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BOOK REVIEW
Thomas Cayhill's The Gift Of the Jews
Chapter 1
The book begins by commenting on the written word, which was carved in Sumer of Uruk, the world's first civilization and perhaps earliest city. It is stated that this writing "invention" came out of necessity to be able to keep and reference accounts and transactions. Thus, written symbols took the place of human memory. When reading further into this chapter and getting some insight into the Sumerian people, I can now somewhat understand their desire to improve recording methods and account summaries. Cayhill praises the Sumerians by describing their relatively "sophisticated" lifestyle. They were advanced in the areas of farming, mathematics, husbandry, and medicine, as well as possessing many other skills and talents. Overall, the Sumerians are described as practical and down-to-earth businesspeople.
This chapter brings up an interesting and ironical point that although the Sumerians, "the black-headed people" invented writing, the instrument that makes history possible, they themselves had no sense of history. Partly because of this, Sumerian stories and tales miss the sense of development that has become the norm in all modern works. Cayhill relates their story-telling techniques to a young child repeating a joke they heard, yet the punch-line is of no importance to them and usually there isn't one. Aside from their lousy literary structure, Cayhill says that we today enjoy these stories because we can associate some of our emotions with theirs, and therefore feel closer to them.
A solid portion of the chapter is dedicated to summarizing a Sumerian work that has perhaps impacted our culture more than any of their other literatures. The story is called the Epic of Gilgamesh, a legend of a hero called Gilgamesh, the king of Uruk during the third millennium B.C. This story begins with a piece of poetry that describes and glamorizes the city of Uruk. The story includes themes of loneliness, friendship, love, teamwork, lust, and other important topics that surround our culture today. Towards the end, Gilgamesh loses his dear friend Enkidu and, after seven days of grieving, he sets out to obtain the secret of immortality. The epic concludes when Gilgamesh finally finds the only mortal man who has been granted immortality (Ut-napishtim, who is the model for the biblical Noah) who offers him some advice that Cayhill believes to be the main lesson of this work. In short, Gilgamesh is told that no matter how hard he tries, he will not be able to avoid or escape death. He is advised by the alewife to enjoy life while he is still alive, to appreciate the things he has and those around him.
The chapter concludes with Cayhill describing similarities and differences between Sumerian qualities and those of our society today. He also says that portions of the Hebrew Bible have evolved from Sumerian times, emphasizing the tail of the primordial flood and the ark that preserved life.
Chapter
Chapter two begins by mentioning a topic that was discussed briefly during one of our lectures, which involves the idea that so many of the major aspects of our world move in a circular fashion. Namely, primitive humans looked to heaven and saw what Cayhill calls the "wheel of life," which revolved around the "hub of death." Cayhill mentions that a work was recently found in Australia that is perhaps the earliest human art, about 75,000 years old. This piece consists of a series of circles which in Cayhill's mind, acknowledges the patter of the "ever-turning wheel." Animals are mentioned which were thought to be earth animals manifested by the moon, or, "moon-creatures." These include a snake, spider, bull, oyster with its pearl, snail, and a bear. Cayhill explains that however illogical it may seem to us, these theories produced by primitive man are the same as our attempts to fine some truth out there.
Cayhill then goes into the "begettings" of Terah, who are made up by Avram (Abraham), Nahor and Haran. He then goes into the journey of Terah, Avram, Lot and Sarai. They left from Ur of the Chaldeans, and set out for Canaan. However, they settled in the land of Harran, where Terah died. The question is brought up as to whether or not these citizens of Ur planned to settle in Harran instead of Canaan. The justification for such an argument lies in the fact that Terah and his family were well established int eh land of Ur. Why would they want to leave that for Canaan, a land where the people ate their meat raw and did not know how to bury their dead. Regardless of the intent, Cayhill moves on to include the excerpt of a voice coming to Avram, which probably took place in Harran. After being blessed and promised a great nation, Avram, along with Sarai and Lot, set out for Canaan. Cayhill brings up a point that no matter how far away they travel from their original home, their Sumerian heritage went with. Cayhill then relates this to an insight that everyone can take away from this. Avram, Sarai and Lot "could no more escape this mind-set of their culture any more than we can escape ours. The lesson, in my eyes, is that things do not change overnight. One cannot leave a place and expect to rid himself/herself of all that he wants to leave behind. This perspective of the Sumerian includes, as mentioned earlier, the emphasis on and importance of business. Another viewpoint, stated well by Ut-napishtim and other Sumerian proverbs, revolves around the selfishness and impurity of man. "Man behaves badly," and "Never has a sinless child been born."
After the death of Terah, the remaining three set out on their journey. Avram is described as a childless man who is sent by his god to make his "great nation," although he does not know where he's headed. Cayhill then depicts him as the chosen leader who must emerge from the people, who know that everything ends in death, and teach them to dream of something new in the future. It is mentioned that virtually every population of peoples would have scorned Avram's attempts and shook their heads in disbelief.
Chapter
In the beginning of chapter three, Cahill does his best to encapsulate the power of God. All dialogue between God and human is initiated by God. "This God" is not the main character of a myth, nor is he a typical "ancient divinity" or "achetypal gesturer." Rather, he is an actual personality who has, by changing the course of life as humans know it, made life and everything that surrounds it, unpredictable.
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