World domination begins here

Isa, She/Her I watch tv and movies all day.  I like fanfics and food. that's it.

[disaster-punk-deactivated202112]

[doppelgangerleaverite]

can anyone on this gay ass website give me an opinion on which translation of the epic of gilgamesh i should read? ive been wanting to read it for ages but theres a number of common translations and i know translations can make or break a story; i dont want to start with the wrong one

[gilgamesh-enjoyer]

I've read a few so I can offer recommendations! I started with the Sandars translation, which is a good starting point but a pretty early translation. Benjamin Foster's translation is one of my favourites, and the version I read (Second Norton Critical Edition) includes some really interesting discussion essays with it. Andrew George's translation received an update a couple of years ago so is up to date with Foster's translation, though I prefer how the language flows in Foster's.

I would also recommend Gilgamesh Retold by Jenny Lewis for a translation with a more modern poetic take.

[perrenlore]

GILGAMESH TRANSLATION MASTERPOST:

Benjamin Foster’s Gilgamesh condenses all the different tablets we’ve found together to make one cohesive narrative which is way less intimidating and therefore my go-to if you want something that feels cohesive while also sticking very close to the language of the original. 10/10

Andrew George is the most thorough and up-to-date, and sticks as close to the text as you can get. It does, however, separate out all the different tablets, and feels very unedited in its style. Definitely not a “pretty” version. 10/10 cuz he’s a legend and this is the most definitive scholarly edition but don’t start with it.

Maureen Kovacs has a lovely translation with some very interesting footnotes on word choices. Her Ninsun is absolutely incredible and if you want to cry your eyes out over Gilgamesh’s fate that’s the one for you. It’s one step up from Foster’s in terms of poetic-ness but still pretty close to the original. 8/10

Sophus Helle is more poetic than Kovacs but BRILLIANT, one of my favourite Enkidus and his Shamhat is wonderful. Top favourite of all time. This is a very good starting point. 9/10

I wouldn’t recommend Sandars simply because it’s prose, and also condenses the twelfth tablet into a nice tidy ending that doesn’t really work with the Standard Babylonian narrative. 6/10

Lewis’ Gilgamesh Retold is more of a poetic retelling than a translation; it’s beautiful but definitely not a starting point. Sweet and gentle Enkidu though, very charming. 7/10

Stephen Mitchell I’m not a fan of. He smooths the poem out into something tame and very expected. This is my personal bias but I really dislike his Shamhat. His Enkidu and Gilgamesh are also explicitly more like brothers, which is a valid interpretation but also again not one I lean towards. 5/10

Herbert Mason’s Gilgamesh has some stunning moments in it (Enkidu! They do not know you like I know you!) However it is nowhere near the real text BUT closer than Lewis’. Changes the ending of the poem so it’s about Gilgamesh mourning Enkidu rather than mourning his own mortality; a much sadder conclusion with less resolution than in the Standard Babylonian. 7/10

BONUS ROUND:

Derek Hines’ play GILGAMESH is fucking DERANGED guys. Ten Gilgillion out of ten.

[casualglow]

had a technical test today for a job, let's see if they call me back 😬😬😬

[casualglow]

to be fair to them I couldn't get the data segmentation to work no matter how hard I tried so I just left it like that

[east-of-nowhere]

“Home is where the trees look normal” is the sweetest, saddest, most nostalgic truth I’ve ever heard.

[yohjimuse]

fog over water, isaac levitan, 1890s

[akrokus]

Inktober Day 8: GENGAR used NIGHT SHADE

omg i love gengar so much

[casualglow]

had a technical test today for a job, let's see if they call me back 😬😬😬

[nem23]

[sacred-portal]

[casualglow]

my bank is sending me increasingly more urgent emails about investing and stuff bc they probably have an alert on ppl with bank accounts that are rapidly approaching 0$

[casualglow]

it feels like I betray a beloved mutual when I reblog something early in my dash from someone who isn't my beloved mutual only to find out said beloved mutual reblogged it before and I could've reblogged it from them instead

[felipeiv]

[twilightrenaissance]

literally how can you hate this masterpiece 

[cheshireinthemiddle]

Never saw the movie, but this sounds like legitimate High Schooler dialogue.

Very rare in movies.

[captain-price-returns]

he’s sitting in his discomfort and interrogating whether his actions were worth the consequences… a great many of u could take notes

[ssluggishh]

when i tell you i laughed so hard my vision went black for a second

[casualglow]

all i ask for there to never be a shortage of videos of people glad Argentina lost

[casualglow]

idk what happened after Castiel went to super hell that's honestly where supernatural ended for me it's a shame we don't know more