The Epic of Gilgamesh Unit Outline

Mr. Steel

 

The Epic of Gilgamesh is an epic poem from Babylonia and is among the earliest known literary works. In this unit of study, students will read three installments of a children’s series that retells important elements of the original tale prior to reading a translation of the original cuneiform text. Students will be expected to assess the effectiveness of these children’s renditions and the manner in which they change the original meaning of the story. Students will complete assignments that examine the manner in which elements of the Gilgamesh epic have been adapted by later Greek mythologists and in the Judeo-Christian Flood Narrative. Students will be expected to present their literary inquiries to the class. Finally, all students will write one short quiz on the epic, as well as the unit final.

 

Work and Assessment: All written submissions must be in complete sentences and have proper paragraph structure, unless otherwise specified.

 

Major/Minor Assignments:

1. All students will write a one page, one-sided, double spaced summary of each of the three children’s versions of the Epic of Gilgamesh. These summaries will be important so that students can do their best job on assignment 2.

 

2. All students will write a one page, one side, double-spaced, review of any or all of the children’s story versions of the Epic of Gilgamesh. Their reviews ought to include the following elements:

(i) What did you like about the storybook(s)? Why?

(ii) What did you dislike about the storybook(s)? Why?

(iii) What was added to the storybook rendition that was not included in the original? Why?

(iv) What was left out of the storybook rendition that was included in the original? Why?

(v) Rate the book(s) on a scale of 1 to 10 (ten being the best).

 

3. All students will be required to complete at least ONE reading/analysis of a secondary text. Students will read the text, and they will respond to the following questions:

(i) Provide a synopsis/summary of the secondary text you have just read. Who are the characters? What happens to them?

(ii) Look for connections between this source text and the earlier Epic of Gilgamesh. Make a T-Chart that illustrates 5 similarities and 5 differences between the two stories.

 

4. All students will present at least ONE reading/analysis of a secondary text. These presentations may be done in groups (3 people maximum) or individually. They may take the following forms:

·          a formal speech or lecture

·          an artistic depiction

·          a musical interpretation

·          a dramatic display

All presentations ought to answer the following questions:

(i) Provide a synopsis/summary of the secondary text you have just read. Who are the characters? What happens to them?

(ii) What do you think are the connections between the earlier Gilgamesh epic and this particular secondary text?

 

*** In order to encourage student achievement, the higher mark between Assignments 3 and 4 will be recorded as the major assignment, and the lower one will be considered as a minor assignment.

 

Tests/Quizzes:

1. After reading a translation of the original epic, students will be expected to complete a short quiz on the Epic of Gilgamesh in multiple choice format. This quiz will give them practice for the more aggressive, in-depth Final Test at the end of the unit.

 

2. In order to help students gain practice in the multiple choice test format that provincial examinations follow, all students are required to write the Multiple Choice Unit Final. Students should re-read and try to recall all the particulars of plot and character in the Epic, as well as be familiar with the pantheon of gods as found in Babylonian/Sumerian mythology. Some questions will also require that students have listened attentively to other students’ presentations on secondary texts.