Noah And Gilgamesh Comparison Essay

Flood Comparison: Gilgamesh vs Genesis Many ancient text often incorporate the usage of floods as a symbol of rebirth, life, and growth. The Epic of Gilgamesh and Genesis are no different. Both works implement floods into their storyline; however, the way the floods are utilized highlights differences and similarities in ideology, origin, and culture.

Another similarity seen between both of the myths is presentation of a selected family to survive the flood by receiving a warning. This group is responsible for the repopulation of the planet and salvation of the animals. For example, in The Voice, The Flood, and The Turtle, the voice states: “Now you have everything you need. Now you can live. Now you have children and form a new generation.” In the story of Genesis, God believes Noah and is family are the only ones who deserved to live because they did not act in the same fashion as their peers. Once the flood passes, God says: “Be fruitful and increase in number and fill the earth.” Genesis and

One of the differences was that the duration of the flood in the texts was different. In the Bible the flood lasted for 40 days. In the Epic of Gilgamesh, the flood lasted for only 7 days. I am interested to know why there is such a big difference between the two texts. I came to one reason which is that in

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

The next similarity is the order to build a boat. In the Gilgamesh, Utnapishtim is clearly instructed to build a boat and leave all wealth behind.  “O man of Shuruppak, son of Ubartutu: Tear down the house and build a boat! Abandon wealth and seek living beings!” (Gilgamesh 23-25).  In comparison at the beginning of the Noah flood story, Noah is also instructed to build a boat or an arc for the flood.  "So make yourself an ark of cypress

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

Someone once wrote “The Lord saw how great was man’s wickedness on earth, and how every plan devised by his mind was nothing but evil all the time”(Noah and the flood pg.171). “ The uproar of mankind is intolerable and sleep is no longer possible by reason of the babel” (the Epic of Gilgamesh pg.147). Both stories from two different cultures but despite the differences in the heroes, their gods, and the flood stories in “Noah and the Flood” and “The Epic of Gilgamesh,” both of these stories appear to refer to the same historical event the great flood.

The story of Gilgamesh’s flood and Noah’s Ark (Genesis 6:9) can provide a lengthy compare and contrast. Although, numerous people know the story of Noah’s Ark, these people do not realize the similarity to the Gilgamesh flood. The main theme in these two stories is the biggest similarity, and is what makes them so alike. However, these stories greatly differ in the event details, which take place throughout the stories. The Epic of Gilgamesh was a story passed down as a folktale with no singular author, however the story of Noah’s ark is written down in the Bible.

A major event in both pieces of writing is a divine inspired flood. Both books also have very similar characteristics within each of their flood stories. The story of Noah’s flood was based off of the flood of Gilgamesh and the timing of the pieces being written and the similarities between the stories are the reason why.

The Epic of Gilgamesh and the Old Testament share several similarities. I found the greatest similarities from Old Testament were found in the book of Genesis. Both texts shared common characters, plots, and themes. Gilgamesh and Genesis contain godly characters that created man. In the book of Genesis, "Then the LORD God molded man out of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, so that man became as living being."

No two books or stories are exactly the same, however, many themes and motifs appear in multiple works and express similar meanings. One example of this is the story of a great flood that washes away evil and represents a divine retribution, creating a fresh start for the survivors. This story sounds familiar because it is found in many works of literature, including one of the most read books, the Old Testament, and one of the oldest discovered works, The Epic of Gilgamesh. In both versions there is a hero who has to save the world’s animals and enough humans to create new life, however, one fundamental difference is the reasoning behind the floods. In the The Epic of Gilgamesh the gods created the flood due to overpopulation and noise, “In

The Epic of Gilgamesh, is a story that dates back to the 7th millennium, that describes an ancient flood. In about the 10th century B.C.E. the Hebrew Bible recorded their version of The Epic of Gilgamesh.The Epic of Gilgamesh and the story of Noah share many similarities. But one difference is that one story is polytheistic and the other is in monotheistic.

Most people know about the story of Noah and the Great Flood, but little do they know how it resembels Gilgamesh and their Great Flood. These stories are so mind bending how much they are so similar. The biggest similarity between both of these stories is the main theme. They also have differences. They differ greatly in the small details of events that occur. In both of the stories the number of days that the events occur are different, but the same basic events take place. Along with many more similarities and differences. Gilgamesh and Noah’s stories are very much the same, but when comparing the small details within the stories you can tell that they are very different.

The Biblical and Gilgamesh flood have several things they have in common. The hero’s characters in each story were righteous men. Noah represents a church. Noah and his family had spiritual beliefs and practices. Noah and his family listen to God. In both floods, God is punishing rebellious mankind. In the book of Genesis, God flood the earth because of humankind sinful ways. God instructed Noah, “12 God saw how corrupt the earth had become, for all the people on earth had corrupted their ways. 13 So God said to Noah, “I am going to put an end to all people, for the earth is filled with violence because of them. I am surely going to destroy both them and the earth. 14 So make yourself an ark of cypress wood; make rooms in it and coat it with pitch inside and out. “(Genesis 6:9 12-14) Noah built an ark for him and his family would be saved from the flood. Utnapishtim name meant finder of life. With the Gilgamesh flood, god Enlil told Utnapishtim in a dream to build a big boat. Him and his family would be saved from the flood also. Enlil was going to punish

The Epic of Gilgamesh tells the tale of Gilgamesh, the demigod king of Uruk, and his epic quest to find eternal life, after his best friend, Enkidu, dies. On this journey, Gilgamesh seeks the help of Utnapishtim, who tells his story about the flood he survived. This flood story is extremely similar to the one told in the Bible. After breaking down both stories and looking especially at the reasons for the flood, amount of destruction, and the way to find land after, it becomes apparent that ideas were taken from one and slightly changed to accommodate the other story.