Odysseus And Gilgamesh Research Paper

Gilgamesh is a hero. He notably did good, had a humane purpose to do good, which in the end displayed an everlasting message. In The Epic of

The Odyssey, written in 725 BCE. in Greece is a tale of a great warrior Odysseus, trying to return home to his wife after fighting a great war. The Epic of Gilgamesh, written earlier in 2700 B.C. in Mesopotamia, is the tale of a King Gilgamesh who goes on a quest to find immortality. Throughout these two epics’ both Gilgamesh and Odysseus are required to fight for their survival.  In the Epic of Gilgamesh, the king of Uruk has to fight Humbaba, a giant beast who is the guardian of the Cedar Forest. While Odysseus lands in the island of the Cyclopes and is trapped in a cave with a giant.

An epic hero is a character in an epic poem that is recognized for their courageousness and success in the face of great trials and tribulations whereas a tragic hero is a character in a tragedy who, despite his/her nobility, can’t escape their imminent collapse. Although Gilgamesh is an epic hero and Oedipus is a tragic hero there are many similarities between both epics. Both characters are valiant and heroic in their very own way.

'No two men are alike in the way they act, the way they think, or the way they look. However, every man has a little something from the other. Although Oedipus and Gilgamesh are entirely different people, they are still very similar. Each one, in their own way, is exceptionally brave, heroically tragic, and both encompass diverse strengths and weaknesses. One is strictly a victim of fate and the other is entirely responsible for his own plight.

The two great poems of Greece sport heroic characters, both of which are claimed to be the greatest heroes of all time. Odysseus is famed for his arduous journey and his wit, while Achilles is best known for his invincibility and brute force. Neither would have survived in the other’s tale. Odysseus is far too much a man of thought, and would have spared Hector’s body from disgrace. Whereas Achilles, in Odysseus’ situation would have tried to kill all the beasts and monsters that were thrown at him. He would have died along with his men at the first fight. Odysseus and Achilles, from Fagles translation of Homer’s two epic poems can be compared and contrasted against eachother as epic heroes.

Gilgamesh and Odysseus are heroes who existed in the ancient days. Gilgamesh was the king of Uruk in Babylonia. He was their historical king. He lived in 2700BC.His territory was situated on the River Euphrates, which is in modern Iraq. Odysseus was the king of Ithaca.

Gilgamesh was the fith king of Uruk according to the Sumerian kinglist. He is the main character in the Epic of Gilgamesh. In the epic his father was Lugalbanda and his mother was Ninsun a goddess. Gilgamesh is portrayed as two parts god and one part man. So Gilgamesh is recognized with having been a demigod of superhuman strength who built a great city wall to defend his people from outside threats.

In these two epics, the major themes are the concept of good versus evil and the conflicts of man versus man, man versus self, and man versus nature. In The Epic of Gilgamesh, the King of Uruk represented good while Humbaba and the snake represented evil. Compared to The Odyssey, the Sumerian epic consists of a smaller representation for both good and evil. Odysseus represented good, but so does his son, Athena, and many of the gods that help him. Antinous, the rest of the suitors, Polyphemus, Circe, as well as many others were on the evil side of the equation for this epic. The concept of good versus evil coincides with the conflict of both man versus man and man versus self. Odysseus and Gilgamesh both engaged in both types of conflict, but Gilgamesh experienced more of the latter conflict while Odysseus experienced more of the former. Odysseus’s adventures involved more of man versus man conflicts because of how often he had to fight a physical being. For example, Odysseus and his men blinded Polyphemus by ramming a hot spear “deep into his [Polyphemus] crater eye” (qtd. in Prentice Hall Lit. 992). In addition, Odysseus and his son, Telemachus, had to fight off more than a hundred suitors near the end of the epic. Gilgamesh had plenty of experiences with man versus man conflict, such as his first fight with Enkidu, his fight with Humbaba, as well as his arguments with the gods. However, the man versus self conflict seemed

When you think of someone who is a hero, what traits come to mind? A hero can often be described as someone who portrays heroic qualities such as strength, endurance, unselfishness and obedience. Both Odysseus in the Homers “Odyssey” and Gilgamesh in the “Epic of Gilgamesh” have the characteristics of strength and endurance, but Gilgamesh does not seem to act like a hero and I will tell you why. Odysseus, who is the son of Laertes, is described as a great warrior or a “cunning hero.” (Homer p. 227) He has strength and physical courage, but he also has brains. (Homer p. 227) Odysseus fought in the Trojan War and is eager to return home to his family in Ithaca but he is trapped on a luxurious island of the nymph Calyspso. (Homer p. 227) He has a wife Penelope and a son Telemachus who was just an infant when his father left. The story takes place ten years after the Trojan War. Gilgamesh, who is the son of the goddess Ninsun, is the shape of a wild cow, and of a human father named Lugalbanda. Gilgamesh means “the offspring is a hero” (The Epic of Gilgamesh p. 95) and he is the ruler and King of Uruk who is described as “a powerful King and an awe-inspiring warrior.” (The Epic of Gilgamesh p.95) and “There is no one more mighty than he.” (The epic of Gilgamesh, Tablet one, p.102) The story is said to have taken place around 2700 B.C. in Mesopotamia. Gilgamesh is a man who is on a

Gilgamesh is the king of Uruk. He is a demigod, the son of Lugalbanda and the goddess Ninsun. At the beginning of the epic, Gilgamesh is introduced as an extraordinary person. He is supposed to have achieved complete knowledge. “He who saw the Deep, the country’s foundation, [who] knew…, was wise in all matters!” (pp. 1) Gilgamesh is described as a true hero: “Surpassing all other kings, heroic in stature, brave scion of Uruk, wild bull on the rampage!”(pp. 2) Besides possessing virtues like knowledge and courage, Gilgamesh was “tall, magnificent and terrible.” (pp. 2) All of these qualities represent the peak of our hero’s life, the period after his search had come to an end. As we keep on reading, we learn

An epic is a very long poem, normally from ancient oral tradition. A great example of an epic is The Epic of Gilgamesh. The Epic of Gilgamesh was written in 2700 BC. This makes it the oldest book ever written! The epic was discovered by Hormuzd Rassam in the 1800’s. This astonishing epic is known to be written by the Sumerians, but there is no specific person who is said to have written it. The writer or writers of The Epic of Gilgamesh are from ancient Mesopotamia or today’s Iraq. This epic is very important because it is one of the oldest pieces of literature known! It makes references to stories in the bible, and it overall tells a great story! Though, what exactly is The Epic of Gilgamesh about?

Gilgamesh was a powerful king of Uruk an ancient city in Sumer now known as Iraq. Created by the gods, Gilgamesh was 2/3 god and 1/3 man he thought of himself as undefeatable, and carried himself immorally, taking advantage of his people. Being tired of this the people of Uruk began sobbing, and the goddess Aruru heard their cries and created Gilgamesh 's equal Enkidu. Together they would go on to venture into battles, one of which leads to the death of Enkidu that brings Gilgamesh to his very own journey to find immortality. This epic demonstrates the traits identified by the renown American psychologist Joseph Campbell in the story lines of the hero 's journey.

When it comes to the realm of epic poetry, and hero-like characters in literature, the two works The Odyssey and the Epic of Gilgamesh can be compared and contrasted in different ways. The Odyssey and the Epic of Gilgamesh can be compared as expressions of searches for the meaning of life through knowledge. The two stories are somewhat mirrors in this manner. Throughout each story, the characters Odysseus and Gilgamesh show growth and change.

Gilgamesh, a hero from the epic Gilgamesh, was the ancient king of Uruk in Babylonia, on the river Euphrates in modern Iraq: he lived about 2700BC. Odysseus, the hero from the epic the Odyssey, was the ruler of the island kingdom of Ithaca. He was one of the most prominent Greek leaders of the Trojan War. Both men were granted certain strengths, Gilgamesh had physical, while Odysseus had mental strengths. Gilgamesh was tremendously self-confident and at times that self-confidence led him to have very little consideration for the people of Uruk at the start of the story. He was their king, but not their guardian; he killed their

In both The Epic of Gilagimesh and The Epic of Antigon, impressive and striking monarchs rule the people. Gilagimesh tells the disturbing life story of King Gilagimesh, ruler of Uruk. Gilgamesh was an attractive, strong, ingenious king who was two-thirds god and one-third man. The city he built mirrored his beauty with beautiful temple towers that were surrounded by high walls. Although Gilgaimesh