Ottoman Empire

After reading the Ottoman Empire I found there to be two things that interested me.  The first being reading about how the Sultan governed the state as a trust from god.  I think it is hard to understand this way of rule because in America political leaders try and keep religion separate from what is expected and what is not expected.  In the Ottoman Empire god is looked highly at and there for decides who should rule and who shouldn't.  Or who should make the rules.  It also seems that in Turkey the leaders do not keep there lives separate from the lives of others. Like mentioned in the readings the government of the empire was regarded as an extension of the sultan's own household, but in a way it sort of is a good thing because the Sultan wants things to run the way he would run his own house.
The second interesting thing I found in the readings was how important woman are to the empire.  They really play an important role and are looked at very highly.  Mothers of reigning sultans became the most powerful political personages in the royal household and financial affairs.  In most countries beside America it is very hard for woman to have that much of a powerful role especially in politics.

Dante

After reading the essay the topic that I found most interesting was how close minded people were back then and how concerned they were about a new religion becoming present.  I can understand why the Christians might have felt the way they did about the Islamic religion.  They were unaware of what it was and afraid that it would eventually eliminate the amount of christian followers.  In any situation when something new is being introduced people become alarmed because they don't no what to expect.  The unknowing scares people the most.  To me I think it is plain ignorance.  People are freely allowed to practice whatever religion they choose too.  What makes it ok for the Christan's to say what is right and what is wrong.  It is easy to relate this topic to current situations know.  People are so quick to judge people just because they don't have the same beliefs as them.  Like in the essay the Christians pre judged the Islams, but later on began to understand what there faith is about.  That they aren't just barbarians who idolize idols. 

Decameron 2

After reading the assigned readings I chose to discuss the third day first story and the fifth day eighth story.  I chose these two stories because they both had to do with love and lust.  I found that those two themes were very common in the other readings that we read for class.  In the readings of the third day first story I was surprised at what I was reading.  That a man would come into a convent looking for a job just to have access to these woman, but I found it to be so weird that he would lust for something that he knew would be impossible to achieve.  Nuns make a promise to Jesus and god not to in cage in sexual behavior, but of course everyone has erges.  I just don't think there promise to Jesus and god is genuine especially when your having those kinds of thoughts and feelings.  It makes me question the things people will do just to gain some sort of satisfaction.  These nuns risk there faith and morals and the guy involved doesn't risk anything.  He gets to feel like he rules the world because hes sleeping with every nun at the convent.  In the readings of the fifth day eight story it depicts a different kind of love.  An evil kind of love.  Like if the woman doesn't get what she wants the man must pay and the man in this case is the innocent one who is just wanting love and affection.

The Decameron

After reading the assigned readings I decided to focus mostly on the theme of peer pressure.  I found that this theme speaks to the certain aspects of the Mediterranean cultures that we have discussed over the semester.  One specific culture aspect of the Mediterranean that I found related to the readings and my theme was religion.  During the first day, second story Abraham was pressured by his good friend Giannotto to convert to christianity.  Abraham had his concerns and daughts because he thought the whole church was corupt, but Giannotto insisted that he goes through it and Abraham finally decided to go through with it.  He felt that even though the church seemed corrupt, if christianity was still spreading then god must be the reason for it and he wanted to be as close as possible to god.  I think that through out all the readings we have read religion plays a major role in peoples lives, especially if you believe so strongly in god.  These people that we have read about just want to be closer to god because they feel like if they do what god says then they will be accepted by him.  They look to god as an important figure like a leader.  I do not agree with being pressured into a religion though.  I think changing your religion should be a decision made on your own not pressure from friends.

Book of Good Love 2

1. After reading the Mountain Girl section I felt a little disturbed.  Throughout the whole story you see that the mountain girls are very controlling and demanding.  They had the say in everything and expected things to go as they had planned.  I think in most situations you think that the guy would be the more dominate one in a relationship or a specific situation, but in this story the woman was the more dominant one.  I think when men don't have that control they start to second guess themselves on who they really are.  Like in a way they loose there dignity, but I found it interesting that he was going to the mountain girls for guidance or satisfaction.   I also found this story to be quite sexual like in a dominatrix kind of way at least in the beginning.  I think the mountain girl represents a fantasy because the story describes what they look like and there features are very exaggerated.  I read this text as someone trying to gain a type of satisfaction, such as searching for someone to marry.

Book of Good love

2) The author properly begins the text with the fable of the Greeks and Romans. Apart from being the comedy that it is there is a serious message here concerning reading interpretations and more.  I read this fable as being a competition between the Greeks and Romans.  The whole time through the poem/story i felt that the Romans were trying to gain some cultural aspects that the Greeks follow such as laws and a form of power that they portray.  I felt a lot of tension amongst the two especially when they were speaking through sign language, but eventually The Greeks saw that the Romans did deserve the laws through god.  That one common things brought there views together.  

4) After reading the assigned readings I really focused on the code of love presented by Love to the Archpriest, specifically upon the woman he verbally paints here.  When Archpriest states that such a woman does not exist and yet he will continue to compose poetry I feel hes continuing to believe something that might not be so true.  He is painting this picture of what a perfect woman should be like because he wants to be in love with a woman like that.  Also if the woman is not interested in him she just wont give him the time like in the poem when he sends the message to her. If she doesnt want any part she just wont reply.  

Songs of Holy Mary

The two narrative songs I chose from the readings were song 2 and song 4.  In song 2 the virgin Mary seems to be this powerful figure.  She really can say what ever she wants and expects people to respect her and listen to her orders.  My opinion on the holy Mary is that she feels a bit entitled because she is the virgin mother.  I can understand that and am sort of in favor of her feeling of entitlement.  That is the main theme I found in this song was the feeling of power.  She had the control and specifically said that if anyone wears the garment she had given to the saint other then him they would face death.  They should have listened to her because in the end of the song someone else did wear the garment and they were soon killed.
In song 4 I found the punishment of the little boy to be very cruel, but I guess that was something common back then.  Bringing this idea to this day and age I can completely understand the anger a parent would have if there child all of a sudden decided to switch religions and forget everything they were raised to believe in.  If I did this sort of action my parents would be extremely disappointed in me.  The theme in this song is also power.  The little boy did not care about following the rules that his parents set for him.  He wanted to do what was right for him.  The holy Mary in this song was also seen as a powerful figure and the boy was intrigued by this and was kind of caught up in her spell.
The role of Mary in each of these songs is someone who is very powerful and likes telling people what to do with there lives.
Especially in song 4 religion plays a key part in the whole plot.  I think it is important to believe in something and follow the customs of a particular religion, I just think it is hard to go against what you have been raised on.  Meaning how can you just switch religions so easily when you've been raised Jewish your whole life.  There two totally different religions with different customs.

Troubadours/ Trobairitz

After reading the assigned readings for tomorrow I chose two poems from each passage that I found to be quite interesting.  The first one being on page 147 of the Trobairitz.  This poem that I selected is from lines 9-17.  The poems theme is about moving on from rejection and loss of interest.  The pour guy here just lost the love of his life and does not know how to handle the situation.  He seems to be sick of her showing no interest in him and is just in distraught.  I ind this part of the readings to be interesting because girls always assume that the guy is the bad one in the relationship and that everything that went wrong in the relationship is the guys fault.  In most situations that is the case, but this poem made me see the other side and it was really the girl who was doing all the heart ache.  The second poem I chose to discuss from Troubadours was on page 85 numeral two.   The theme in this poem is again coping with heartache.  I felt that I could personally relate to this poem.  I really feel like most men in this world have no respect for women. Maybe it has to do with the selection of men at this University, but none of them can be trusted.  They're all just looking for one thing and will do anything to get it even if it means hurting a girl you really like.    They say they care about you and that they want this relationship to evolve and in the end it is all just talk and they screw you over some way some how.  Just like in the poem she was so in love with this guy and what does he do? He cheats on her because one girl just isn't enough for him.  I don't understand guys.  Why do they have to cheat? Cant they just simply end things with the girlfriend and then meet someone new.  It has to do with confidence and security.  Guys cheat mostly because they obviously don't have feelings for the person anymore or they just want the best of both worlds, but I realized something else this weekend. I realized that guys cheat because they are extremely insecure with there own feelings.  They automatically assume that the girl must be talking to a bunch of guys so they feel in order to gain the control back I'm going to cheat on her before she even gets the chance to do it to me.  Its like the guy would rather hurt her before he evers allows her to hurt him.
These two poems relate because they both have to do with one person hurting the other person.  When it comes to be a gender thing, I think that the guy does get most of the blame for things because they are truly the ones who are messing up the relationship most of the time, but I also think girls should take responsibility for there own actions as well.  I've realized that through some rocky relationships because I'm for sure not perfect and I have done things that hurt the one I loved.  I think being in love is a great thing but when its abused it can turn into a nightmare. The worst feeling I have ever felt is getting over someone you love.  Its so hard too because you care about that person so much and you really like them, but they just don't treat you right.  It's hard to just let it go.

Arabic Poetry

1) While reading The Dove's Necklace I picked up on two themes that interested me.  The first one being passion and the second theme I found in the readings was anger.  I think in any relationship involving two people there is always lots of passion.  When I say passion I mean an extreme love for that other person. Passion is that feeling when you cant even be away from your significant other for more then a minute.  Passion can also relate to physical love too.  Usually when passion occurs between a couple both people involved have it for one another, but in some cases such as the one in the readings only he had passion for her and she was not reciprocating the feelings.  She kept her options open and was still looking for Mr. Right.  I found anger to be a big theme in the readings because the man could not win her love.  He stated that he would basically do anything to be next to her and if he couldn't be then he thought about death. I can understand why he felt angry and would do something so dramatic.  People these days feel the same way when they have feelings for someone, but the other person does not.  They might not threaten death, but they will sure try anything to just be with that person.
2) I thought the themes that I found in the readings carried over in the poetry.  For example the poem on page 40.  The poem talks highly about passion between two people or in this case just one person.  In the poem he expresses his feelings to her.  What I interpreted from it was that he was expressing his love to her and she basically just turned him down.  When she turned him down he became jealous, which brought out his anger and aggravation because he just wants to be with her and she is just looking for Mr. Right.  The other poem that I found is on page 41.  The man tries so hard to make her fall in love with him that he would do anything to just be next to her.  His anger brought him to the idea of even killing himself if he could not be with her.  He also seems to be quite obsessed with her, which is very creepy.  I can now understand why she is not interested in him.  Women always want what they cant have and I think its the same for men.  He's obsessing over her because shes not jumping right into his arms.

Ovid's books 4 and 6

The two myths that I chose to discuss are the Minydes and Arachne.  The myth of Minydes is an interesting one.  It is the tale of three sisters who decided to go against the norm and not worship the Dionysus. All of the women are ordered to stop what ever they are doing to worship Dionysus when it is the appropriate time to do so.  When it was time to do so the three sisters just went about there everyday normal activities including work.  Dionysus did not like this and he punished them by turning them into bats.  He then proceeded to invite them to his ritual ceremony but they declined the offer.  The god got even more mad at them and he himself decided to metamorphose himself into three different animals.  A bull, a lion, and a panther.  This drove the three sisters to a state of madness and they were soon eager to honor the god.  In the myth about Arachne I see similar concepts.   Arachne as well did not like what the goddess of wisdom had to say to her so and did not acknowledge her.  The goddess got mad and challenge Arachne and another weaver to compete.  The mortal ends up making a better tapestry and Arachne is furious because the person was only a mortal.  She rips up the tapestry and destroyed the girls face.  The goddess was then turned into a spider.  There is common theme between these two myths.  The theme that is common in both would be disobeying the gods and going against the norm.  I feel like in both myths the women were determined to be something different from what the gods wanted them to be.  They did not care about rebelling and not honoring the gods.  They lived there life the way they wanted to, until they finally got punished for being I guess a rebel.  They were punished both by being turned into an animal thats what I found to be most common between the two.  Punishing them this way I feel like made sense because they misbehaved when they were there human selves so now that they are these animals either they continue to behave poorly or change.  Another though I had especially relating to the myth of Arachne is that I found it ironic that she was turned into a spider because she weaves and spiders weave webs.

Ovid's Metamorphoses book one and three

1. After reading the text I would interpret the opening as something that is believable.  What I got from it is that the gods did not create the earth or none of those bible stories are true.  Evolution created the world.  I agree that it is chaos because in a way there is no rules.  You cant control the things that happen naturally, but then eventually god stepped in and put his touches on things.  I think the major themes, ideas and concepts that Ovid presents here in book one is love and the creation of just life.  Throughout the book Ovid worked with god to create the world basically.  Each section of the book was a different part of the world like the winds, and the oceans.  Also he created these different ages like the iron age where families would fight and even the gold age where we saw trust and rightfully moral things.  All of book one is an example of life.  People everyday go through things like this where they are fighting with there families or they show complete loyalty to them.  Also book one shows what it's like to have a job, which is just like the real world.  Many people need to obtain jobs in order to survive and provide.  Another theme that I found present in the book was love.  Like falling in love and having to pursue that person you have fallen for.  In the book Apollo's pursuit for Daphne did not quite work out successfully.

2. The initial myths of this text raised similar issues to those we found in Genesis.  I found the stories to be quite similar actually.  Both texts talked about the creation of the world, like how Adam and eve came to be and the garden.  Also in the book of Genesis the people had to endure a lot of test.  Test about loyalty and family.  They did not care if they killed a brother or two.  I feel that is how the book of Ovid is.  The way he explain the creation of the world is similar but not exactly the same, but the people in the stories are definitely faced with test to prove family bonds.  I think the most original thing that Ovid presents in his myths is that when he explains the creation of the world he has broken it up into different sections.  Like first came this and then that and he said that god was not completely responsible for the creation.  Also when he explains the different ages like, iron, gold, and silver.  I found that to be unique and more realistic to what real life is like.

3. As simple as this question would be to answer I found it not to be that simple.  When you think of someone falling in love you think its between two people, but in book 3 that was not quite the case.  At first he attempted to fall in love with another human being but got turned away.  Narcissus's mentor told him that before he could fall in love with someone else he needed to fall in love with himself.  He fell in love with his reflection when he looked into the pool of water.  I really like the meaning of this because it is true.  You can't fall in love and give your 100 percent attention on someone else without knowing your own true self and being comfortable with who you are.  Those are the building blocks to being in a relationship.  Imagine if you had insecurities going into a relationship or could never trust someone due to past relationships.  Your current relationship would be a disaster.  I could also understand why this might be bad thing loving yourself over someone else.  In a way you become selfish and to into yourself.  There might not even be enough room for you to love someone else because your so self involved with your own life.

Books 16-20 Books 21-24

Topic 4
The character Arnaeus nicknames Irus was introduced in book 18.  He himself is a beggar and he works with the suitors who have taken over Odysseus kingdom. When Irus was wondering around in Ithaca he came across Odysseus, but he was disguised as a beggar.  Irus had no idea it was Odysseus he thought is was just another beggar walking in his territory.  He didn't like that so he started to insult the him aggressively.  As they continued to verbally abuse one another one of the suitors who was watching this says they should just fight it out and the winner will be given food.  So they begin to fight and of course Odysseus being much stronger he took Irus out and threatened him if he was mean to Beggars again that he would kill him next.  To me Irus seems like a person who would do anything just to get by.  I also think he would do anything to feel accepted amongst the suitors. In a way I sort of feel bad for him because he's living an unfortunate life and he comes off to people as not such a nice person.
Topic 5
The texts treatment of Penelope is not so great.  She is not made out to be this bright, pretty, faithful wife. The closer Odysseus is to returning home I guess the more and more people are getting infuriated with the suitors.  Athena projects this idea to Penelope that she should give herself to the suitors and make them want her.  This is part of Athena's plan to make Odysseus even more angry with the suitors so he would want to kill them.  I think the texts makes Penelope look like she is easily manipulated by Athena.  Like if she is told to do something she most likely will do it, but also in a way it is helping her and Odysseus get back there kingdom.  When Penelope is questioning Odysseus about whether it is her husband or not she talks about this dream she had.  When I was reading it, it seemed so bizarre and I thought she was talking nonsense, but the dream actually came true.  So it turns out that the texts was making her out to be a little out of the box, but really she wasn't.
Topic 1
There is symbolism of Odysseus bow that is mentioned in book 21.  As stated before, Penelope will marry the first suitor who can shoot an arrow through the holes of six axes.  She takes Odysseus bow and brings it to the suitors to see if they can string it and then shoot the arrow.  There is no surprise that none of them can do it.  Odysseus still disguised as someone else takes the bow, strings it, and then shoots the arrow through all six axes.  Now Penelope has to keep to her word and marry him/reunite with Odysseus.  I think this was a smart move for Odysseus in order to persuade Penelope back into his life.  It shows how willing he is to do anything to get his love back.  
Topic 3
There is a huge symbolism of the bed that is mentioned in book 23.  After the fight had broken out between the suitors and Odysseus many of them were killed.  Eurycleia goes to tell Penelope what has just happened and she does not believe it.  She thinks that the gods are playing some sort of trick on her.  I would believe that too because I think she was becoming accustomed to the way she has been living while Odysseus has been gone and now all of a sudden the suitors are all dead.  It probably surprised her. She insists on having her bed moved, but she then hears a mans voice saying it can not be moved because it is made from an olive tree, which the whole house has been constructed around.  She immediately knows its Odysseus talking to her because he would be the only to know about these facts.  Penelope is happy to finally be reunited with her husband.  

books 11-15

Question one
In book 11 Odysseus's descents into hades.  I interpreted this descent metaphorically as a real descent into Odysseus's past as well in a way a descent into after life.  I say this because as he travels into hades he is forced to make sacrifices which will then force him to speak to the spirits of the dead.  These people are crewman, gods, and even family members of Odysseus.  These spirits tell him there stories of how they passed and they also ask about there own family members who are still living.  For example Odysseus's mother returns to tell Odysseus about his kingdom and why she passed away.  She said she could not stay alive anymore because of her illness and wait for him to return to the land.  Odysseus is overwhelmed by all this contact with the dead.  I think it makes him relive some things that he does not want to remember like the war in Troy.  When Odysseus arrives at Hades he speaks to his mother.  He speaks to her because  she wants to know what has happened to her kingdom.  She is curious to know who has taken it over since Odysseus has left.  She also wants to find out more about his wife and son.  I also think they spoke because he felt some sort of incompleteness.  He missed her.
Question 4
Eumaeus in a way represents Odysseus's friend.  I say this because as soon as Odysseus arrrives he is greeted with hospitatlity.  Meaning he is offered food and a nice warm place to stay.  Eumaeus asks Odysseus questions that would distinguish a friendship, but Odysseus refuses to tell the truth and lies about who he actually is.  He is pretending to be someone else and tells Eumaeus that he has already ventured back home.  It doesn't make sense to me why he wouldn't tell the truth.  Maybe because he didn't want Eumaeus to make a big deal about it or maybe just didn't want the attention on him.  The reason for the move from the seashore to the hut was because that was where the pigs were.  He was protecting them.  After reading book 14 the transition represents excepting his past and moving forward.  Although Odysseus did not reveal himself of who he really was he was able to see how much of a good friend Eumaeus was.  I think that brought ease and comfort to Odysseus.  I feel like as the text continues to build and build Odysseus starts to except his past.

Books 6-10

Question one

After reading the assigned readings, we are introduced to Calypso.  She is one of the goddesses and holds Odysseus captive on her island for seven years.  While he is there she is her immortal husband.  They take part in things that a married couple would take part in.  Specifically sleeping together.  As this relationship continues Odysseus begins to feel bad about what he has been doing and wants to return home to be with his wife Penelope.  Calypso is a very seductive goddess as well as being maybe like a hopeless romantic.  Meaning that she has really persuaded Odysseus to have this fake relationship with her because one she wants it and also I think because she knows its forbidden.  He island represents this home away from home.  Odysseus misses his home with his wife and Calypso has made it her job to create the atmosphere that he has been longing for.  In a way I feel like she is the other woman.  He has his life at home and then this life with her on her island that no one knows about.  It very secretive.  I can understand why Calypso would be an ambiguous character because at times she seems like she really cares about Odysseus and other times it seems as if she is working with the other gods to like plot something.  Possibly his death.  Calypso portrays an anti-penelope because she is young and beautiful.  She also is very sexual and maybe more attentive then her.  Or another way of looking at is that she does not take Penelope and Odysseus's marriage seriously because if she had she would have never made moves on him.
Question three
Book eight introduces Demodocus, the blind singer.  This book introduces the important theme of competition.  I say this because whenever Odysseus stops at these island on his journey home he is always faced with some sort of task that will either set him free and be excepted by the gods, or end in death or permanent stay.  For example the athletic games.  I think there is also another theme in this section of the assigned readings.  It is reliving your past.  As Odysseus goes on this journey back home he faces a lot of challenges.  In Book eight for example when Demodocus starts singing it is extremely painful for Odysseus to hear this because it reminds him of when he was fighting in Troy, but in a way these challenges are good because he is able to work through them and kind of gain a better understanding of things that he went through.  Demodocus becomes a key player in Odysseus's journey home because he reminds him of his past years.  I think in a way this whole journey is a growing experience for him and Demodocus is finally letting those triggers out that will in a way help Odysseus grow.  

Odyssey books 1-5

Question 3
In the  beginning chapters of the Odyssey we are introduced to the character Telemachus.  He is the son of Odysseus and is only a young teenager.  He feels responsible for the kingdom his father has left behind because he does not want anything bad happening to it.  For example keeping it from the suitors.  Having the responsibility of protecting the kingdom Telemachus has gained a lot of control and power, as well as confidence to stand up to people.  Although he has gained this high amount of confidence he still does not compare to his father.  Before Telemachus ventures on his journey he speaks to his mother and is very forward in what he says.  He says, " mother go back to your quarters and tend to your own tasks, the distaff and the loom, and keep the women working hard as well.  As for giving orders, men will see to that, but I most of all: I hold the reins of power in this house."  This quote really represents the power Telemachus has taken on.  He is the one who is in control and he expects everyone to obey him.
Question 4
I think it makes complete sense that we would hear Telemachus story before Odysseus.  I think this because in order to get to the really important things you need all the history/facts before.  Telemachus story is like the prelude to the Odyssey.  It talks about how his father has not returned back home and poor Telemachus a young teenager has been left to take control over his fathers kingdom.  It's a lot of pressure for such a young kid.  The story wants you to get familiar with him first rather then the father because Telemachus is an offspring of Odysseus so in a way if we get to know him first then we assume that Odysseus is similar in personality.

Chapters 37, 39-50

Topic one
The theme that I found to be most prominent in my readings was family feuds.  We see this through out the book of Genesis but it really caught my attention in chapter 37.  All I have to say is poor Joseph.  I honestly feel bad for him because it is not his fault that his father favors him more over his other siblings.  Because of this favoritism his brothers hated him.  They hated how he received a coat of many colors and they hated him because of the things he would lecture them about.  They started to feel as if Joseph thought lower of them, but he didn't at all.  The brothers decided to do something horrific to Joseph.  They thought about killing him which has been a common act throughout Genesis, but decided to sell him instead and pretend that he was killed by some animal.  I do not agree with all of the favoritism that goes on in this story, but I can certainly relate to it.  Although I'm the second born in my family I do always feel like I am the favorite because I usually get what I want, but I do no that is not completely true because my older brother could get what ever he wants, he just never asks for anything, but all in all my parents do love both of us equally and I wish that was portrayed more in these mythical stories. 
Topic two
The second theme that I found to be interesting was death and forgiveness.  At the end of the chapter and the completion of the story Joseph dies and is finally with god.  His brothers are sadden by his death because they know they weren't the kindest to him.  Joseph is quite understanding and has no grudge on his brothers for treating him poorly he basically forgives them.  I think this takes a very unselfish person to forgive so easily.  I know of people who have had problems with there siblings and it takes some time for them to forgive one another.  I would be the same way.  I don't forgive that easily especially when I have been betrayed so badly.

Chapters 25-28, 32-33

Question 1
There are many problems that arise from these two firstborn sons.  Some examples are that the Lord made one stronger then the other.  Esau was a skillful hunter, a man of the field, while Jacob was a quiet man, dwelling in tents.  Each son was favored but one person in particular.  Isaac loved Esau because he ate of his game.  Rebekah loved Jacob.  I think twinship seems to compound the problems we have already seen with brothers because each son should have been equally loved by the same person and by creating extreme differences between the two, that would cause some sort of jealousy amongst each of the brothers.
Question 2
Both Isaac and Rebekah are parents who are looking for satisfaction out of there two sons.  Except Isaac favors Esau and Rebekah favors Jacob.  I would say that Isaac is a more straight forward kind of father.  He expects a lot out of his first born son but not so much out of Jacob.  Therefor he does favor one more then the other.  I think Rebekah feels bad for Jacob and wants him to be excepted by his father too.  She tells Jacob to go hunt for game and prepare it and then your father will bless you.  Jacob ends up hunting it and dresses up like Esau to trick his father into blessing him instead of Esau.  I dont blame him for doing what he did he just wants to be excepted by his father.
Question 3
When Jacob has his dream he dreamt that

there was a ladderb set up on the earth, and the top of it reached to heaven. And behold, the angels of God were ascending and descending on it! 13And behold, the LORD stood above itc and said, “I am the LORD, the God of Abraham your father and the God of Isaac. The land on which you lie I will give to you and to your offspring. 14Your offspring shall be like the dust of the earth, and you shall spread abroad to the west and to the east and to the north and to the south, and in you and your offspring shall all the families of the earth be blessed. 15Behold, I am with you and will keep you wherever you go, and will bring you back to this land. For I will not leave you until I have done what I have promised you.  To me this dream meant that Jacob had finally met with god face to face.  He had finally reached that place of acceptance of him and he was meeting him for the first time.  He also realized that god has been following him everywhere watching his every move making sure that god keeps to his promise.  Its a very powerful thing knowing the one person who has control over everything is right by your side.  I think throughout the whole story of Genesis each person of the family was searching for acceptance from god and they all had to prove something to him in order to be accepted by him, whether it was good or bad.

Cahpters 12, 16-18, 21-23

Question 1
Abram/Abraham reacts the way he does before going to Egypt because I think he is scared of what he might face once he gets there.  Another reason why I think he reacts the way he does because he is lying. I think he is scared of getting caught in his own lie, which does end up happening.  Instead of lying from the beginning about his wife pretending to be his sister he should have told the truth even if the consequences were not so good.  By him lying his consequences were worse I think.  When a person is meeting someone for the first time they want to impress and they would do anything in order for that to happen such as lying, but lying doesn't benefit anyone.  It is best to be who you really are and always tell the truth because it gets you further in life.
Question 2
When reading the story from Sarahs perspective I believe she remains quite because she is just obeying her husband.  By obeying him it is somewhat protecting him.  Another way of looking at her perspective is that maybe secretly she wanted to be with Pharaoh.  I don't think she gained anything here in this situation.  Lying just got both her and Abraham into bigger trouble.
Question 4
I think god test Abraham with killing his son because he is the ruler and whatever he says should go.  God was seeing if Abraham was loyal to him and willing to do whatever he told him to do.  By listening to what god ordered him to say is in a way really believing in him.  God now sees Abraham as a loyal follower.  I think god needs more proof from Abraham about how loyal he really is even though he has already done so much because its like the constant reassurance.  People in power need to know 24/7 how powerful they really are because it builds up there confidence.  The story really states that Abraham is very loyal to the divine one.  I think Abraham believes that if he does all of these things for god then he will somewhat be rewarded.  Like for example

By myself I have sworn, declares the LORD, because you have done this and have not withheld your son, your only son, 17I will surely bless you, and I will surely multiply your offspring as the stars of heaven and as the sand that is on the seashore. And your offspring shall possess the gate of hisd enemies, 18and in your offspring shall all the nations of the earth be blessed, because you have obeyed my voice."

chapters 4,6-9

Question 2
I think the story says a lot about justice.  Cain had killed is brother Abel over jealousy, which is not an acceptable action especially by a family member.  Cain deserved every punishment that he received even if he did think it was a bit harsh.  If that sort of action went on today the murderer would not get any special treatment, they would be placed in jail for life.  I think the story is kind of a set-up against Cain from the start because the Lord had favored Abel.  He had regard for what Abel brought him, but none for Cain, so that is clearly going to start some trouble and favoritism.
Question 3
After reading the conversation between god and Cain I would say that Cain is trying to deny what he has done also he is saying that he is not responsible for what ever Able does, he is his own man, but god knows what he has done because Ables blood cries out to god from the soil.  God can sense this because he made Cain a farmer.  Cain works the land everyday and that is where he killed Able.  Its as if his spirit was left there and will haunt Cain while he is mending to the land.
Question 5
I think that civilization rises from the family of a murderer in the story because when Cain was punished for what he had done and then god had punished the earth by destroying it.  He realized that maybe his actions were to sever.  God had taken his anger to an extreme level and I think that when everything was destroyed he came to his senses and was like that probably wasnt a good idea because now there is nothing left. Its like you dont realize whats missing until it is finally gone.  God made a mistake and promised he would never do that again therefor he recreated everything.

Genesis Ch.1-3

Question four
After reading Genesis the text presents first woman and man to be brought to earth to serve a purpose.  For the man his purpose was to work the land and if he worked the land he was able to eat off of any tree except from the tree of knowledge.  Clearly he gave into temptation and was easily persuaded by the woman and ate from the tree of knowledge.  To me this shows that the man is doe not take orders seriously and freely does what he pleases.  The woman was brought to earth to keep the man company and of course reproduce.  The woman is as foolish as the man and she also does not follow orders.  She was easily persuaded by the serpent to take fruit from the tree of knowledge.  Because both man and woman made poor decisions they would face harsh consequences and I would have to agree with god because they both knew they weren't supposed to eat from that tree but they did anyway.  Its interesting to see what consequences they were willing to face just to gain the benefits from the tree of knowledge.  It is a bit selfish and greedy.
Question five
I think the tree of knowledge is something to be desired.  It brings temptation.  Both the man and woman look at this tree and they see something that is quite beautiful to the eyes and is appealing to them because of the things it offers.  I think that knowledge is forbidden to the point of death because god wants to be in control of the things he has created.  If the man and woman had knowledge then what role would god play on them.  The less they know the better off they are.  I think that the tree is something lovely to look at because it is a form of temptation for man and woman.   I definitely think there is a link between vision, desire, and knowledge.  They know they cant have anything from it because they will face harsh punishment, but are willing to break the rules to fulfill there needs.
Question six
This punishment was bound to happen because they clearly disobeyed what god had told them.  They both let there temptations get the best out of them.  I think when surrounded by such beautiful things and have rules to follow by it sometimes is hard to not break them.  Usually people do what they want in order to get something that they are desiring no matter what the punishments may be.  If they had stayed within Eden eternally I do think this life would reflect the human experience because everyday people are faced with temptations.  Some avoid them and some fulfill them.