The “Tale of the Shipwrecked Sailor” is an ancient story, originating from around 2000-1700 BC, during the so-called Middle Kingdom period of Egyptian history. The story largely follows a previous journey made by the narrator, which involves him becoming shipwrecked on an island. Throughout the course of this tale, the number three holds great significance to understanding the presence of divinity in the story, which in turn reveals the real message of the tale; the importance of family.
The narrator sets off on a voyage, becomes shipwrecked on an island with a giant serpent, and eventually finds his way back home. The Ancient Egyptian story, the "Tale of the Shipwrecked Sailor," begins with the narrator, an attendant, speaking to his master. …show more content…
Three voyages are referred to during the story. The first voyage is the one the narrator has just returned from at the beginning of the story. The other two voyages take place in the narrator’s story, the second being the one that becomes shipwrecked and the third rescues the narrator from the island. When the shipwrecked sailor arrives on the island, he spends the first “three days alone, with [his] heart as companion” (212). This is another example of the number three being used. The serpent provides plenty more instances which utilize the number three. Three separate times in the story, the serpent repeats a question or statement exactly three times. Specifically, when the narrator first encounters the serpent, the serpent asks “who brought you, who brought you, fellow, who brought you” (212-213). When the narrator is taken to the serpent’s home, the serpent asks this same series of questions again. After the narrator explains how he arrived on the island, the serpent reassures the shipwrecked sailor by stating, “Don’t be afraid, don’t be afraid, fellow; don’t be pale-faced” (213). In Ancient Egypt, the number three had multiple connotations, one of them being its relation to the gods. “The three major …show more content…
The knowledge the serpent provides the narrator is divine, rather than the serpent itself, since the knowledge is from the gods. After being shipwrecked onto the island, the narrator builds “a fire and [gives] a burnt offering to the gods” (212). The gods’ response to this burnt offering by the narrator is the sudden appearance of the serpent. This further supports the serpent being a tool of the gods, instead of being a divine creature. At one point, the serpent even tells the shipwrecked sailor that “it is god who has let [the sailor] live and brought [him] to the island” (213). Here the serpent acts as a messenger for the gods. The serpent itself is a sensible choice for the gods to choose as a tool due to serpent’s association with the concept of rebirth. The nature of how serpents shed their skin is what associates them with the concept of rebirth. In a similar sense, the shipwrecked sailor has an opportunity for rebirth with the wisdom provided by the gods, through the serpent. However, the perfect example of the serpent being the tool for transferring divine wisdom to the narrator, rather than being divine himself, is the serpent’s story about losing his family. When the star fell on the serpent’s family, “it so happened that [he] was not with them in the fire” (213). If the serpent was divine, then the tragedy of losing his family should have been preventable. The serpent had
The narrator sets off on a voyage, becomes shipwrecked on an island with a giant serpent, and eventually finds his way back home. The Ancient Egyptian story, the "Tale of the Shipwrecked Sailor," begins with the narrator, an attendant, speaking to his master. …show more content…
Three voyages are referred to during the story. The first voyage is the one the narrator has just returned from at the beginning of the story. The other two voyages take place in the narrator’s story, the second being the one that becomes shipwrecked and the third rescues the narrator from the island. When the shipwrecked sailor arrives on the island, he spends the first “three days alone, with [his] heart as companion” (212). This is another example of the number three being used. The serpent provides plenty more instances which utilize the number three. Three separate times in the story, the serpent repeats a question or statement exactly three times. Specifically, when the narrator first encounters the serpent, the serpent asks “who brought you, who brought you, fellow, who brought you” (212-213). When the narrator is taken to the serpent’s home, the serpent asks this same series of questions again. After the narrator explains how he arrived on the island, the serpent reassures the shipwrecked sailor by stating, “Don’t be afraid, don’t be afraid, fellow; don’t be pale-faced” (213). In Ancient Egypt, the number three had multiple connotations, one of them being its relation to the gods. “The three major …show more content…
The knowledge the serpent provides the narrator is divine, rather than the serpent itself, since the knowledge is from the gods. After being shipwrecked onto the island, the narrator builds “a fire and [gives] a burnt offering to the gods” (212). The gods’ response to this burnt offering by the narrator is the sudden appearance of the serpent. This further supports the serpent being a tool of the gods, instead of being a divine creature. At one point, the serpent even tells the shipwrecked sailor that “it is god who has let [the sailor] live and brought [him] to the island” (213). Here the serpent acts as a messenger for the gods. The serpent itself is a sensible choice for the gods to choose as a tool due to serpent’s association with the concept of rebirth. The nature of how serpents shed their skin is what associates them with the concept of rebirth. In a similar sense, the shipwrecked sailor has an opportunity for rebirth with the wisdom provided by the gods, through the serpent. However, the perfect example of the serpent being the tool for transferring divine wisdom to the narrator, rather than being divine himself, is the serpent’s story about losing his family. When the star fell on the serpent’s family, “it so happened that [he] was not with them in the fire” (213). If the serpent was divine, then the tragedy of losing his family should have been preventable. The serpent had