...In several heroic novels, the hero goes through significant changes as the story progresses. This is also the case for the story, “The Epic of Gilgamesh”. At the beginning of the poem, people learn Gilgamesh’s personality and what his mission and principles are. He goes through life-changing experiences that make his perception of life change for the better. Throughout the telling of this story, this poem displays the character development of the self-motivated Gilgamesh. Throughout the book, the readers experience Gilgamesh’s character in many different ways – as a ruthless king disliked by the people of Urak, a fearful and mighty fighter, a drained, unhappy man, and finally a man who is satisfied with himself. The epic story starts when the people of Urak complain to the Gods that Gilgamesh is a hostile ruler. He forces warriors to fight whenever he...
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...hand Enkidu fit more of an antihero than an epic one. The culture of the story, from what the book explains, took place at around the time of biblical times and A.D. Also there are many religious influences in the story that even intertwine with stories from the bible. You can tell that these religious comparisons came into the story because it was an oral tradition. Gilgamesh was a valiant hero who cared for his people and his companions. The story of Gilgamesh was a tremendous discovery for ancient literature. Gilgamesh was your typical epic hero. He was stronger than any man and the world. He was even two thirds god and one third man. Gilgamesh cared for his people and loved his best friend and they both never left each other’s side. Gilgamesh during his life knew no obstacles that he could not overcome. In the end he died, but he was able to fulfill his quest by finding the Larsen 2 flower that granted eternal life, still to lose it to a snake. An epic hero can’t live forever and is still only man. Enkidu was not your classic antihero, but when in comparison to Gilgamesh, he is not the epic hero. Enkidu was a fearful man and did not want to enter battle first against the giant Humbaba. Anti heroes do have fear and don’t always want to fight. He even died a way a hero shouldn’t die. He was ill and bedridden to the point of death. Enkidu said he was dying in shame because a true warrior dies on the battle field. He did have great strength, but Enkidu did...
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...of Uruk were tired of Gilgamesh behavior, which made them think of an idea that would destroy him. Enkidu “the wild man” was there plan to demolish Gilgamesh. They thought he would have defeated Gilgamesh, but it turns out that they have equal amount of strength. Gilgamesh ends up winning the fight and then they become good friends. The story’s structure is organized around Gilgamesh’s journey because it is not an ordinary journey and he learns life lessons. What he learns on his journey is how to cope with the loss of a dear friend, how to accept one’s own death, and how to...
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...we need very special guests too, so please, stand up and welcome the greatest heroes of Greek mythology, who inspired millions of people throughout the world and time - Gilgamesh from The Epic of Gilgamesh and Achilles from Iliad. Tonight, they are going to reveal secrets never heard before and change your perception of life forever. It is amazing how the stories you will hear, happened so far back in the past are applicable for our life today. Host: Hello Gilgamesh and Achilles. You look amazing tonight. How do you feel? Gilgamesh: Great! Achilles: A little old, but good! Host: How do you like the couch? Is it comfortable enough for you? Gilgamesh: Well, my bed in Uruk was much better, but I can survive on that coach for an hour. Achilles: It’s better than sitting on the floor. Host: You are funny! I will ask to be changed next time you come. Ok. Let’s start with the serious part now. Gilgamesh, Achilles, you know that you are the most famous heroes of all time, and all the people around the world who are watching you now have read your stories in the books “The Epic of Gilgamesh” and “Iliad”. Everybody knows what happened in your lives and the descriptions of your journeys. How does it feel to be still known by everybody after more than 2,000 years and be still the greatest heroes ever? Gilgamesh: To be honest, I never expected that my story will live for such a long time, and I really appreciate it. When I see all people’s faces who are watching me now and admire me...
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...Aylin Sipahi CMLT C110 Final Essay for Epic of Gilgamesh February 19, 2013 The Epic of Gilgamesh serves as a great looking glass into a long lost culture in which most artifacts are lost. The story centers on Gilgamesh, a ruthless king who is two thirds god and one third man. As king, he does not meet his potentials of leadership as he is often self-centered and sometimes depicted as inhumane. When his dear friend Enkidu dies, he sets off to find immortality. He eventually fails, but during his journey, he came to terms with his mortality and became a more compassionate person. Even though the main characters are men, the women play small but vital roles along his journey. The women in this epic reveal that they are solely responsible for the civilization of Gilgamesh and Enkidu by means of dream interpretation, sex, and motherly instincts, because the men of this epic do not have the ability to do them on their own. As king, Gilgamesh does things of his own accord and with his own judgment. He terrifies his city with his ruthless behavior, and even upsets the gods. He takes away sons from families, and has his way with newly wedded brides on their honeymoon before the grooms. As Gilgamesh sees women as merely sex objects, it’s difficult to imagine that when he needs direction he goes to his mother, Ninsun “who is well-beloved and wise (page 66).” It is interesting to see that Gilgamesh sees every other woman as a sex object, except his mother. Some theories to support...
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...Enkidu: The Greater Hero of the Epic What makes a hero a hero? This is what I thought when I first encountered the “Epic of Gilgamesh” and found Enkidu far better than Gilgamesh. Strangely, his character outshone the main protagonist because of some reasons that may only be my own. He captured my attention because of his strong will and because of some things I can relate him with. Am I too vague or narrow to think such? Well this is an opinion worth valuing since it may steer away from the supposed preference of many to Gilgamesh' character. Apologies to fanatics or to those who oppose my arguments. I'd like to share what I think is right, and why it's right for me. INNOCENT ENKIDU “So the goddess conceived an image in her mind, and it was of the stuff of Anu of the firmament. She dipped her hands in water and pinched off clay, she let it fall in the wilderness, and noble Enkidu was created. There was virtue in him of the god of war, of Ninurta himself. His body was rough, he had long hair like a woman's; it waved like the hair of Nisaba, the goddess of corn. His body was covered with matted hair like Samugan's, the god of cattle. He was innocent of mankind; he knew nothing of the cultivated land.” (Assyrian International Books) Enkidu was first introduced in the epic of Gilgamesh as an innocent man, one with nature and though strong, he never used his strength to harm others. Son of a wild ass and gazelle, he is very primitive and eats with the animals. His encounter...
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...surpassing all others, terrifying like a great wild bull. Two thirds they made him god and one third man. In Uruk he built walls, a great rampart, and the temple of blessed Eanna for the god of the firmament Anu, and for Ishtar the goddess of love. Look at it still today: the outer wall where the cornice runs, it shines with the brilliance of copper; and the inner wall, it has no equal. Touch the threshold, it is ancient. Approach Eanna the dwelling of Ishtar, our lady of love and war, the like of which no latter-day king, no man alive can equal. Climb upon the wall of Uruk; walk along it, I say; regard the foundation terrace and examine the. masonry: is it not burnt brick and good? The seven sages laid the foundations THE COMING OF ENKIDU GILGAMESH went abroad in the world, but he met with none who could withstand his arms till be came to Uruk. But the men of Uruk muttered in their houses, ‘Gilgamesh sounds the tocsin for his amusement, his arrogance has no bounds by day or night. No son is left with his father, for Gilgamesh takes them all, even the children; yet the king should be a shepherd to his people. His lust leaves no virgin to her lover, neither the warrior's daughter nor the wife of the noble; yet this is the shepherd of the city,...
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...main value of women in ancient Mesopotamia was child bearing. The stages of life for the women of Mesopotamia went from being a daughter to being a bride, then a spouse and finally a housekeeper. Though they are not prominently features, the epic of Gilgamesh shows the importance of women and their role in everyday life. They are valuable in the story because without them, the men would not have gotten as far as they did. They are highly influential because they have power, which they each use differently. Shamhat is the temple prostitute, very morally loose woman who will lay with any man. She is sent by Gilgamesh to give herself to Enkidu and have sex with him so that the animals will see and not want to be associated with him anymore. The king’s thinking is that through his intimacy with Shamhat, Enkidu will become more human than Animalia. “His beasts that grew up with him on the steepe will deny him” (Gilgamesh 41). Sure enough this plan to tame Enkidu worked; “six days seven nights was Enkidu aroused, flowing into Shamhat” (Gilgamesh 42). The story shows how the power that women have over men, that with their bodies, they can satisfy their men and...
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...these women lived in. These women managed to expand themselves to fit into the various circumstances that they found themselves in as well as become important in their society. Through Potiphar’s wife in Joseph’s story and the women of Gilgamesh, this essay seeks to understand how literature represents women in the society. Women in Gilgamesh are represented by employing various characters. For instance, the character Ishtar has been depicted to take the role of a lover. In the novel, she is the goddess who desires to win the heart of Gilgamesh at all cost. When her mission fails, she endeavors to murder him. This destroyer-goddess known as Ishtar asks Gilgamesh to marry her when he returned victorious over Humbaba. Ishtar descends to Uruk talks to the king Gilgamesh saying “Marry me, give me your luscious fruits, be my husband, be my sweet man. I will give you abundance beyond your dreams” (Mitchell 130-1). Moreover, Ishtar desired to make Gilgamesh respected and feared by everyone, wealthy, and his kingdom fertile. All Gilgamesh had to do was marry Ishtar. Nevertheless, Gilgamesh failed to accept Ishtar’s proposal. Gilgamesh responds, “Your price is too high, such riches are far beyond my means. Tell me, how could I ever repay you [….] And what would happen...
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...Epic of Gilgamesh The Epic of Gilgamesh is epic poetry from Mesopotamia and is among the earliest known works of literature. Scholars believe that it originated as a series of Sumerian legends and poems about the protagonist of the story,Gilgamesh, which were fashioned into a longer Akkadian epic much later. The most complete version existing today is preserved on 12 clay tablets from the library collection of 7th-century BC Assyrian king Ashurbanipal. It was originally titled He who Saw the Deep (Sha naqba īmuru) or Surpassing All Other Kings (Shūtur eli sharrī). The story revolves around a relationship between Gilgamesh (probably a real ruler in the late Early Dynastic II period ca. 27th century BC)[1] and his close companion, Enkidu. Enkidu is a wild man created by the gods as Gilgamesh's equal to distract him from oppressing the citizens of Uruk. Together they undertake dangerous quests that incur the displeasure of the gods. Firstly, they journey to the Cedar Mountain to defeat Humbaba, its monstrous guardian. Later they kill the Bull of Heaven that the goddess Ishtar has sent to punish Gilgamesh for spurning her advances. The latter part of the epic focuses on Gilgamesh's distressed reaction to Enkidu's death, which takes the form of a quest for immortality. Gilgamesh attempts to learn the secret of eternal life by undertaking a long and perilous journey to meet the immortal flood hero, Utnapishtim. Ultimately the poignant words addressed to Gilgamesh in the midst...
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..."I have read, understand, and am in compliance with the Academic Honesty policy. In particular, I have not committed any kind of plagiarism. There are no un-attributed direct or indirect quotations or paraphrases from printed materials, websites, other students' papers, or any other sources in my essay." Professor Iglesias, Valint, and Nathanael English 203 10 April 2014 The Substance I Lack I Find in You When looking for love we may not realize that many times we are merely looking to improve our own areas of opportunity. We subconsciously look for counterparts that create a balance by contributing to what attributes are lacking within ourselves. In “The Epic of Gilgamesh” and Ama Ata Aidoo’s “Anowa” we see two character’s Gilgamesh and Anowa searching for substance in people who are unlike themselves. Their life’s counterparts have what they are lacking within themselves; security. In both Anowa and Gilgamesh’s relationships we are able to see their true characteristics through their choice of mates. Both characters are portrayed to be powerful but when we see who they fall in love with we learn the nature of their true self. We learn that though they may appear strong and confident are in actuality both insecure. Gilgamesh is described in the beginning of the story as “like a bull he makes himself mighty head raised (over others)” (Iglesias, Mays and Pierce 8). He is boastful and constantly ensuring everyone feels his presence when around. He acts as though...
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...that death is inevitable for everyone. He learns to live in the moment, for one never knows when their story is complete. At the beginning of the story, Gilgamesh has a certain view of death. He's not afraid of what happens after life but instead wants to die in the most glorious way possible. We first see Gilgamesh's this perspective when his best friend Enkidu and himself venture into a forbidden forest to vanquish a monster. Gilgamesh is bored and hungry for an adventure, so what does a...
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...Zachary Nichols Nichols 1 CLT 3378-03 Essay 2 Due April 10, 2013 Word count 1528 The Old Verses the New Throughout history man has questioned the existence of gods, and why the world is the way it is. Many cultures have their own myths of gods, heroes and their interactions with humans. Each myth is specific to that culture and from them a lot about how the people lived and their day to day lives. I am going to compare one ancient, non-western myth with one modern, western-made myth. I have chosen to compare the Mesopotamian version of The Epic of Gilgamesh and Walt Disney’s Heracles. Heracles has become a western classic and while it defiantly does not have the same cultural and spiritual effects Gilgamesh’s myth does there are still many similarities between the two myths. Both myths are epic tails of Heroes who go on a journey to become all they can be; fighting Monsters and even gods along the way. Each of these myths is started with a sort of introduction from outside the story, Heracles by the muses and Gilgamesh by narration. The introductions tell of the deeds both heroes would come to do and give some background of why they were so famous. While they are both described as great heroes, the journeys of Gilgamesh and Heracles have some similarities and differences. Both have parts with our heroes valiantly battling monsters, saving cities from monsters and even meeting companions along the way; there are also many differences in their stories, like the...
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...concerned with our own well being, and a reflective self, which is our ability to reflect on how our actions affect others. When we withstand a traumatic experience, parts of the absorbed self fades away, while the reflective self matures. We become less selfish and more compassionate towards others. Three literary works -- The Epic of Gilgamesh, Sophocles' Oedipus the King and Plato’s Phaedo, -- show this transformation of self. In The Epic Of Gilgamesh, Gilgamesh transforms himself from an unruly king who is unaware of his own death into a compassionate friend who reflects on the idea of his death. This transformation in self derives from the gods’ creation of Enkidu. Enkidu is created to match Gilgamesh. Before Gilgamesh meets Enkidu, he is characterized as a reckless leader, who “tramples his citizens like a wild bull ”(Mitchell 2004: 72). He neglects to think about his mortal side, and rules his people as if his days did not truly count. Once Enkidu comes into his life, Gilgamesh’s unjust actions stop. Although Gilgamesh is still stronger than Enkidu, “they walked side by side, they truly became friends ”(Mitchell 2004: 90). This is a significant for Gilgamesh because moment he had never had a companion. Before Enkidu, the king of Uruk, had been unchallenged physically and completely alone. For the first time in his life he had a relationship with love and purpose. When Enkidu dies, Gilgamesh is traumatized. This is the closest Gilgamesh comes to death. True, he had been...
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...Christian Lescznske Professor Larkin ELIT2055-B 31 March 2014 The Hero’s Journey: Comparing and Contrasting Heroes Joseph Campbell was an American psychologist and mythological researcher. In his lifelong research, Campbell discovered many common patterns running through hero myths and stories from around the world. Years of research lead Campbell to discover several basic stages that almost every hero-quest goes through (no matter what culture the myth is a part of). He calls this common structure “the monomyth” (Hero’s Journey). The “hero’s journey” appears in drama, storytelling, myth, religious ritual, and psychological development. It describes the typical adventure of The Hero, who goes out and achieves great deeds on behalf of the family, group, tribe, or civilization. There are twelve steps, or stages, of the typical “Hero’s Journey”. The twelve steps are: The ordinary world, the call to adventure, refusal of the call, meeting with the mentor, crossing the threshold, a test, the approach, the ordeal, the reward, the road back, the resurrection, and the return with the elixir, or reward. As I previously stated, Campbell’s monomyth works best with the traditional form of the quest such as in folk and fairy tales, myths, legends, and other fantasies. However, it can be applied to many different genres or types of stories. A quest does not have to include swords and monsters. It can just as easily occur in the real world. The monomyth is ageless and universal...
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