The Epic of Gilgamesh vs. The Story of Noah
Since its discovery in the middle of the nineteenth century in the old ruins of the library in Nineveh, the Epic of Gilgamesh has been a huge mystery and interest to Christians and historians because of it similarity to the story of Noah and the flood in the bible. Other than minor differences such as the polytheism in the Epic of Gilgamesh and monotheism in the bible, there are significant parallels in both stories that are recognized. Some Christians don’t think the Epic of Gilgamesh has any value do to the polytheism however, scholars and historians have compared and contrasted Babylonian and Hebrew accounts and some of the same characteristics in their stories are almost the same but they only
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Both of the men in these stories were more righteous than all around them however, neither of them were perfect.
We can find many similarities but certain differences include whom was took on the boat, the place where they landed, and what their blessing was after the flood. Noah took only his family on the ark and his blessing was to multiply, have numerous amounts of kids, and have complete power over all animals. Utnaphistim took not only his family but also craftsmen and a captain to pilot the boat and his blessing was immortality.
Scholars and historians have generally agreed that there is a striking resemblance and an obvious relationship between the two stories and elude to there actually being a great flood that took place in history. It is also very interesting how both stories haven’t changed even through so many years and have remained consistent throughout time. Although most people think that the Epic of Gilgamesh is older, it is suggested that the story of Noah was passed down through oral traditions and eventually written by Moses in the book of genesis in the
In both Gilgamesh and Noah and the Flood, man’s wickedness leads to death, destruction, and rebirth all caused by billions of gallons of water sweeping the earth’s surface. The flood in both stories destroys most of mankind. The floods represent rebirth and a new beginning for mankind, as well as the gods and God’s wrath. In Gilgamesh the gods decide to destroy mankind by flooding the earth for six days and nights. Utnapishtim is chosen to build a boat in order to restart mankind after the flood. In the Bible God also decides to flood the earth due to the increase in wickedness. God chooses Noah to build an ark and store seven pairs of every clean animal and two of every other kind of animal on it
Firstly, Gilgamesh and Noah are both very similar and different in terms of personality. Gilgamesh was a loyal, persistent, and heroic man who was two thirds god. Despite his tales of renown and extravagant reputation he was not without his flaws. His whole journey of searching for immortality was all done out of selfishness and grief. “How can I be silent, how can I rest, when Enkidu whom I loved is dust, and I too shall die and be laid in the earth” (“Epic…” 144). Noah was a simple mortal man who had great faith in God, which led to his own and family's safety. ”Go into the ark, with all your household, for you alone have I found righteous before Me in this generation” (“Noah…” 171- 172). Gilgamesh on the contrary was very angry with the gods after losing his friend. Noah was righteous and selfless putting God’s will first before all else. Noah was also imperfect and got drunk one
Have you ever wondered what it was like to live 4,000 years ago? When people feared monsters, giants and Gods? The flood stories of Gilgamesh and Genesis are very similar and happen at about the same time, which means there could be two different people who wrote about the same thing. Both of the stories tell about a huge flood that almost destroyed humanity but in different ways. In both of the stories they each talk about a boat that survives the flood. They both have a God or Gods who control what happens.
The flood story that is told in The Epic of Gilgamesh has the same principle as the story of Noah told in the book of Genesis in the Bible, but there are some major differences. In the epic,
The Epic of Gilgamesh: story of the flood is a story telling of the time when the Sumerian gods flood the Earth hoping to get rid of the annoying humans. Throughout the story, Utnapishtim would be the preserver of life; by building a ship that would carry two of every animal. In Genesis 6-9, the Hebrew God chose to cleanse humanity by flooding the Earth, and in this story Noah would be instructed by the Lord to build an ark and put two of every animal with this ark. These stories of the flood have many differences, one major difference being that The Epic of Gilgamesh is a fictional story of Sumerian gods, while Genesis is a religious book with in the Bible. Although there are many differences between Genesis’ and Gilgamesh’s story of the flood, there are significantly more similarities linking the two stories.
In both of the stories there were floods that wiped out the humans. In the book of Genesis the flood happened because the world was filled with lawlessness . In Gilgamesh the flood happened because the citizens of the city became annoying. In both stories the gods weren’t pleased with what they created so they used the flood to restart the human race. In Gilgamesh only one city was flood but in the book of Genesis the whole was was flooded.
The two main stories largely discussed are the Genesis and Gilgamesh flood stories. Although different in regards to the details, the main plot is similar between the two stories from two different civilizations. Because of this similarity, many
Both the story of “Noah and the Flood” in the book of Genesis in The Hebrew Bible and the flood story in The Epic of Gilgamesh detail a grand flood in which a man saved life from extinction by building an ark, earning fame and immortality in some form. The theme of completing this grand task for a moral purpose holds true to both stories, but the depiction and actions of the divine and mortal characters in the stories contain different similarities and differences.
because our own belief system is wrapped up in the prior, and it is hard for many
The differences between "The Epic of Gilgamesh" and Genesis may mirror the estimations of the way of life that delivered them. Both Noah and Gilgamesh were given a shot at life. Noah took after God's guidelines and this spared him from death amid the surge. Gilgamesh responded to the offer of everlasting life in an easygoing way, which made him lose his objective not once, but rather twice.
The Flood of Gilgamesh and Noah are very similar to each other. They are also very different in many different ways. Both of these stories express a great plot, and ending. They express different beliefs and details. They both make a great case on how the world was reborn.
In The Norton Anthology the stories The Epic of Gilgamesh and Genesis have many similarities. Most notably the flood scenes. The similarities include the flood being intended to wipe out mankind. A chosen hero is told to build a ship to survive the storm. The ship is loaded with animals of many species. The end of the flood is signaled by the release of birds. Both of the ships land on mountains where a sacrifice is made to deities. The heroes of each tale are blessed after the flood water recedes. These numerous similarities lead one to believe that Genesis is most likely the Hebrew adaptation of The Epic of Gilgamesh.
The floods in Genesis and The Epic of Gilgamesh are in no doubt different but in so many ways similar. The two men are given a task to save humankind from a flood and succeed and are rewarded. The major basic events that take place in the stories a similar however the smaller details of them and how they are carried you are different. They two also tells us a lot about the relationship between humans to Divinity.
More differences between the stories include only minor details. Noah only invited his family and the animals onboard, but Ut-Napishtim invited additional people such as a pilot and some skilled workmen. Noah's ark landed on Mt. Ararat, but Ut-Napishtim's ark landed on Mt. Nisir, which is only a few 100 miles away. In the Babylonian account, the water came only in the form of rain; however in the Biblical account water came from beneath the earth in addition to rain. Noah released a raven once and a dove twice, but Ut-Napishtim released three different birds; a dove, a swallow, and a raven (Comparison). Perhaps the differences were intentional in order to make the two stories more unique in their own way. Perhaps the differences are simply two different people's renditioning of the same story.
In the ‘Epic of Gilgamesh’ and ‘The Biblical Flood Story’ have a very similar plot line, but many several key differences. In both stories a flood occurs, which were caused by the God/s( This shows that in Gilgamesh they were polytheistic while in the Biblical version they were monotheistic. ) to destroy the people of the earth. For both flood stories, a specific person is chosen to build an arc but for different reasons. In the Biblical story, Noah builds the arc due to his righteous character but in Gilgamesh, Utnapishtim built the arc to save himself. Later on in both stories birds are released making them seem very similar. In the end, the stories are separated because of the covenants