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Modern and traditional literature
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“When you re-read a classic you do not see in the book more than you did before. You see more in you than there was before.” - Clifton Fadiman. Why should people read classic literature? I am arguing the point of why we should still read classic literature and how it’s relevant in today’s culture. In the quote it explains how all classics are great books and how when you read them it teaches things not only about the book but about yourself. When you re-read a classic you learn something new every time, no matter if it’s in the book or if something applies to your life. The classics also are also very entertaining stories, but they incorporate the lessons in them also. In the story of Genesis it talks about how God decided to flood the earth. …show more content…
Even though he was very rich he thought his happiness was brought to him by gold. One day one of Dionysus’ followers got lost and ended up at his castle so he returned him to the God of wine and the God granted him one wish. He decided he wanted everything he touched to be turned into gold. The God granted his wish, Midas went back and it was all good until he tried eating and drinking. Everything turned to gold eventually he got so hungry, he went back to find the God. He begged him to take the wish back and he agreed he told Midas to go to the river Pactolus and stand in it. Midas did as he was told and the magic flowed out of him and gold nuggets appeared in the water. This classic tells a very entertaining story that has a lot of things you can take from it. This story teaches on how you should never take anything for granted and how you need to be thankful for everything you have. The story of Midas affected the culture it was written because it shows what could happen if you weren’t humble but it also shows how sometimes you get a second chance. It also shows on how big of a role the Gods play in their culture. This story is entertaining
What is a classic? One definition given by the dictionary is: having lasting significance or worth; enduring. When examined closely we can discover what makes the novel unique and memorable. There are many important messages in Harper Lee's To Kill A Mockingbird, which make it memorable to the reader. The main message in this novel is about racism, how people around you, not just parents have a strong influence on you when you are growing up, and how rumors and misjudging can make a person look bad. Judging other people without knowledge of the facts is also a common occurrence.
In “Why Literature Matters” the author, Dana Gioia, argues that literature is very important in today’s society. He talks about the decline of reading over the years and the effects it has on different companies and communities. Gioia uses many persuasive techniques, such as evidence, jingoism, and diction, to try and persuade the reader that literature is important.
In a world dominated by technology, reading novels has become dull. Instead of immersing into books, we choose to listen to Justin Bieber’s new songs and to scroll through Instagram posts. We have come to completely neglect the simple pleasures of flipping through pages and getting to finally finish a story. Sherman Alexie and Stephan King’s essays attempt to revive this interest in books that has long been lost. They remind us of the important role that reading plays in our daily lives. “The Joy of Reading and Writing: Superman and Me,” for instance, demonstrates how being literate saved the narrator from the oppressive nature of society. The author explains that even though he was capable of reading complex books at an astonishingly young
One difference that backs it up is in The Epic of Gilgamesh the rains that cause the floods only last six days, six nights and in “The Flood Story in Genesis” the rains last forty days, forty nights. A quote that tells about the flood is when Utnapishtim said, “For six days and six nights the wind blew, torrent and tempest and flood overwhelmed the world, tempest and flood raged together like warring hosts (pg. 25).” This quote by Utnapishtim describes how bad the weather, rains, and wind were during the six days and six nights of the storm. On the other hand in “The Story of the Flood” it rained for forty days, forty nights. While God was talking to Noah he said, “For yet seven days, and I will cause it to rain upon the earth forty days and forty nights; and every living substance that I have made will I destroy from off the face of the earth (pg. 48 line 4).” This quote describes how long God will have the rain go for. It also says that he is doing it to destroy all of mankind.
When Moses wrote the Book of Genesis he quoted God as saying, “I will cause it to rain upon the earth forty days and forty nights; and every living substance that I have made will I destroy from off the face of the earth” (Genesis
"All the fountains of the great deep [were] broken up, and the windows of heaven were opened . . . And the flood was forty days upon the earth; and the waters increased; . . . and the ark went upon the face of the waters."(Holy Bible, Genesis 7:11b, 17a, 18b). The flood was a catastrophic event that changed the earth in traumatic ways, but many people deny that this event ever took place. The main documentation of this occurrence is found in the Bible, but since many people refuse to believe that it is a valid source of history and has no weight in science, it cannot be used to say whether or not the earth was ever completely submerged in water. Therefore, science and fact must be the deciding elements in the discussion of the flood.
In the first book of the Bible, Genesis, God can be seen as having a sort of bi-polar attitude. In the beginning chapters God is shown as a caring person when he is creating the earth and when he talks about how he wants Adam and Eve to succeed and do well and how he gives Adam a companion, Eve because he feels Adam will be lonely. As the book unfolds God becomes very angry with how his world is turning out. Sin has been introduced and humans seem to be falling away from the righteous. This upsets God and he creates an idea that he will flood the world so that only Noah and the people and animals inside the ark will live. His intentions seem horrible, trying to kill humans because they have sinned, but in reality he is trying to free the world of sin so that the remaining humans will live wonderful lives free of pain and despair. The flood can be seen as both a positive and negative thing. To non-believers they may find fault in the idea that God felt that he had to punish the world as a result of how sinful the people of earth had become. To help promote their ideas they could use statements from the Bible such as this one when God's feelings are stated about how he seems to be dissatisfied with the people of earth, "The Lord was grieved that he had made man on the earth, and his heart was filled with pain" (Genesis 6:6). It can also be revealed when God states, "I am going to put an end to all people, for the earth is filled with violence because of them. I am surely going to destroy both them and the earth" (Genesis 6:13).
The story of The Great Flood in the bible was written thousands of years after The Epic of Gilgamesh was written by the Ancient Hebrews, the first monotheistic society. One example that shows God is almighty is "the LORD was sorry that he had made humankind on the earth, and it grieved him to his heart. So the LORD said, 'I will blot out from the earth the human beings I have created...the rain fell on the earth forty days and forty nights...And all flesh died that moved across the earth." This detail shows just how powerful God is, He decided that humans did not deserve to live anymore and he sent rain and floods to the Earth for forty days and forty nights and kills everything that moved on the Earth. The mood of this story is serious and absolute, there is no changing what God decides, and he decided that humans shouldn't live. An example that shows Gods' mercy is "But Noah found favor in the sight of the LORD... And God said to Noah 'I have determined to make an end of all flesh... God remembered Noah... And God made a wind blow over the earth, and the waters subsided." The Bible characterizes Noah as a good person who has integrity and listens to all that God says. Because of this God is compassionate towards Noah and his family warning them of the flood and telling him to build a boat. God's mercy also shows when he remembers Noah and doesn't leave the Earth covered
In the Mesopotamian version: the gods apparently displeased with the evils of mankind decided to destroy it by means of a great flood. Ea, the god of wisdom and subtlety, was privy to their council and warned Utnapishtim, the Babylonian Noah, of the coming disaster. Utnapishtim was told to build a ship thirty cubits long and thirty cubits wide. Provision it and put in it specimens of every living thing. Then to board it with his family and possessions and launch it on the waters.
As it is, however, that is most definitely not the case. Many readers appreciate books for what they most immediately bring: entertainment, distraction from the real world, or some kind of romantic connection to themselves. In regard to classic novels, specifically, the case is very bleak. These novels do not really receive the appreciation many argue they deserve. It seems that, in general, people accept that a novel is a classic because it has always been categorized that way. For example, a high school student may be reading a novel that his teacher tells him is a classic. His father read the same novel in high school and was also told that it was a classic. Neither the father nor the son question that the novel is a classic because of this lasting reputation and do not look into the true reasons that the novel is considered in such a way. Very often, as in this example, the label is what they are comfortable with, what they have always known, and what they have accepted. In the very real sense of what a classic is, it entertains, it is old, and everyone has, for as long as anyone can remember, called it a
Although there are differences between this ancient culture and ours, one similar idea found in the story is that of the worship of deity. There are many gods represented in the story of Gilgamesh. This reflects the tendency of the people of that time to cling to religious ideals to explain the unknown.
A comprehensive reading of the classics requires the readers to draw individual conclusions, take away their own moralities and lessons, and connect the book to other works of literature, real world events, and the thoughts buried deep inside themselves. Through this intensive process, readers emerge with a tool kit of critical thinking skills and an increased empathetic capacity
Literature has many purposes, and opens doors to unique worlds. Through Literature, we discover ourselves and world time and again.
In the book of Genesis, it tells us that God created the world. He put
George R.R. Martin once said, “A reader lives a thousand lives before he dies… The man who never reads lives only one.” For centuries, books have transformed readers into someone else and transported them to different worlds. In my fourteen years, I have fought dragons, saved the world, and survived World War II. I have become others who were anywhere from a toddler to an adult. I have gone to wizarding school and a summer camp for demigods all because of books. Something magical happens when I open bound pages of words and begin to read. Books inspire me because they each open up a new world of experiences and feelings that will last with me forever.