In Our Time – Chapter 7 Explored

Chapter 7 of In Our Time

Nick sat against the wall of the church where they had dragged him to be clear of machine gun fire in the street. Both legs stuck out awkwardly. He had been hit in the spine. His face was sweaty and dirty. The sun shone on his face. The day was very hot. Rinaldi, big backed, his equipment sprawling, lay face downward against the wall. Nick looked straight ahead brilliantly. The pink wall of the house opposite had fallen out from the roof, and an iron bedstead hung twisted toward the street. Two Austrian dead lay in the rubble in the shade of the house. Up the street were other dead. Things were getting forward in the town. It was going well. Stretcher bearers would be along any time now. Nick turned his head carefully and looked down at Rinaldi. “Senta Rinaldi. Senta. You and me we’ve made a separate peace.” Rinaldi lay still in the sun breathing with difficulty. “Not patriots.” Nick turned his head carefully away smiling sweatily. Rinaldi was a disappointing audience.

Hemingway – Genius Misunderstood

Not many people like this short story collection, despite its brilliance. Hemingway had a way of forcing the reader to use their imagination through subtle, brilliant, minimalist evocation. You have to work for it, but once you get it, it’s a revelation. Nick sitting against a wall, “legs stuck out awkwardly” from being hit in the spine. You feel and hear the machine gun fire across the street. Notice the mention of the word “face” twice, once when it’s sweaty and dirty, secondly when the sun shines on it. Add the oppressiveness of the day being very hot and you can imagine how uncomfortable he must be. Note the word use “brilliantly” describing how he looks across the street, indicating a sharpened, more acute sense in which he perceives the surrounding action. Seeing the dead Austrian bodies around him, Nick describes the battle as “going well” which to him, means stretchers will pick him up soon, which is why he tells Rinaldi that they’ve made a “separate peace” as the war for him will most likely end. Rinaldi’s lack of response can signify many things, perhaps he’s nearing death and is incapable of speech or maybe he sees Nick’s optimism as a delusion. We don’t know what will happen, but there’s a dread hidden in anticipating what might.

Author: Kristap Baltin

Homepage: Kristapbaltin.com

Facebooktwitterredditpinterestlinkedinmail

Civilization vs. Nature in The Epic of Gilgamesh

Enkidu

Enkidu by Osama Shukir Muhammed Amin FRCP(Glasg) – Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=90610606

Epic Theme

One of my favorite themes is Civilization vs Nature and luckily for me, it is very present in this ancient masterpiece. Why do I love it? Look at the effects the pandemic of COVID has had on our planet. The polluted skies have cleared, animals roam the temporarily uninhabited streets, and I gleefully inhale the actually fresh air whenever I step outside or go for a run. This by itself isn’t the conflict of nature and civilization, but the peak of nature I just alluded to exposes the grim juxtaposition civilization can sometimes produce. Overcrowded streets and transportation systems, zombie-like walkers in human form staring at a small screen and making ugly comments on their social media, people in perpetual conflict and anxiety, rushing off to either fight for a cause or keep up in a rat race akin to a hamster wheel.

Contrast this with the harmony and simplicity of nature, where predator and prey support an awe-inspiring and intricate ecosystem filled with the wonder of creation, growth, and beauty. Where everything, from the largest, tallest tree, to the smallest and unassuming insect has an important purpose and interweaves with the existence of everything else.

Sure, it seems as if I have chosen which side of the debate I belong on, but civilization has its ardent protectors as well, and this wonderful theme plays out incredibly in this wonderful masterpiece of an epic.

The Creation of Enkidu

Here’s a little mini-summary of the plot in order to understand how this theme plays out. Gilgamesh, at the beginning of the epic is an arrogant, tyrannical and despotic king. He takes his citizens’ sons and uses them for battle in needless wars; his lust is insatiable and he sleeps with the wives of his citizens and in this case does not discriminate between the nobles and the lower classes. Anu, the king of the Sumerian gods hear the laments of the citizens of Uruk and decides on creating an equal to Gilgamesh, capable of challenging him and thereby occupying Gilgamesh enough to leave Uruk in peace. He asks Aruru, the goddess of creation to make Enkidu, a man equal in stature and strength to the mighty Gilgamesh. Enkidu is dropped off in the wilderness and described thusly:

There was virtue in him of the god of war, of Ninurta himself. His body was rough, he had long hair like a woman’s; it waved like the hair of Nisaba, the goddess of corn. His body was covered with matter hair like Samuqan’s, the god of cattle. He was innocent of mankind; he knew nothing of the cultivated land. (Tablet 1)

So, this walking image of the gods spends his first days on hills with gazelles, eating grass, and drinking water out of lakes huddled among all the beasts of nature. He lives as one of them until he is discovered by a young hunter at the lake. The hunter is terrified and realizes that Enkidu has been releasing animals from the hunter’s traps. He returns home and tells his father, who (being a wise and unperturbed man) tells him to go to Uruk, tell Gilgamesh about the might of this savage, and to ask him for a harlot to return with him in order to “let her woman’s power overpower this man” (Tablet 1). The hunter’s father knows that after Enkidu sleeps with a harlot, the wild beasts will reject him. The hunter does as he is told and returns home with the harlot named Shamhat.

They go to the plains together, and Shamhat lures Enkidu using her womanly wiles and they sleep together for six days and seven nights. After his lust is sated. Enkidu returns to the wild. When the gazelles and other wild animals see him, they flee. Enkidu attempts to follow them, but “his body was bound as though with a cord, his knees gave way when he started to run, his swiftness was gone. And now the wild creatures had all fled away; Enkidu was grown weak, for wisdom was in him, and the thoughts of a man were in his heart” (Tablet 1).

Saddened, Enkidu returns to Shamhat, who comforts him and tells him that she will take him to Uruk to see the great-walled city inhabited by Gilgamesh. Enkidu lightens up and swells up with joy at the prospect of challenging Gilgamesh.

Key Takeaways

Notice how this part of the story describes the change in Enkidu. The beasts run away from him because “wisdom was in him.” He is unable to go back to his old way of life because he has laid with a woman. But surely, it isn’t just the sex that makes Enkidu unable to roam with the beasts, for “the thoughts of a man were in his heart.” If you are unaccustomed to the style of this ancient text, the change in Enkidu will seem to be abrupt and unexplained, but it is up to us, the readers, to excavate the greater meaning of this occurrence. Keep in mind, that Enkidu is still powerful and fast, more god than man, yet his inability to keep up with the beasts isn’t necessarily physical, but rather psychological. It is his understanding that has expanded and thereby taken his innocence. Remember, after his creation, he is described as being “innocent of mankind,” and this innocence is taken two-fold, by the loss of his virginity, and by the introduction into the world of man by Shamhat. She acts as his instructor, and prepares him for his journey ahead and what he will encounter. She is a very important aspect of the story, and I want to delve more into her character in later analyses.

What does this tell us? That nature is associated with innocence, simplicity, purity and an uncultivated land. It is this innocence that mankind sometimes yearns for and sees solace in. Civilization is something else entirely, and while this story is respects nature, it sees civilization as the next, necessary step in progression. It is my theory that the Sumerians didn’t see nature as in conflict with civilization, but rather as the first step leading towards it.

My next article will explore friendship in The Epic of Gilgamesh.

Author: Kristap Baltin

Homepage: Kristapbaltin.com

Facebooktwitterredditpinterestlinkedinmail

The World of Gilgamesh – and Sumerian Civilization

The Epic of Gilgamesh has incredibly relevant themes that apply to our modern struggles and views of the world. Reading this epic will contribute to your acquisition of wisdom and better understanding of yourself and the world around you.

Well, reading more in general will accomplish this, but I can’t think of a better place to start, then the first heroic literary narrative of world literature.

SOME COOL FACTS

1. This work is the first epic heroic narrative of world literature. To insert a little context, Homer’s Iliad was recorded sometime between 750 and 650 B.C. This puts the epic of Gilgamesh some 1400 years ahead of the Greek classic. The oral story of Gilgamesh dates back to 2700 B.C.

2. Gilgamesh, far more than just a literary hero figure, is on the long list of Sumerian kings of the Ancient world as the ruler of the ancient city of Uruk (a city that no longer exists and would be situated in modern day Iraq). You can check this list out here https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sumerian_King_List. The written form of this epic likely originated around 2000 B.C.

3. In another first, The Sumerian language it was written in is the earliest written language in Mesopotamia. The Sumerians were not only the first people to have written (on clay cuneiform tablets), but were also the first to form organized city states.

Here is a picture of what a clay tablet looked like:

In summary of cool facts:

I encourage you to research the Sumerian culture. This civilization created the first city state. Cuneiform was the world’s first writing system, they were the first to build wheeled vehicles, and had extremely sophisticated architectural developments that influenced the world to come.

MORE IMPORTANTLY:

Epic of Gilgamesh has an incredible background and was produced by an amazing civilization, but that’s only a part of what makes this epic amazing. The themes of Gilgamesh are incredibly relevant to this day and show that Sumerians had many of the same concerns and thoughts of modern day people. Sure, they probably had to worry about invasions a little more and didn’t have smart phones, but on the whole, that which has troubled humanity for centuries on end troubled the ancient Sumerian in similar ways.

THE MANY THEMES OF GILGAMESH:

Fear of death

The impact of change friendship and love creates

Civilization vs Nature

The priorities of a mortal life

Acquiring wisdom

The hardships of courage and cowardice

The pursuit of fame

How to live the good life

Author: Kristap Baltin

The translation of Gilgamesh I used for this article is here.

Facebooktwitterredditpinterestlinkedinmail

A Short Overview of Wuthering Heights

Wuthering Heights was published in 1847 by a 29 year-old Emily Bronte, under the pseudonym of “Ellis Bell.” The novel’s action spans from approximately 1771 until 1803 and documents the lives of two families: The Earnshaws and the Lintons. Filled with captivating themes and characters, Wuthering Heights is well worth detailed readings, re-readings and analysis. Modern readers have often labeled WH as a love story and have unfairly criticized it as having “unlikable characters” and imbue modern-day self-help psychology on the book by stating that its characters have low self-esteem and no self-respect. These foolish views of the book do not, however, take away from the book’s status as a respected classic that treats the themes of revenge and obsession with remarkable insight, skill, craft and understanding.

Come and join me in a chapter by chapter breakdown of the novel wherein we will explore its methods, techniques and enjoy how the story unfolds. We will ask and answer questions together and will come to better understand this unique and incredible work.

The version of the book I am using is Oxford University Press’ World’s Classics edition from 1976.

Below is a picture of Top Withens, said by some to be the inspiration for Wuthering Heights

By TopWithens.jpg: Dave.Dunford Dave.DunfordOriginal uploader was Dave.Dunford at en.wikipediaderivative work: EncyMind (talk) – TopWithens.jpg, Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=15578790Facebooktwitterredditpinterestlinkedinmail

Wuthering Heights: Volume 1, Chapter 1 Summary and Analysis

Let the fun begin! There’s nothing like starting chapter 1. In any great work, Chapter 1 is where we get the feel for the tone and atmosphere of the book. We get to learn who is speaking and how the story will be told, so without further ado, let’s get to it.

The year is 1801 and the month is November, and since we want to get into the world of the novel as much as we can, let’s recount some things that have happened this year. In the United States, Thomas Jefferson defeats John Adams for the presidency and becomes the third United States president. In Haiti, Francois Dominique Toussaint L’Ouverture, a former slave turned into respected general drafts a separatist constitution and as a result faces the wrath of Napoleon Bonaparte and his 40,000 troops. Toussaint will eventually be captured, shipped off to France and die in imprisonment. In Hungary, Ludwig Van Beethoven finishes composing the Moonlight Sonata.

File:Beethoven.jpg

Painting by Joseph Karl Stieler, 1819 or 1820

We will begin with a summary of the chapter and then get into analyzing some significant details of this opening in my next post. Our narrator is Mr. Lockwood (we never learn his first name throughout the novel). The chapter begins with Lockwood relating his first visit to his landlord Mr. Heathcliff (we never learn his first name throughout the novel). Lockwood tells of how beautiful and solitary his new area of residence is and describes it as “a perfect misanthropist’s Heaven” (1). He then begins to recount how similar he and Heathcliff are and describes Heathcliff as a “capital fellow” (1), despite receiving a rather less than pleasant welcome from Heathcliff. Lockwood meets Heathcliff at Wuthering Heights, which is about four miles away from where he will be a tenant at Thrushcross Grange.

Upon entering the premises, Lockwood encounters Joseph, Heathcliff’s elderly servant who is as equally unwelcoming as Heathcliff. Lockwood notices a carving above the principal door stating “1500” and “Hareton Earnshaw” and thinks about asking Heathcliff to tell him about the premises, but due to Heathcliff’s attitude changes his mind. Upon entering the family-sitting room, Lockwood describes his surroundings and sees dogs and a “swarm of squealing puppies” (3) and begins upon a detailed description of Heathcliff:

              He is a dark-skinned gypsy in aspect, in dress and manners a gentleman – that is, as                       much a gentleman as many a country squire: rather slovenly, perhaps, yet not looking                   amiss with his negligence, because he has an erect and handsome figure – and rather                   morose – possibly some people might suspect him of a degree of under-bred pride.                       (Bronte 3-4).

Lockwood’s somewhat superior description of Heathcliff is followed by his explanation of Heathcliff’s personality and reserve. In this very important part of the chapter, Lockwood continues to explain Heathclif’s personality, assumes it to be similar to his own and then internally shares a story of one of his past heartbreaks. We will explore this in depth in the next section.

After taking a seat, one of Heathcliff’s dogs approaches Lockwood and growls violently at him after he attempts to pet her. Heathcliff tells Lockwood to leave the dogs alone, and calls out to Joseph, and as Joseph gives an indication of not coming, leaves to go find him in a cellar below. The dog and a pair of sheep dogs begin to surround Lockwood, as he attempts to sit still while for some reason making faces at the dogs. Irritated by his behavior, one of the dogs pounces at his knees and Lockwood flings her back and tries to put a table between himself and the dogs. This aggravates all the dogs, and they surround him while he attempts to defend himself with a poker. While Heathcliff and Joseph ascend back from the cellar in an unhurried manner, Lockwood is saved by Zillah, Heathcliff’s housekeeper, who chases the dogs away with a frying pan and an authoritative manner.

Heathcliff shows little sympathy and blames the indignant Lockwood for the dogs’ outburst, but a little later allows a grin to pass over his face and calms the situation by offering Lockwood a little wine and starting a conversation about the advantages and disadvantages of residing in Thrushcross Grange. The chapter ends with Lockwood complimenting Heathcliff’s intelligence and remarking that he will visit Heathcliff again the next day, despite Heathcliff’s lack of interest in a repeat meeting.

Analysis and Questions

The novel begins with Lockwood and his estimations of the area he is in and the people he encounters. The story is told from his perspective and we are free to make our own estimations based on what he describes to us. I enjoyed this beginning very much because what Lockwood tells us seems to be at a discord from what actually occurs as he describes it. He comments on the beauty of Wuthering Heights and his disbelief that he “could have fixed on a situation so completely removed from the stir of society. A perfect misanthropist’s Heaven” (1). Judging by this, Lockwood is telling us that he is someone who prefers solitude and dislikes the company of people.

He then continues to say that “Mr. Heathcliff and I are such a suitable pair to divide the desolation between us. A capital fellow! He little imagined how my heart warmed towards him when I beheld his black eyes withdraw so suspiciously under their brows, as I rode up, and when his fingers sheltered themselves, with a jealous resolution, still further in his waistcoat” (1). Notice the difference here between what is said and what occurs. Lockwood describes himself as basically Heathcliff’s spirit animal and talks of how his heart warms at seeing him, while Heathcliff does everything in his power to squirm away from what we imagine is a very unpleasant encounter for him. Several questions arise from this.

Can we trust anything Lockwood tells us as reliable information? He clearly doesn’t seem to get that Heathcliff and him seem to be nothing alike.

Does that really matter? Though Lockwood might misinterpret what is happening, does it really effect what is factually happening in the story?

What function does Lockwood serve as the narrator of this beginning? What tone does he set? Why is Lockwood telling this story?

With these questions in mind, let’s find out more about Lockwood. We can determine a lot about him, by seeing how he speaks to Heathcliff when introducing himself. Lockwood begins, “I do myself the honour of calling as soon as possible after my arrival, to express the hope that I have not inconvenienced you by my perseverance in soliciting the occupation of Thrushcross Grange: I heard, yesterday, you had some thoughts-” (1), Lockwood’s flowery recitation indicates higher breeding and class, but also a lack of directness and firmness and is rudely interrupted by Heathcliff’s curt response, “‘Thrushcross Grange is my own sir’ he interrupted wincing, ‘I should not allow any one to inconvenience me, if I could hinder it-walk in!'” (1) Their first lines of dialogue clearly indicate that Lockwood and Heathcliff are as different as night and day. Heathcliff shows himself to have no time for lengthy and polite introductions and makes it clear that he has no interests in sharing his thoughts with Lockwood or anyone else for that matter. Even Lockwood notices this and remarks that Heathcliff’s “‘walk in’ was uttered with closed teeth and expressed the sentiment, ‘Go to the Deuce!'”

Does this interaction establish Lockwood as a device to illustrate Heathcliff with more detail?

Do we naturally need a goofy Lockwood to bring out the grizzly and grumpy Heathcliff as to establish him better?

Despite the gruff invitation, Lockwood cannot resist visiting Heathcliff and for his reason states that he “felt interested in a man who seemed more exaggeratedly reserved than [himself]” (2). The comedic presence of Lockwood also sheds more light onto Heathcliff’s elderly servant Joseph, whom upon meeting, Lockwood describes as “looking, meantime, in my face so sourly that I charitably conjectured he must have need of divine aid to digest his dinner” (2). Lockwood clearly seems to be out of place and unwelcome in this setting, yet continues to maintain that he has many commonalities with Heathcliff. Lockwood confesses that he “know[s], by instinct, his [Heathcliff’s] reserve springs from an aversion to showy displays of feeling – to manifestations of mutual kindliness. He’ll love and hate, equally under cover, and esteem it a species of impertinence to be loved and hated again” (2). Later in the novel, we’ll discover that Heathcliff has no problems loving and especially hating in the open and not undercover as Lockwood presumes, and even Lockwood recovers from this romantic description and admits that he “bestow[s] my own attributes over-liberally on him” (2).

Lockwood reveals more about himself by recalling a story of him on a vacation at a sea-coast and falling in love with a woman and not telling her that he was in love with her. When she understood that he was in love, she returned a sweet look to him, only for him to “shrink icily” into himself and become colder, until his poor crush started to doubt what she had sensed and asked her mother to leave the vacation spot. This story gives us an excellent portrait of Lockwood and further illustrates how different he and Heathcliff are, because Heathcliff has so far not displayed any timidity or fear.

The chapter continues to be comically entertaining through Lockwood’s interactions with this environment. He is attacked by Heathcliff’s dogs, is inefficient in defending himself and contrasts poorly even with Heathcliff’s elder female servant who ends up rescuing Lockwood with a  frying pan and a loud voice. Heathcliff finally takes pity on Lockwood and offers him a glass of wine and some laconic conversation. This encourages Lockwood to repeat his visit on the next day and leads him to the conclusion that it is “remarkable how sociable I feel myself compared with him” (6).

This brings us to the conclusion of chapter 1. We have already posed some questions through this reading. What other questions pop up as we think about this chapter? Please leave your comments and questions, and let’s head on to chapter 2!

 

 

 Facebooktwitterredditpinterestlinkedinmail

On Arnold Bennett’s How to Live on Twenty-Four Hours a Day

220px-Arnold-Bennett-1914

One of my biggest inspirations for this website is an author named Arnold Bennett. Born in 1867, he was best known as a novelist, and though I have thoroughly enjoyed his novels, I first discovered him and got absolutely hooked on reading him when I stumbled upon a self-help work titled How to Live on Twenty-Four Hours a Day. I highly recommend the work as it had an immense impact on me. I finished it in less than a quarter of a day, and if the work speaks to you as much as it did to me, you’ll finish it in even less time.

What particularly appeals to me about Bennett’s work is that it is so different than the clichéd awful self-help books on the market today. These books concern themselves with efficient use of time in order to succeed in your career, (ugh!) maximize your efficiency, get that promotion, and gain wealth. Even the thought of all these matters causes one to shirk in disgust. What banality, what a waste to concern ourselves with such meaningless trifles. Bennett’s book rather instructs us how to live, how to spend our time well. For life, and not work is at the forefront of our happiness. Don’t mistake me, to live, and to live well is hard work, even harder work is to figure out who we are, what we want and what can make us happy. Bennett can be of great assistance in this matter and I shall highlight some of his most remarkable points below. Continue reading Facebooktwitterredditpinterestlinkedinmail

Art is not Subjective

 

Art is not Subjective

The abrasive, blanketed heading of this article is meant to elicit a strong reaction. If you disagree with the above statement you are not alone. Many people argue that art is subjective, and as the old cliché states, “beauty is in the eye of the beholder.” The quote literally means that beauty is subjective, and while the cliché is in many cases accurate, it is far too broad to be fully accepted at face value.

Beyond Mechanics by Marendo Muller

In order to accurately assess whether art is subjective or objective, we must first delve into the difficult task of defining art. So, without further ado, “What is Art?” Part of the answer lies in what humanity defines as creative endeavors that are observed in works of literature, painting, and musical composition. These are also modes of our entertainment, and the large totality of these works allows us the task of comparison and analysis. Art, however is far more expansive than this and could be said to be very functional. Buildings are works of art and there are many contrasting styles of architecture that set them all apart. The desk that you sit at, the design of your lamp, the curves of your vintage mirror are all examples of functional art, especially if they are well done.

In essence, art is a craft, and just as you may realize the difference in quality between a cheap pair of shoes you bought at a mass retailer contrasted with an expensive, carefully crafted pair of Doc Martens, just so you may realize the difference in quality between two paintings, two novels and two pieces of musical composition.

While perception is surely candidate to change, it is not always wrong when assessing a creative art form, particularly when it has the advantage of comparison. There is a difference between good and bad art, just as there is a difference between good and bad qualities in people (despite what their looks may be). While not every art form merits comparison (due to differences in genre, or artistic intention) it is not difficult to understand why a certain artistic creation is superior to another.

Let’s examine a contemporary art form. If we are to compare HBO’s Game of Thrones to Starz’ Merlin (perhaps a tad unfairly, due to the scope of the material), it is easy to determine that Game of Thrones is a superior show due to richness of content, depth of themes and character development, etc. Might someone enjoy Merlin more due to personal subjectivity or preference? Sure, but that still does not make Merlin better than Game of Thrones.

My following article will argue that art is indeed subjective, but until then, I would love to hear your opinions and arguments. Please leave them below in the comments section. Please be respectful of others’ opinions and try to provide a clear reasoning for your argument.Facebooktwitterredditpinterestlinkedinmail

Why Read?

I mean, in a way don’t we read enough as it is anyway? I am on my cell phone the whole day! I get e-mails from work (most of which I try to ignore, despite their painful, assumed implication of importance and necessity of keeping my job), and I get text messages from friends (and though most of the written words are abbreviated, I clearly conceive their meaning, lol). I visit and read blogs whenever I want to know how to do something (like get a high score on Guitar Hero, or get cheats for Candy Crush). I am on Facebook, so I constantly read status updates of my remarkably insightful and whiny friends. So really, do we need to read anymore? And novels? Forget about it. Why do I need to waste my precious time reading about life when I can live it? That living may consist of watching TV and playing video games, but come on, that’s much more fun that reading isn’t it?

In many ways the above argument is not entirely invalid, (and non-readers aren’t necessarily always playing video games and watching TV) we do spend a decent amount of time reading, though that reading may be disjointed and unfocused. Still, reading literature or even a non-fiction is not essential to our survival. In fact less and less people read a complete book every year. (Check out this article at The Atlantic http://www.theatlantic.com/business/archive/2014/01/the-decline-of-the-american-book-lover/283222/) Nonetheless, people can live successful and fruitful lives without reading a book. So, why read? Continue reading

Facebooktwitterredditpinterestlinkedinmail