An Analysis of the Quotation "The Mills of The Gods Grind Slowly, but They Grind
Exceedingly Small"
The quotation “The mills of the gods grind slowly, but they grind exceedingly small,” could be compared to someone asking for something through prayer. This comparison is based on three beliefs. The first part of the quotation, “The mills of the gods...” refers to God's “prayer factory” where prayer requests are considered and acted upon. The second section, “The mills of the gods grind slowly...” is a reference to the way God takes His time in answering prayers. The third belief, ...they grind exceedingly small,” is interpreted as God's way of finally answering the prayers in the best possible way. While there are many different types of prayers, the most common type is a prayer of petition. These are prayers that ask God to do something or to give something that are truly desired or needed. God always hears every prayer that is lifted to the heavens. “The mills of the gods...” can be interpreted as synonymous to God's constant hearing and answering of the many prayers that come to Him. God weighs the practicality of each prayer, always keeping in mind His master plan for each person's life. He carefully considers these prayers in light of how each alternative will affect the petitioner's life and the lives of those around them. Then, in His divine wisdom He responds to these requests either directly or through other people. Very often, His answers are not all one would expect. In fact, His reply may be the exact opposite of what most would think to be best.
Many times people pray to God for something that is not immediately received. Due to this fact, they lose faith in the prayer process. They think
God has ignored them or is resentful of something that has been done. “The mills of the gods grind slowly...” could be interpreted as meaning that God takes His own precious time in answering prayers. The answer will be “no” if it is not in the Master's plan, yet God will give you something. It may not be exactly as requested, but His gift will always benefit in some way. Very often, people are quick to assume that their prayers are unanswered, only to find them answered much later on and in an entirely different manner than was anticipated.
God always answers prayers. They may be answered in ways that we could never imagine, but they will always be answered. The remainder of the quote, “
...they grind exceedingly small,” could be interpreted to mean when God answers
. ." (lines 5-7). In this, he tries to begin to explain that in order to truly live the fullest life possible, one must live simply; literally "driv[ing] life into a corner, and reduc[ing] it to its lowest terms" is the only way to achieve fullness. Later, he also states: "Let us spend one day as deliberately as Nature, and not be thrown off the track by every nutshell and mosquito’s wing that falls on the rails. Let us rise early and fast, or break fast, gently and without [disturbance]; let company come and let company go, let the bells ring and the children cry. . ." (lines 13-16). In this, he expresses that one should not let the daily disturbances of life affect oneself. Life should be lived with litle disturbance, and even such disturbances should not be taken as seriously. In choosing to give examples, he shows just how many things go on that one can be pestered with, and that one should choose to ignore them and let them pass by. He also states: "Let us settle ourselves, and work and wedge our feet downward through the mud
Early in the novel, Dimmesdale exclaims, goes on how “What can thy silence do for him, except to tempt him---yea, compel him, as it were---to add hypocrisy to sin?” in regardsing to his own sin (63). He knows what will happen to him if he endures his sin in private, but he is too weak at this point in the book to admit it. Dimmesdale knows how the parishioners will interpret these confessions: he is not blind to their looks of adoration. Dimmesdale enjoys being viewed as a saint, even though he knows he is a truly a sinner. The years of torture the minister receives are brought about by his own doing. If his supposed commitment to the community had stopped him from admitting his sin, he would have not been tortured. When Hester and Pearl stand with him during one of his nightly vigils on the scaffold, Pearl asks “Wilt thou stand here with mother and me, to-morrow noontide?”(139), to which Dimmesdale replies that he will not on account of his fear of being publicly exposed. Now Not only does the reader not onlynow understands that Dimmesdale is’s a coward, but he’s also a hypocritehipocrite as he refuses to admit to his sin when he knows that’s the only way he can fully get rid of
“I set in motion the fine machinery to attract his attention to my slighted charms.
Not only is it a brilliant Biblical reference, but also takes the “Tooth for a Tooth” ideal the Duke mentions near the end of the play and turns in on its head—often measuring opposites against opposites, rather than “like doth quit
Therefore, either petitionary prayer is pointless since it asks for what God is going to carry out anyway, or it is pointless because it asks for God to carry out something he would never do.
mentioned in a class discussion about the parable of talents. This one phrase that stood out to
“Your wickedness makes you as it were heavy as lead” Jonathan Edward wrote in his sermon, “Sinner in the hands of an Angry God”. This is an example of a simile. He wants to let people know that god has complete power over you and he keeps people away from being wicked.
In, Gilgamesh, the quest for immortality is important in order for Gilgamesh to cheat death, after his one and only best friend’s quick fatal fall to illness. Gilgamesh being two-thirds God and one-third human has many great obstacles to overcome, especially with the Gods. The search for immortality and overall self may be a great accomplishment for Gilgamesh to overcome.
Perhaps one of the main reasons the Epic of Gilgamesh is so popular and has lasted such a long time, is because it offers insight into the human concerns of people four thousand years ago, many of which are still relevant today. Some of these human concerns found in the book that are still applicable today include: the fear and concerns people have in relation to death, overwhelming desires to be immortal, and the impact a friendship has on a person’s life. It does not take a great deal of insight into The Epic of Gilgamesh for a person to locate these themes in the story, and even less introspection to relate to them.
The exaggeration was apparent in all of the different animals and was to clearly highlight their identity. Each character had an easily identifiable personality and this helped the children in understanding the character’s motives, and grow to feel comfortable with these extreme personalities, which relates to Bill English’s quote, as he states that children “practice listening and understanding and engaging with people that are not just like ourselves”. The audience interaction in Cranky Bear was very effective, as a result of Vygotsky’s Zones of Proximal Development. Vygotsky’s Zones of Proximal Development involves three different levels in which an individual is able to accomplish a task, with the zone seen in this performance being the one in which “learning is dependent on interventions by a more competent other”(Kozulin, 2003, p.41). When the actors called upon an audience member to help them with a task, they clearly showed what they required them to do, and so the participant was able to effectively accomplish the goal. Cranky Bear used theatrical techniques which educated it’s audience in different ways, whilst Possum Magic featured techniques which relied on prior knowledge and instinct to effectively
This story teaches that death is an unavoidable and inevitable circumstance of mortal life, which is the most significant precept Gilgamesh learns. Gilgamesh is resentful that only the gods can exist eternally. Gilgamesh is frightened by the idea of his own destiny. Mesopotamian divinity proposes a perception of an afterlife; the deceased spend their period being dead in a netherworld. Death is inevitably entwined within the structure of creation. Life is also entwined, although mortals die, humanity maintains to live. The message that Gilgamesh returns with from his adventure is not primarily about death, but about life. Fragment of a tablet of The Epic of Gilgamesh is figure C down
Through the many of mankind’s tales of adventure the search for immortality is a very common theme. Many heroes have made it the objective of their travels and adventures. This is no different in The Epic of Gilgamesh and The Odyssey. The heroes in both are tempted by the offer of immortality, however each of them turns it down for their own reasons.
The Epic of Gilgamesh, one of the earliest known stories, recounts the tale of the reckless King Gilgamesh and his adventures with his friend Enkidu, a natural man created by the gods from clay to humble and teach Gilgamesh to become a better ruler. Through Enkidu’s death, the once fearless Gilgamesh becomes fearful of his own inevitable demise and journeys to find immortality. However, by finding compassion for his humanity, he is able to come to terms with his mortality and continue living wholeheartedly as the ruler of Uruk. In the Epic of Gilgamesh, Gilgamesh learns to accept his mortality by gaining compassion for himself.
Here, Taylor envisions a different kind of God, not one who waved his hand, uttered some magic words, and pulled the universe from his Godly top hat (p.151). Taylor’s God is a working God surrounded by wood and iron, soot
As I first started reading I was thinking what in the heck do stones have to do with reading. However, as I kept going I understood the weird metaphor that the author was trying to connect to their writing experiences. You first have to master the easy things before you can move to the harder things, or work your way up. It was a tad bit strange but the author stuck with the theme and by doing so, in the end it all made sense.