Ashley's Blog

The theme of fame and glory is prominent in the epic, Beowulf . Beowulf is viewed as a youthful character, one who claims fame and glory as his great accomplishment. His belief is "let whoever can win glory before death," signifying a race to a goal of total fame and glory. He has much to learn from his brother, King Hrothgar, who holds values of protecting his people close to his heart. As stories of the great Grendel erupted, naturally Beowulf, due to his characteristics, wished to slay the monster and gain fame and glory from doing such. Beowulf longs to be the hero of the people, but for the wrong reasons. Beowulf gains fame from the murders he commits, Grendel, and Grendel's mother. Following the death of Grendel's mother,  King Hrothgar proclaims to Beowulf, "Your fame is renowned wherever men journey...You hold power with balance, with wisdom of mind,". This excerpt delivers the idea that Hrothgar is thanking Beowulf for saving his people, but also ex...

Ashley Yanchuck Paper One English 225-IN The Epic of Gilgamesh proves to be an exceptional piece of writing that all should enjoy in their lifetime. There are many themes that one can grasp and cherish through their analysis of this work. A deeper dive into the words and their true meaning will uncover these. Through reading The Epic of Gilgamesh , one may encounter themed life lessons in the form of death being inevitable, love and friendship holding high value, but most importantly, morality being a larger part of basic survival than it is sometimes considered to be. In this original piece, The Epic of Gilgamesh , there is no known author. This makes the piece even more interesting as there is a mystery to be solved within the lack of knowing where this work came from. It is known that Gilgamesh is the oldest poem from the early Babylonian times. Understanding the time frame, being that this piece is so ancient adds to the excitement in discovering the takeaways that sti...

In Homer's Odyssey , there are multiple examples of the theme revenge. Many characters had journeys involving revenge and took different views on the impact that the revenge had on each character. It does explain why the journey of Odysseus was so long and enduring. There are original fears and known consequences from the idea of revenge, as Hermes advised Aegisthus, "Don't murder the man, don't court his wife. Beware, revenge will come from Orestes..". The word "beware" indicates that revenge is something to fear and be mindful of as a consequence. After the deed was done, it was told, "Orestes took revenge, he killed that cunning, murderous, Aegisthus..". In many cases, the actions of one character brings the revenge that then sets the tone for the next scene. For example, Zeus' revenge is what begins the journey of Odysseus. Revenge holds a negative connotation throughout the Odyssey  as does in everyday life. It is something that is fea...

In the poem, Gilgamesh , a common motif is journeys, whether physical or internal. Travel and journeys are endlessly present, with every main course of action associating itself with a journey. Whether is it Endiku or Gilgamesh, the Priest-King of Uruk, they both take physical journeys. Endiku and Gilgamesh both take a journey together to defeat Humbaba, a monster guarding the Cedar Forest. After they succeed in his defeat, Endiku ultimately dies due to Gilgamesh's selfish actions in rejecting a bride. After the death of Endiku, Gilgamesh encounters a first look at death and the mortality it holds. He struggles with his and embarks on a journey of self, looking for the answer to immortality, he sees only "utterly lightless, black. There was nothing behind or before, nothing at all". This signifies how alone and truly lost he was in himself. The darkness that he is encountering demonstrates the struggle with finding the answers he was searching for. Gilgamesh did not retur...