Answer ONE of the following:
1. Describe the chain of events in the Oresteia that demonstrate the mores of Justice and Vengeance. How does the development of this process of Justice enrich your understanding of Greek culture and its attempt to grapple with these issues of law, punishment and retribution?
2. The Epic of Gilgamesh and Oresteia offer the reader some profound views of powerful women and their societal roles within a defined and entrenched patriarchal system. Using the Gilgamesh and the Oresteia make inferences about the role that women play in these early human societies. Consider, for example, the scope as well as the limitations of women's actions and whether or not family position, class and occupational titles play a role in their lives. Offer your reader a concise explanation for attitudinal differences, if any, between the two societies.
3. The nature-culture dichotomy is amply illustrated in the Epic of Gilgamesh.. In Enkidu we see the "authentic" self which stands in stark contrast to his social environment. Gilgamesh, on the other hand, is seen to be a cultured individual, born into royalty and civilization and fully compatible with his surroundings. As readers of this ancient text, can or should we view both Enkidu and Gilgamesh through this nature-culture dichotomy? Is it possible to reconcile these two views? Can an argument be made for the self as being dependent on its social relations, on the one hand, and on the other as a natural, "uncivilized" entity frustrated and oppressed by the society into which it is thrown?
4 (i). Where in the text are references to the god-given fates for Gilgamesh and Enkidu; what are these fates and how does fatalism affect both Gilgamesh and Enkidu?
(ii). Who are the individual gods and what role does each god play in the actual pronouncements and carrying out of these two heroes?