1) The concrete definition of Genesis 1 is to follow the description of the six days. To believe and discuss that God formed day and night, heaven and earth, seas and land, fish, beasts, plants, and man. Finally on the seventh day God rests and because of this our weeks are formed. That each thing that is created has meaning for something else besides it self and that man is elite to all other things. When the Lord forms Eve from Adam's flesh it could mean that Adam is elite to Eve because of this; could this spark for male supremacy? Once they eat the fruit God punishes them for disobeying, but if it is read from a ambiguous perspective it is God just showing them the truths of life. God creates the distance between beast and man, he gives man the power to work the land for himself, and shows woman the pain that children will cause. God and these beginning stories are defined in Genesis very loosely, only main points are articulated. This gives the reader the opportunity to define the meaning of each story in their own way.
2) God is presented in the opening as a strong and elite being. Nothing on Earth was created like him except man was created in mirror of his image. Humans only resemble the image of God, but they do not possess his knowledge of powers. God is portrayed as loving and caring while creating earth, beginning with the most important things. Yet when Eve and Adam disobey and eat the fruits his punishes them immediately because they posses his knowledge of good and evil. I see these statements as God wanted to keep man and woman naive to their surroundings. There is so much past the garden of Eden and humans are naturally curious. The opening makes man and woman fearful of disobeying God.
3) I did not realize that chapters 1 and 2 were separate creation stories, I thought it was a continuation. These chapters do make it difficult to read Genesis and that might be to allow for all people reading this to form their own definition of the opening chapters. Creation of the Earth is very important and it could have happened in multiple ways. The first chapter, weeks and days are formed with man ruling over the land. In chapter 2 beasts can talk (serpent) and at first they live in happiness together. I think that both stories could be seen as true, but that God created different parts of the world. The second story only revolves are the Mediterranean region, the Garden of Eden has the Tigris and Euphrates, two rivers that really do exist. The first story discusses the creation of the world in general. This difference shows that the Mediterranean region is special in God's eyes.
4) Both man and woman are portrayed as naive. Eden has the ability to trust, she trusts the serpent when he convinces her to eat the fruits from the Tree of Life. Adam has the ability to love and trust his wife. Adam knows he should not eat the fruit, God told him not too, but he believes his wife and eats the fruit. Immediately both man and woman are aware of their surroundings. This shows that human is independent.
5) I do not see the Tree of Life as being something that is good or evil. The Tree of Life posses the ability to make human aware of the goods and evils in life, the distinct between truth and lie or real and fake. This tree possesses 'truth', which explains the trees beautiful aesthetics. Truths always seem better than lies, but they can hurt more and cause pain, when lies can protect and blind. Why this knowledge is forbidden I can only guess that God wishes to keep humans naive and peaceful. Because Eve and Adam do not obey God's desires this begins the differences between human and God(s).
6) Yes, I think the punishment is completely positive. God might have bestowed pains upon Adam and Eve, but both now know the truth of what the land is really like and have each other. It is better for humans to live together in hardship than to live blindly in paradise. Had they stayed in the Garden of Eden, the stories would have stopped there. Humans would just live in paradise until they died off.
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