There appeared a man of dark visage-- his face resembled the Anzu, his hands were the paws of a lion, his nails the talons of an eagle! -- he seized me by my hair and overpowered me.” In the dream Enkidu has, he describes death; the man who overpowers him and takes him to the land of the dead. His fate is sealed by the Gods and he has no power over them. He knows what is coming for him and although he may do everything humanly possible to change his fate, it comes closer and closer. I believe fate is the idea that this story is based upon. Enkidu is fated to die.

The Giant Slain-Gilgamesh tablets 4 and 5

These tablets are of great significance to the story as we read further on. In the beginning of tablet four Enkidu and Gilgamesh embark on a journey to slay the giant monster Humbaba. Gilgamesh sets out explaining to his mother and the council that he will fight many unusual enemies, things he has never fought before. “He will face fighting as he has not known, and will travel on a road that he does not know!” I believe that these enemies and fightin are not like the physical fighting we are used to. They say he does not know suck fightin and Gilgamesh has fought other men and people. Therefore it makes sense that they are referring to an enemy that is not a man or beast. I believe they speak of death, plague, famine, sin, hunger, evil itself. And when the two companions arrive at the cedar forest and prepare to battle Humbaba they know swords and physical strength will have no affect on the evil thing. “Humbaba's roar is a Flood; his mouth is Fire, his breath Death! He can hear any rustling in his forest 100 leagues away! Who would go down into his forest! Who among even the Igigi gods can confront him?In order to keep the Cedar safe, Enlil assigned him as a terror to human beings." These are examples of a foe unlike anything we know. How can we triumph over all these things these powers that surpass our own. But Enkidu and Gilgamesh defeated Humbaba, they destroyed him and when he pleaded for his life Gilgamesh did what Humbaba would have done in his position. He finished the evil off, once and for all.

Two Thirds God, One Third Man-Gilgamesh Tablets 1,2,3

The Epic of Gilgamesh is the telling of a man, a king who loses his best friend then searches for a way to escape death, searches for immortality. Gilgamesh was born in the city of Uruk. The gods created Gilgamesh with a perfect body. Shamash, the sun, gave him beauty; Adad the god of the storms gave him courage. His beauty was greater than all others like “a great wild bull.” Two thirds of him was god and the other third man. He was born king of Uruk. He was mightiest of men, none could surpass his might. The people loved him and he protected them. He set out to find men that could match or even surpass his strength but none could withstand him. But there was a problem; he had no heirs to provide for the kingdom. The people although they loved him at the same time he was a disturbance in the city of Uruk. The people of Uruk prayed to their gods for help and the gods created a man to match Gilgamesh’s strength, his equal in every way. So Enkidu was brought to the world, “born in the grasslands.” He roamed with the animals, ate and drank with them. They enjoyed his company. Then Gilgamesh had two dreams, he consulted his mother to interpret them and she told him that he would have a “friend, and a counselor.” But when Gilgamesh heard of the man supposedly stronger than him, he was furious. He sent a woman to the place where Enkidu drank from the lake to lure him into the city so he could prove his might. When Enkidu heard of Gilgamesh he became envious of him and wished to defeat him. He marched into Uruk and the people praised him, they gathered around him and kissed his feet. Gilgamesh was in the streets going to a bridal bedroom as was custom for the king. As he neared the building Enkidu stepped out and challenged him. They wrestled and fought, destroying the gate posts to the house. Eventually Gilgamesh threw Enkidu to the ground and Enkidu said to him, “There is not another like you in the world. Ninsun who is as strong as a wild ox in the byre, she was the mother who bore you, and now you are raised above all men, and Enlil has given you the kingship, for your strength surpasses the strength of men.” After these words they became friends and Gilgamesh’s dream came true. They stayed friends for a long time and the kingdom was well. But one day Gilgamesh heard news of a monster impeding progress in the woods. It was Humbaba the guardian of the forest sent by Enlil, the father of the gods. Humbaba was a monster, a giant, “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 the wild heifer stirs in the forest, though she is sixty leagues distant he hears her.” Gilgamesh wished to challenge the beast but the council thought that Enkidu should go with him since he knew the way. Enkidu didn’t like the idea but agreed.

Where Are We Going? Ishmael chapter 13

Where are we going, one of the three questions that were asked to us at the beginning of this course. This last chapter, thirteen, was extremely short and expected. The session was over. The pupil was ready to take on the world and teach it what Ishmael had taught him. He would tell them “where they are going” what their purpose was, all that Ishmael had shown the pupil. But the pupil didn’t want to leave Ishmael in the horrible place that he was in so he decided to go back to get him. He extracted all his money from his account a total of 2400 dollars and started on his way to the circus where Ishmael was staying for the time being. He had some problems with his car and the mechanics needed about 600 dollars to fix it. So the pupil instead got a rental car, one big enough to carry Ishmael out of that dreadful place he was in. But when he arrived he found that the circus had moved on, everything was gone so he decided to go to the place Ishmael’s cage had been. He followed his feet to the place and found all of Ishmael’s belongings. Books, maps, the blankets he had used, everything was there and the pupil and I wondering what on Earth was going on when the employee in charge there answered the question. “It was pneumonia that got him-your friend the ape.” The pupil was devastated and left the place with all Ishmael’s belongings under one arm. He contacted Mr. Partridge, informing him what had occurred. When the pupil went to get the Ishmael’s poster framed he discovered that on one side it said “WITH MAN GONE, WILL THERE BE HOPE FOR GORILLA?” And on the other side it said “WITH GORILLA, GONE WILL THERE BE HOPE FOR MAN?” Ishmael’s journey had ended, the pupil’s had begun.

Lost and Found- Ishmael chapter 10

Instead of beginning in the building where Ishmael was living, this chapter, began with the narrator explaining a situation he was in. An uncle had come into town and “expected to be entertained” (p.187) and the pupil had to do so for the time being. He disliked every minute and wished it would end. When it was time for the uncle to leave the pupil was informed that he was required to complete a job that he had put off. Instead of telling Ishmael he started his work. Soon after he began his tooth started hurting so he had it looked at. It was removed painfully and slowly. When he was done with his work he went to see Ishmael and explain what had happened. Upon arrival to the building an officer was locking up the place. Confused as was I at this point he asked what the situation was and the officer replied “getting this place ready for a new tenant. Again confused the pupil continued to interrogate the officer and learned that Ishmael was no longer in the building. The first thing the pupil did was to find Mrs. Solokov and ask her what had happened, although he soon learned that she had passed away recently. The pupil then mounted his own investigation of what had become of the gorilla. Soon he learned that Ishmael had been taken into a carnival act so the pupil drove to the location they were stationed at and found Ishmael.
When he found Ishmael he was expecting to be welcomed warmly be his teacher as did I. But to both our surprise Ishmael replied coldly with “Shut up” (p.196) and “Just go away and leave me alone”. At this point I was extremely confused and interested for the reason Ishmael was angered. On the pupil’s second visit Ishmael was back to his old self and from their they continued the lesson the pupil so eagerly desired. They spoke of the cultures of both the Takers and the Leavers. The Takers having a culture that, in their point of view, began around 1963 and the Leavers having a culture that began as long ago as anyone could know. The Takers needing prophets and teachers telling them how they ought to live and the Leavers knowing through generations of knowledge passed down. So Ishmael ended the session with “The Takers accumulate knowledge about what works well for things. The Leavers accumulate knowledge about what works well for people”. (p.206)

Leavers vs Takers-chapter 11

The last chapter we read, chapter ten, was one that described the story the Takers are enacting. The story we are enacting together. This chapter, eleven is similar; Ishmael in his cage, at the circus act, cold and tired gives his pupil the next lesson. The story the Leavers are enacting. The Takers were the agriculturists, farmers after the Neolithic revolution and the Leavers are the hunter gatherers. The pupil begins to put himself in his ancestor’s shoes. “He’s running in place, trapped, going nowhere.”(p.220) He has his enemies behind him and his prey in front. He can neither escape from his enemies nor catch his prey. The pupil believes this life to be a terrible, harsh way to live and would not wish to live in those times. He says they have no control of their food if it is there when they need it or not, whereas we have our plants that will be there the next day if we plant it the day before. We have stores, if we want something we can go select it whenever we choose to. The pupil says that instead of trusting our lives to the gods we should instead “trust yourselves with your lives” (p.225) “In the hands of the gods you’re no more important than lions or lizards or fleas.” (p.226) The pupil wants to be out of the control of the gods and we will not be safe until “we’ve taken the whole world out of the hands of the gods.”(p.228) So the pupil and Ishmael come to their conclusion, “The Takers are those who know good and evil”, “The Leavers are those who live in the hands of the gods.”(p.229)

Escape From Imprisonment-Chapter 12 Ishmael

Our lives are ones of imprisonment and captivity. Our Taker culture acts as a prison. There are those who are “rich and powerful” and those who are “poor and weak”. We may attain what we wish depending on our status within this community similar to the prisons that keep inmates all over the world. We need to escape the fences of this prison and live lives as Leavers do. “The Leavers are the endangered species most critical to the world-not because they’re humans but because they alone can show the destroyers of the world that there is no one right way to live.” (p.249) I thought that we would revert to a primitive culture; hunter gatherers as the Leavers are described in the novel. But Ishmael has a different idea “The Leaver life style isn’t about hunting and gathering, it’s about letting the rest of the community lice-and agriculturists can do that as well as hunter gatherers.”(p.250) Our culture causes us to destroy our world and no one even cares. We need to stop polluting, to save the world. As the pupil requires we are required to “have an earnest desire to save the world, (p.2) but we lack the motivation to do so. We must consider that other the world was not meant for us, that other species will soon take there place in our society as intelligent and capable of achieving what we have. It is our job to explore our world and attain the knowledge so that we may be as teachers to the next species as Ishmael is to his pupil. The dolphins, chimpanzees, and other species will soon enter our society and we must take them as if they were our children and we their father. But first we must escape this prison we have locked ourselves in. We must have the desire to save the world.

What is a Blog?

A. What is the difference between a blog and a book?
A blog is a website created by an individual to relate opinions or facts relevant to a given topic that may be updated on by the author and commented on by other bloggers whereas a book is a collection of writings written usually printed that may not be updated by anyone.
B. How have blogs changes recently?
Blogs have become more irresponsible and sloppy. They are not as trustworthy and may contain false information.
C. Why might you read a blog?
One might read a blog in order to find information on a given topic an opinions on them.
D. Is there reason to doubt the objectivity of a blog? Why? Why not?
Yes, because a blog is written by an individual who may or may not have an opinion on the subject and has the ability to modify the content to false information.
E. If you kept your own blog, what would you title it?
I would title my blog somethingdescriptive and relevant to the content so that readers may know what they are about to read.