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This test consists of 5 multiple choice questions, 5 short answer questions, and 10 short essay questions.

Multiple Choice Questions

1. When sent from the Underworld, why is Namtar unable to locate Nergal?
(a) Namtar is sent to look for him in the wrong places.
(b) Nergal has been disguised.
(c) Nergal is dead.
(d) Namtar has been blinded.

2. Who do the myths revolve around?
(a) The gods of Mesopotamia.
(b) The gods of Rome.
(c) The gods of Greece.
(d) The gods of China.

3. How does Ellil first punish mankind in the story of Atrahasis?
(a) He orders a drought.
(b) He ignores their prayers for children.
(c) He sends a flood.
(d) He unleashes the Sebitti.

4. How many figures are contained within this book?
(a) Three.
(b) Two.
(c) Five.
(d) Four.

5. In what tradition where these myths originally related?
(a) Dance.
(b) Murals within the temples.
(c) Song.
(d) Oral tradition.

Short Answer Questions

1. What do the gods, at the end of Atrahasis's story, amend in every living human?

2. What section of the book is the table of contents for the book's figures?

3. How does Ereshkigal keep Nergal from killing her in the Amarna version?

4. In the final tablet of the Epic of Gilgamesh, what does Enkidu offer to retrieve for Gilgamesh?

5. In terms of population control, what do the gods agree to do with women?

Short Essay Questions

1. In the Mesopotamian myths discussed in this book, what early beliefs are depicted?

2. Why does Belet-ili bring Enkidu to life?

3. In the longer version of this story, what happens after Namtar fails to find Nergal outside of the Underworld?

4. How does Atrahasis initially save the world from ruin before the flood?

5. According to the author, why is it important that people understand the origins of several well-known stories as well as knowing more about the time period from which these stories were born?

6. How does Shamhat force Enkidu to meet Gilgamesh?

7. Describe Gilgamesh's journey to see Ut-napishtim (or Atrahasis)?

8. Describe Ishtar's journey to see her sister, Ereshkigal, in the Underworld.

9. How do the fates of Dumuzi and Belili explain the seasons and rituals of Mesopotamia?

10. According to the story of Atrahasis, how and why was man created?

(see the answer keys)

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