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The article in the Gates to Meet With Russian Defense Minister written in The New York Times, is about how the U.S Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates, will meet with Russian Anatoly E. Serdyukov.  This article can be closely related to the Epic of Gilgamesh, because the characters of Gilgamesh and Enkidu can be compared with that of the U.S and Russia.  As we all know, the United States and Russia were not the best of allies.  The Cold War was proof of this, and now we see that Gates and Serdyukoy was working together to reduce military spending.  This compares to Gilgamesh and Enkidu who were at first enemies, and later were slaying bulls and going on wild adventures.  When it comes to the military, Serdyukov has little experience in the military just as Enkidu does.  Enkidu came from the jungle so his military skills were similar to that of an animal.  Serdyukoy had more experience in the furniture industry than with the military.  Russia and the U.S also share a common goal and that is reducing the size and spending of the defense department.  This goal can be compared to Enkidu and Gilgamesh slaying Humbaba as they both shared a common enemy.
Peace and Love

-Sajjad Ali

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/09/15/world/europe/15military.html?_r=1&scp=1&sq=gates%20and%20russian%20counterpart&st=cse

           In the epic, Gilgamesh had to conquer many hardships. He first had to overcome physical obstacles such as when he set out to destroy Humbaba the Terrible and killed the Bull of Heaven sent from the goddess Ishtar to punish him. In addition, he had to overcome an emotional struggle when his friend Enkidu died. Gilgameshs’ long journey to Utanapishtim also seemed to take a toll on him. We see this when Utanapishtim asks “why are your cheeks emaciated, your expression so desolate? Why is your heart so wretched, your features so haggard?” (pg 89, line 129). Even though Gilgamesh was a king and was meant to be an all powerful force, he still had some difficulties and it showed.

           In the New York Times’ article “Nadal savors latest role: A player for all courts” by Christopher Clarey, we can compare Rafael Nadal‘s obstacles to Gilgameshs’. He had to overcome physical pain, caused by a knee injury, which adversely affected his ability to play tennis. He also had some emotional pain because of his parents divorced. In the end he won the U.S. Open and is the seventh man to win all four Grand Slams singles title, which is a huge highlight in his career.  Nadal’s coach and uncle said “People see the victories, they don’t see the obstacles”, which is true about both Nadal and Gilgamesh.

Eric Sherman
Professor Allen
Lit 2800
10 September 2010

A recent article in the New York Times, called “U.S Urges Iraqis to Try New Plan to Share Power” is very similar to the Epic of Gilgamesh. In the Epic, the king, Gilgamesh is superior above all other men. However, Gilgamesh abuses his power and oppresses the people in Uruk. As Shamhat tells Endiku, “Come, let me bring you into Uruk-Haven, to the Holy Temple, the residence of Anu and Ishtar, the place of Gilgamesh, who is wise to perfection, but who struts his power over the people like a wild bull.” Enkidu’s purpose is to prevent Gilgamesh from mistreating his people.

Recently, this problem has become very apparent. As it says in the opening paragraph, “The Obama administration is encouraging a major new power sharing arrangement in Iraq that could retain Nuri Kamal al- Maliki but in a coalition that would significantly curb his authority.” The Obama administration feels obligated to intervene in order to protect the people of Iraq from the Prime Ministers control. Enkidu’s initial purpose in Gilgamesh was to bring Gilgamesh’s behavior and actions to an abrupt stop. Enkidu tells Shamhat “Come, Shamhat, take me away with you to the sacred Holy Temple, the residence of Anu and Ishtar, the place of Gilgamesh, who is wise to perfection, but who struts his power over the people like a wild bull. I will challenge him. Let me shout out in Uruk: I am the mighty one! Lead me in and I will change the order of things.” (A, 63)
Endiku and the Obama Administration both have the same objectives. The lines, “I will challenge him,” and “Lead me in and I will change the order of things,” particularly stand out because they are exactly what both Enkidu and the Obama administration will do.

The U.S plan is to “alter the structure of Iraq’s government by bringing additional restraints to the authority of Iraq’s prime minister and establishing a new committee with authority to approve military appointments, review the budget and shape security policy.” Endiku takes a more physical approach. During Enkidu and Gilgamesh’s first encounter, “They grappled with each other at the entry to the marital chamber, in the street hey attacked each other, the public square of the land. The doorposts trembled and the wall shook.” (A, 66) After the altercation, “They kissed each other and became friends.” (A, 67). I expect the initial reaction between Iraqi’s prime minister and the Obama I expect there will be conflict during the initial reaction between Iraqi’s prime minister and the Obama Administration While the turmoil may not lead to physical altercations, as in Gilgamesh, there will certainly be tension and disagreements. After the initial tension, hopefully the U.S and Iraqi prime minister will emulate Endiku and Gilgamesh. They will be able to put their dispute aside, and become friends.

Making Connections

The New York Times had an article titled “Strange New World” that is about a children’s book called Kindergarten Diary that discusses the “new world” that children enter and the new adventures that life will bring them. “The abundance of new experiences in “Kindergarten Diary” …” reminds me of Enkidu resembling a child who is fresh to a new world and the knowledge he will learn.

The reason I chose this article is because Shamhat was sent to retrieve Enkidu to leave behind the “Wildman” side, befriend Gilgamesh and enter the “new world” of humans. Similarly, Shamhat taught him how to leave his old tactics of his “free” life behind and to now have humanlike behaviors. I immediately related the two because children also have “free” behaviors and kindergarten is the first step in learning education.

 “Come, let me bring you into Uruk-Haven, to the Holy Temple, the residence of Anu and Ishtar, the place of Gilgamesh, who is wise to perfection. (A 182-184)

Works Cited

Posesorski, Sherie. “Strange New World.” New York Times 12 September 2010, New York ed.:    The New York Times Book Review 19. Print.

In the Epic of Gilgamesh we witness firsthand the start of a very strong bond between two men, a brotherhood. We are introduced first to Gilgamesh, the King of Uruk, who is two-thirds god and one-third man. Although he is considered to be the greatest of all men his actions towards his people are not very becoming of a king; raping brides on their wedding nights is an example of this. “Gilgamesh does not leave a girl to her betrothed!” (A60) To counteract Gilgamesh’s magnificence, Enkidu is created. These two men become friends and throughout the epic we are able to experience the growth of their brotherhood from the hardships that they overcome together. When death comes upon Enkidu, Gilgamesh is struck with an enormous amount of grief.  “I mourn for Enkidu, my friend. I shriek in anguish like a mourner… an evil demon appeared and took him away from me!” (A,30)  They had become like one or as we would say in modern times “two peas in a pod”. To lose this dear friend left Gilgamesh confused. The death of a loved one is never easy and often may come as a surprise; As a result family and friends are left to mourn and often with many unanswered questions.

Recently in East New York, Brooklyn a final match of an international soccer tournament took place involving St. Lucia and Jamaica. As many people know when you are part of a team you become family or like brothers/sisters with your fellow teammates. Well that was the case for Phillip Tisson who was a player for St. Lucia who had scored the winning goal bringing them to the Finals. Unfortunately Mr. Tisson was shot and killed not too long after the qualifying game and was never able to compete at the finals in Brooklyn. His father, teammates, and fans mourned the loss of this peaceful man. “His teammates spent the week mourning, training, and searching for answers.” The killer is unknown and many are left wondering why someone would elect to shoot a man of such excellence following his dreams. A father and a son and a man and his team both have unique bonds that when broken due to an untimely death leave people to mourn and ask why this has to happen.

In the past, the present and future death has and will always be the source of great pain for many individuals because death is inevitable. The reason for this is that it often leaves many people questioning; why here and why now? A big reason for these questions is because people have an underlying fear of death and believe it is never the right time. This was clearly present in the Epic of Gilgamesh when Gilgamesh was faced with the death of his best friend, an experience that had been completely alien to him. He was left asking himself why here, why now? Although we may all experience it differently, this feeling of sorrow is present in all humans in the experience of a loss.

“At Soccer Game, Remembrance for a Fallen Player”  New York Times, September 6, 2010

The summer of 2010 brought a great tragedy to the country where my ancestors are from.  The floods in Pakistan began following monsoon rains.  Statistics say that nearly 20 million or one-eighth of the population has been displaced and millions of homes have been destroyed.  Not to mention all the carnage and chaos that is occurring on the streets.  There is famine, crops are damaged, and all supplies are pretty much of no use.  Roads, bridges, electricity; all these luxuries are non-existent in Pakistan due to this flood.

When I was reading Gilgamesh and I got to the part, “For six days and six nights the winds blew, torrent and tempest and flood overwhelmed the world, tempest and flood raged together like warring hosts;” (A, 93) I immediately thought of the flood in Pakistan.  Both floods caused damage that is beyond imaginable and also happen to be in a similar region.  For a natural disaster to set a country back, especially a country that was already stricken with poverty, and corruption, it really is heartbreaking.  In the New York Times, the article states, “Six weeks after the floods began, as rivers continued to devour villages and farmland in the southern province of Sindh, aid workers warned of a triple threat: loss of crops, loss of seed for the next planting season and loss of a daily income.”

In Gilgamesh they said the, “surface of the sea stretched as flat as a roof-top.” (A. 93) By looking at pictures of the flood in Pakistan you can really see what this quote is talking about.

If you can imagine, how somebody feels when they do not know where they will be sleeping at night, or what they will be eating, or where there children are, you can imagine how the people of Pakistan feel, and I can assume that the few that survived the flood in Gilgamesh also felt the same way.

http://topics.nytimes.com/top/reference/timestopics/subjects/f/floods/2010_pakistan_floods/index.html

-Sajjad Ali