A Lie of Omission

Bamsi Beyrek’s story is both interesting and really crazy. Several times throughout the story, Bamsi proves himself to be relatively observant but does not say anything about his observations – he keeps his head down and his mouth shut. In exchange for saving some merchants, he asks for the horse, club, and bow that they are supposed to bring back to his father as gifts for him. While they are willing to do so, if unhappy about it, Bamsi allows them to bring the items to him so that they will not get in trouble for losing them and so that his father can give them to him. Instead of claiming what they technically owe him and earning his name now that he has killed men, he allows himself to remain nameless instead of shaming the merchants.

               Bamsi also later conceals his encounter from his father when asked what kind of woman he wishes to marry. Rather than say that he met his betrothed in the woods or use her name when describing her, he allows his father to interpret his description into Banu Chichek. While marrying her certainly has its own repercussions (her brother’s overprotectiveness, specifically), I am focusing more specifically on the potential repercussions of Bamsi’s manipulation of his father. Are Bamsi’s omissions to his father more likely to have beneficial or damaging consequences, and why?

To Hell and Back

I find that The Divine Comedy is one the greatest pieces of literature ever written. The text is full of references and culture to extents that I have yet to encounter in any other literature. In this text alone, we see the collision of Greek, Roman, and Christian culture, and I believe that this is what makes the text so rich. In none of the texts we've read so far have we seen so many references in one text. The crossing of these cultures is interesting because it once again drudges up the question of how the hell these texts get crossed without modern communication! It's a question that bothers me even though I know that I'll probably never get a straight answer or any answer at all.

Another thing about The Inferno that I find quite interesting is the idea that people born before Christ are stuck in Hell. Here's one question I pose: Is this fair? Should these people be given the chance to accept Christ in the after life? No matter what you think, the bottom line is that they don't have this opportunity -- or at least most of them don't. Along with this, it is worth discussing the fact that there are a few Biblical characters that ascend to Purgatory. In my opinion, this is fair because they did something significant to allow for the to get out of Hell and into Purgatory.

I leave you all with these questions to ponder:

1. Why/How do you think these cultures got crossed in such a way?
2. What is the importance of having Virgil guide Dante through Hell? Is it comparable to anything else you have read?
3. Why has The Inferno, or even The Divine Comedy, stood the test of time?