Heritage of World Civilization

Prof. Kulwadee Makarabhirom

Ancient Literature

1. Sumerian Literature2. Egyptian Literature3. Jewish Literature4. Indian Literature

5. Chinese Literature6. Greek Literature7. Roman Literature

Cradle of World Civilizations: Four Important River Valleys of

the Ancient World

(Albert M. Craig. The Heritage of World Civilizations, p. 6)

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Near East in the Ancient Times

Mesopotamian Literature

ancient literature oral literature (handed down by oral tradition) written literature

difficult / impossible to date

Sumerian Cuneiform

The Epic of Creation recorded on 7 clay tablets with the cuneiform

Epic of Creation

Apsu + Tiamat gods, goddess

Ea VS Apsu Marduk VS Tiamat

Tiamat’s upper part heavenTiamat’s lower part earthTiamat’s bones mountains

Tiamat’s blood rivers, oceansMarduk created man and animals from clay

Marduk creating heaven and earth in the Sumerian Epic of Creation

Epic of Utanapishtim

Ea Utanapishtim 7 storied ship / vessalMan of Shuruppak, son of Ubar-Tutu,Destroy thy house, build a vessel,Leave thy riches, seek thy lifeStore in thy vessel the seeds of all life,……………………………………….Formerly Uta-Napishtim was a human

being,Now Uta-Napishtim and his wife will be

like unto us, gods.

Utanapishtim constructing a vessal as instructed by Ea

Epic of Utanapishtim

Enlil, the rain god

rained for 6 days and nights

Utanapishtim’s vessel Mt. Nisir Utanapishtim

released birds 3 times

offered sacrifice to gods

Epic of Gilgamesh

Ninsun + mortal man Gilgamesh

Sumerian King (3,000 B.C.)

Gilgamesh hunting with Enkidu

Epic of Gilgamesh

Enkidu, my friend, my little brother, who chased the panther of the desert,My friend who with me killed lions,My friend who faced with me all difficulties,His fate has overtaken him.Six days and six nights have I wept over him.Then when I afraid of death and I fled through the land.My friend whom I lived has become like unto mud.And I, must I too, lie down like him and never rise again ?……………………………………………………………..O Gilgamesh, why dost thou run in all directions ?The life thou seekest thou shalt never find.When the gods created manThey gave him Death.Life they kept in their own hands.

Gilgamesh on a journey to Utanapishtim in his search for the secret of immortality

Gilgamesh gathering herbs,the snake stealing the herbs

Egyptian Literature

Ancient Near East

Egyptian Literature

Religious Literature Hieroglyph

Secular Literature Hieroglyph

Religious Literature

hymns written on the inner wall of pyramids

Ra, the sun god depicted on the wall of a pyramid with hieroglyps narrating his story

bas-relief on the sacrophagus depicting dying Osiris dispenses his divine sperm to his wife, Isis

mummification illustrated in the Book of the Dead

Thoth, the moon god weighing a heart with Osiris on his throne, from a Book of the Dead

Secular Literature

Secular Literature

Secular Literature

proverbs

adventurous storiesfairy tales

love stories

Secular Literature

Now I’ ll lie down inside and act as if I’m sickMy neighbors will come in to visit, and with them my girl.She’ ll put the doctors outFor she’s the one to know my heart.

(Annonymous Egyptian poet)

Jewish Literature

Christian Bible

The Old Testament relationships + agreements between God and the Jews/

Hebrews hymns stories/ teachings of prophets Jewish history legends

The Creation of Adam

Eve tempted by Satan fruit of the forbidden tree original sin

Jewish Literature

Noah’s Ark

the great flood

Legend of Noah and the Great Flood: Noah building his ark

Noah releasing a dove from his ark

The third dove Noah released from the ark returned with an olive branch.

Legend of Noah’s Ark in Walt Disney’s Fantasy 2000

Jewish Literature

The Tower of Babel

inspired by Ziggurats of the Sumerians

ziggurat of Babylonia dedicated to Marduk

Indian Literature

Ancient Literature Gupta Literature

Cradle of World Civilizations: Four Important River Valleys of the Ancient World

Ancient Literature

Sanskrit Literature Pali Literature

Masterpieces of Sansakrit Literature

Vedas (ค มัภี�ร�พระเวท)Ramayana (รามัายุณะ)

Mahabharata (มัหาภีารต์ยุ�ทธ)

Sansakrit Literature

Vedas (ค มัภี�ร�พระเวท)

Rig Veda (ฤคเวท)Yajur Veda (ยุชุ�รเวท)Sama Veda (สามัเวท)

Asamara Veda (อิาถรรพเวท)

Masterpieces of Sansakrit Literature

Ramayana

Arayans vs Indian Natives

Rama, Lakshaman Ravana (ทศก ณฐ์�)

monkeys demons (ยุ กษ์�)

battle between Rama and Ravana

Mahabharata

Arayans vs Arayans

Pandava Kauravas

(ตระกู�ลปาณฑพ) (ตระกู�ลเกูารพ)

Mahabharata

Arjuna and Krishna,the eight avatar of Vishnu disguised as Arjuna’s charioteer, sounding their conches

Krishna riding Arjuna into the Battle of Kurukshetra (ทุ่��งกู�ร�เกูษตร) against the Kauravas

the most important motif of Mahabharata

Bhagavad Gita

three paths to salvation

Karma (ว�ถ�แห(งการกระท*า)Gyan (ว�ถ�แห(งป+ญญา)Bhakti (ว�ถ�แห(งความัภี กดี�และเชุ./อิมั /น)

Pali Literature

• originated in the North of India

• mostly Buddhist Literature

Pali Literature

Tripitaka (พระไต์รป1ฏก) = three baskets/

three sections of teachings

Tripitaka

Sutta Pitaka (พระส�ต์ต์ป1ฏก) : dialogues between the Buddha and his

followers Vinaya Pitaka ( พระว�น ยุป1ฏก): rules of the monasteries Abhidharmar Pitaka (พระอิภี�ธรรมัป1ฏก): Buddhist philosophy

Pali Literature

Milinda Panha

dialogues Menander, Indo-Greek King

Nagasena, Buddhist philosopher

Pali Literature

Jataka Tales (น�ทานชุาดีก)

Bhutanese painting of Jataka Tales, 18th-19th century, Bhutan

Jataka Tale

Mahajanaka (มัหาชุนก)

Mahajanaka being saved by Mani

Mekhala (นางมณ�เมขลา) from shipwreck

Gupta Literature

Gupta Dynasty greatest period of Indian poetry and drama

greatest poet and playwright

Kalidasa (กาล�ทาส)

The Cloud Messenger (เมัฆท�ต์) Of Shakuntala Recognized by a Token

Of Shakuntala Recognized by a Tokenwas translated by King Rama VI as ศก�นต์ลา

Shakuntala with King Duhshanta

(ทุ่�าวทุ่�ษยั�นต�)

Cradle of Civilizations: Four Important River Valleys of the Ancient World

Chinese Literature

Ancient TimesChou Dynasty (1,027-256 B.C.)

Han Dynasty

Ancient Chinese Story

The beginning of the universe

Pangu slept in the chaos for 18,000 years.

Pangu smashed through the chaos with his giant axe.

Pangu created sky, earth, etc.

Pangu swung his giant axe to smash through the chaos.

Chou Literature

Confucious (ขงจื๊��อ)

Confucius

Wu Ching / Wu Jing (Five Classics)

norms for Chinese society, law, government, education, literature, religion

Lao Tzu

Tao Te Ching

Taoism

living in harmony with nature

Han Literature

• Han Dynasty ruled China for 400 years from 202 B.C.-220 A.D.

• According to Han chronicles 1,380 tales 15 books• Confucian texts were rewritten and republished.• Confucianism was revived.• Confucianism adopted by the Han Dynasty as the

official ideology

Han Literature

Wu Ching were used forthe Chinese imperial examination, a civil service examination, as early as the Han Dynasty, to select candidates for the state Bureaucracy.

Greek Literature(1,200 B.C.)

Cradle of World Civilizations: Four Important River Valleys of the Ancient World

Greek Literature (1,200 B.C.)

1. Poetry2. Drama3. Prose

Greek Literature (1,200 B.C.)

Poetry

The Iliad Trojan War

Homer

The Odyssey adventures of Odysseus

The Iliad: Homer

The Judgment of Paris, Peter Paul Rubens

The Iliad: Homer

Paris and Helen, Jacques Louis David

The Odyssey: HomerOdysseus passing the island of the Sirens

Hesiod

The Theogony

origins and genealogy of Greek gods

The Theogony : Hesiod

In the beginning there was only the formless confusion of Chaos.

The Titans The twelve great Olympians

Works and Days

Hesiod

farmer’s almanac

agricultural instruction

Lyrics

Sappho

poet from Lesbos

love and sexuality

Greek Literature

drama

dithyramb (ล*าน*ากลอินสดี)

Dionysus, the God of wine and fertility

Greek Drama

1. tragedy2. comedy

Greek Drama

tragedy

Greek’s greatest tragedians

ThespisAeschylusSophoclesEuripides

Greek Tragedian

Thespis the first actor in Greek drama, inventor of tragedy, the first to interweave choral song with an actor’s speeches

Greek Tragedian

Aeschylus the most successful dramatist in Athens introduced dialogue and interacting

characters to playwriting

Orestes disturbed by the Furiesafter killing his mother, from Aeschylus’ Eumenides

Greek Tragedian

Sophocles Oedipus Rex fated to kill his mother and married his own mother Oedipus complex

Greek TragedianEuripides focus more on men than gods Electra

Electra Complex

Greek Comedy

•old comedy Aristophanes•middle comedy Aristophanes•new comedy Menander

Greek Masks

Theatre of Dionysus, Athens: the world’s oldest theatre

Roman/ Latin Literature

Roman territory during the RomanRepublic

Roman/ Latin Literature Roman territory during the Roman Empire

Roman/ Latin Literature

1. Poetry2. Drama3. Prose

Poetry

Epic Aeneid Virgil

Aeneas, a Trojan hero

Hesperia (Italy)

the ancestor of the Roman

Aeneid: Virgil

Aeneas Fleeing from Troy

Poetry

Horace Art of Poetry

states the basic rules of classical writing

greatly influences poets

of later periods

Poetry

Ovid

Metamorphoses

mythological narrative describing the ages of man, the flood, transformations of the natural world: transformation of Daphne

transformation of Daphne, Apollo’s first love, into a laurel tree as narrated by Ovid in his Metamorphoses

Roman Drama

1. tragedy: Seneca

2. comedy: Plaustus, Terence

Tragedian

Seneca

Roman playwright, philosopher, politician

closet drama

written for recitation before a private audience, not

for public performance

Comedian

Plautus

greatest Roman comedian

about 130 plays musical comedy

based on works of Greek playwrights

Comedian

Terence

6 plays

adapted from Greek plays

Roman actors and musicians preparing themselves before performing

Mosaic of Roman masks for tragedy and comedy

Roman theatre

Roman theatre

Roman amphitheatre

Roman amphitheatre: Colosseum

Roman amphitheatre

Roman TheatreNaumachia sea battle, the place to perform

the sea battle

The use of Colosseum as a naumachia

Prose

Cicero

master of Latin prose

letters, rhetorical treatises,

philosophical works, orations