Reflection One

How did the content from this half of the semester deepen your sense of your humanity/who you are as a person?

In the video “Cave Art 101” by National Geographic, it depicts what life was like over thousands of years ago for humans through cave art. In France, there are cave walls that are decorated with these prehistoric illustrations of animals that ancient people hunted. These cave arts show off large animals like woolly mammoths and bison, as well as lions and deer. They made their art come to life with the use of pigments made from rocks.

Discovering cave art for the first time this semester has deepened my sense of humanity by displaying how times were extremely different throughout history. Humans in ancient Eurasia ultimately had a unique way of life that I cannot fathom to this day. The knowledge of knowing that there was a “real” Ice Age and not just the movie “Ice Age” truly amazes me. There were once people who got to walk alongside a woolly mammoth and take in their majestic presence. I would have cherished seeing an animal, in a prehistoric period, because they were treated with more dignity and respect. In addition, the art found in these cave walls still can communicate to present day humans. With what little technology they had, they found a way to preserve their art. This tells me that we are here to create, explore, and share to interact with generations to come.

In the hour podcast, “The Whole of Time” by On Being podcast conversation with Joy Harjo, dives into Harjo’s life. The podcast is centered around Harjo’s ability to see life and how to live life. Her experiences and knowledge display possibilities and perspectives that are not commonly shared in today’s normal conversation.

My sense of humanity deepened while listening to Harjo openly share a vulnerable topic that could have easily been dismissed by the masses, and by doing so she opened a new dialect to our human existence. In the podcast she recalls, “I used to travel, and my spirit would leave my body. When we dream, some dreams are I eat too much pizza, or I eat pizza when I shouldn’t dream. Others have a different cast to them and others we know instinctively to pay attention to. Now what happens is you know this; … that’s about half of our lives were out gathering information that we may not bring forth consciously and for some of us it’s like it’s a library that we go to when we need to know something. It works in that way.” Harjo is sharing her personal experience with dreams and talks about the meaning behind why we dream. As humans we are designed to go to sleep, then fall into a deep sleep, and then seemingly disappear into a whole new world. Dreams are more than just something we do in our sleep, they can play a role in guiding us (in some way, shape, or another). With science not knowing exactly why we dream; I find it inspiring when people talk openly and intelligently in a world where our opinions are becoming muted by the minute.

In “The Rise and Fall of the Assyrian Empire” / TED-Ed video, it narrates the upbringing of the first empire (which is commonly agreed upon by historians as the Assyrian Empire). As slightly referred to in the title, it discusses how the Assyrian Empire thrived using cruel military tactics and novel innovations that led them to reign for a long time, until the Babylonians and Medes took over.

My sense of humanity has deepened through my understanding of the Assyrian Empire and its fall. As silly as it may sound, I discovered that even something as great as an empire could fall. This displays that humanity is meant to win some and lose some, respectively. As individuals we will also face periods of excelling. Just like the Assyrians did, when they discovered one of the first written languages, known as cuneiform, along with their many other inventions. This creation allowed for the discovery of the Epic of Gilgamesh. On the flip side, I also learned from Assyria’s fall. Power is not meant to last in the hands of one forever. I feel like I can relate to the first empire in some ways, because trying anything new is often terrifying for me. However, I discovered that I am gaining a lot of insight from such experiences, and that the Assyrian’s made me see those types of “win-some, lose-some experiences” as a journey of life.

What did you learn about the topics covered in this half of the semester?

In the “Wikipedia entry on Hammurabi’s Code”, it discusses an ancient code and its importance. This web page covers its origin, and its effects it has had throughout history.

I found Hammurabi’s code to be interesting, to say the least. I learned that even in ancient times, eventually a law code was created to right the wrongs of people’s actions. This code is documented as the ”longest, best organized, and best-preserved legal text from the ancient Near East.” After reading individual laws, I found Hammurabi’s code to be rather extensive. Wikipedia writes, “If a man accuses another man and charges him with homicide, but cannot bring proof against him, his accuser shall be killed”. This form of law enables people to get some form of justice, at what’s thought to be an “equal price to pay”. Hammurabi’s code shows me that there are faults and fractions in all laws. Personally, I don’t believe it to be fair to sentence someone to death (due to a lack of proof) in a time where it could be extraordinarily hard to accumulate the proof.

In the “Cave Art” / Entry at PBS Evolution Library, describes how Ice Age ancestors decorated cave walls. They used rocks pigments to provide color to the animals that they drew on the cave walls, and sometimes they would carve animals into the wall beforehand.

I learned that cave art could be interpreted subjectively in meaning to its existence. The entry states, “The true significance of these magnificent cave paintings at Lascaux and Chauvet in France and at Altamira in Spain remains elusive.” One can only speculate why these artists decided to create cave art. Therefore, anyone can put a twist as to why there is art found in a cave. Though there are questions about its existence, there’s a lot to just observe and take in the beauty of the artwork itself. Art isn’t always meant to have a profound meaning; it can be the observer who brings the meaning to the artwork.

In “The Epic of Gilgamesh, the King Who Tried to Conquer Death” / TED-Ed video, it is about a 4,000-year-old story based in mythology. Whether or not this story ever occurred in real life is unknown. This ancient story is centered around the king of Uruk named Gilgamesh. He sleeps with the wives of newly married couples, making him not very liked by the city people. Gilgamesh meets an individual named Enkidu and they become inseparable. Throughout the story Gilgamesh seeks immortality after witnessing the fate of Enkidu once he dies. He eventually accepts his morality and ends up spending the rest of his life intentionally doing good actions.

Through the story of “The Epic of Gilgamesh, the King Who Tried to Conquer Death,” I learned about how a mythological story was discovered. Prior to this story, I had no knowledge that a story like this even existed. The video proclaims, “archaeologists sifted through dusty remains, hoping to find records to prove that Bible stories were true; what they found instead was one of the oldest libraries in the world. Inscribed on crumbling clay tablets was a 4000-year-old story, so riveting the first person to translate it started stripping from excitement.” This story is one of the oldest stories discovered to man, and I find it truly remarkable how someone stumbled upon clay tablets that told a story. It is sort of like finding gold, but better!

What did you learn about yourself through the content from this half of the semester?

In the “The Code of Hammurabi” / Essay by Jenny Slate, she writes about a particular night watching a British documentary of a woman discussing The Code of Hammurabi. Slate tells a funny narrative of her surroundings, as she is watching the British documentary, and shares her strong opinions against The Code of Hammurabi in a relatively amusing manner.

Through Slate’s style of writing, I found that I enjoyed reading a piece of literature that is comedic and witty, while bringing good points for the reader to digest. For example, “The Code of Hammurabi is the first evidence of legalized patriarchy. Does that send a shiver through your bones? Does that make you feel like we are currently ruled by fucking mummies who hate our mommies?” I love how enticing she is with her attention-grabbing questions. I also appreciated her ability to make me laugh out loud, while still getting her points across in a serious manner. In some ways, I felt like I was physically there watching the documentary with her through her descriptive writing, and I think that can play a very important role in connecting with literature.

In the poem “The Mushroom Hunters’ / by Neil Gaiman, he describes a time where men were hunters and women were scientists. He delicately shows that women were the ones who made the discoveries of the land. Gaiman uses mushrooms to exemplify how women were scientists and providers as well.

Through this poem, I learned that I have a newfound appreciation for women. In Gaiman’s poem he writes, “In the old times, they say, the men came already fitted with brains designed to follow flesh-beasts at a run… The women, who did not need to run down prey, had brains that spotted landmarks and made paths between them.” This poem helped me see that men “didn’t do it all” like history sometimes tells it. It showed me that women were just as important in the role of providing food (amongst other things) for their families back then too. They didn’t just “sit around and wait for their man to return home,” they were out making contributions to science.

In the poem “Inside” by Linda Hogan, she discusses nature and the mystery that lies within it. I learned that I don’t enjoy reading literature that I have a hard time connecting to and understanding. In her poem she writes,

“How something is made flesh

no one can say. The buffalo soup

becomes a woman

who sings every day to her horses

or summons another to her private body

saying come, touch, this is how

it begins, the path of a newly born

who, salvaged from other lives and worlds,

will grow to become a woman, a man,

with a heart that never rests,

and the gathered berries,

the wild grapes enter the body,

human wine which can love,

where nothing created is wasted;”

I do not think she’s an awful poet, however I was not fond of reading this poem around twenty times to understand its meaning. I found it rather frustrating that it took so long for me to grasp what she was saying, because her word play was off beat.

In the poem, “No More Cake Here” by Natalie Diaz, Diaz writes about a fake celebration scenario involving her brother’s death.

After reading this poem, I learned that it’s okay for me to be creative and daring. I am a creative person by heart, but I always find myself overthinking everything. Seeing Diaz show off her daring side in this poem has helped me see the effects of letting go of the fear on the inside. There is freedom in discovering the side of your brain that says, “it’s okay to let loose and be expressive.” She writes,

“The worst part he said was

he was still alive. The worst part he said was

he wasn’t even dead. I think he’s right, but maybe

the worst part is that I’m still imagining the party, maybe

the worst part is that I can still taste the cake.”

Diaz’s unexpected portrayal of her brother led me down a mental rollercoaster ride that I found to be bold. Being creative and daring doesn’t have to go hand in hand, but when they do they have the potential to help you experience a sort of freedom.