In studying the literature developed by ancient Near East civilizations, you will find a wide range of readings varying from The Epic of Gilgamesh to The Old Testament. I will give a brief overview to each of these readings from this time period found in the Bailkey and Lim textbook, as well as give their significance to the time period. First off, The Epic of Gilgamesh tells the story of a Sumerian king who, with companion Enkidu at his side, slays monsters to build up his reputation. When Enkidu dies after angering the gods, Gilgamesh then goes on a quest for achieving immortality. It is significant to the time because, it tells of the proper way an individual should relate to society during this time; the way the gods relate to man, the proper way to rule a people, and the proper way to obey a king, and what man owes to the gods. The Epic of the Flood is a Babylonian story that resembles that of the Bible's Noah and his ark. Utnapishtim learns of a great flood coming to wipe out all of the lands inhabitants and gains immortality from the gods for surviving the flood. The story is significant as it part of the Epic of Gilgamesh and describes how one can become immortal during the time, and perhaps godlike. The Reforms of Urukagina discusses the changes brought forth by Urukagina, the ruler of Laggash. His reforms call for erasing corruption in the lands, the first example of a judicial code. The Shamash Hymn reflects the view of their society toward the sun. It was a long hymn originally written in cuneiform, it is one of the wider known Mesopotamian religious writings. The Laws of Hammurabi discuss how justice should be administered, as well as how to regulate property, irrigation, slavery, marriage, trade, loans, wages, adoption and many other issues during the time. The Laws of Hammurabi are the longest and best organized of the law collections that survive from ancient Mesopotamia. The law collection itself is ma...