Search for Immortality Depicted in The Epic of Gilgamesh and The Odyssey

Besides being a phenomenal writer and philosopher, it seems Plato had the gift of foresight as well. At a glance, a Greek novel about love and an ancient Mesopotamian epic seem to have nothing in common. However, what is interesting to see is that not only do the two share very similar themes, but one acts as a how-to guide for the other. In both novels, Plato’s The Symposium and The Epic of Gilgamesh, the main protagonists deal with the concept of immortality. In Gilgamesh, the immortality Gilgamesh seeks to obtain is one that is fleeting and material, whereas Plato discusses the so-called “right” kind of immortality that one finds via pursuing knowledgeable love. The Symposium shows how one can become immortal by following the correct path of love and Gilgamesh serves as an example of what happens when one does not follow those rules. Because Gilgamesh directs his desires toward immortality, but not the kind Diotima describes, he fails his quest and remains miserable. Gilgamesh directs his desire not to reach the top of Diotima’s ladder, which is to become immortal by loving and spreading wisdom, and because of this, he can never become immortal.

In the movie and the book Odysseus does a lot of the same thing. Odysseus is known to be a hero and to either win or lose. He usually has a victory, he is a very smart man who thinks everything through before going through with it. Victory motivates Odysseus. He wants to return home and live well in Ithaca. In the movie and book one of the things he does the

Every mythological hero seems to be on a journey in search of the thing he desires most in the world. The two heroes who stood out to me were Gilgamesh, and Achilles. Gilgamesh’s greatest fear was death, while Achilles feared his legacy being lost and forgotten. Technically their desires are different, but their journey share many similarities, and in the end, boils down to the same thing. Each man in his own way, both Gilgamesh and Achilles desired immortality above all else. Though immortality takes on very a different meaning for Gilgamesh, as it does for Achilles, every decision as well as all the sacrifices they make, are based on their fear of death and dying.

Literary works that date back to ancient times still holds relevance in today’s world. Although many advances have been made in technology and science since the olden eras, the themes and principles that are found in ancient literary works are ageless in relation to the condition of human experience. In fact, in the Epic of Gilgamesh, the oldest existing story in our human history, illustrates a reality that is shared by all humans: our mortality and inevitable death. The Epic of Gilgamesh was written thousands of years ago, but the story accurately captures the human experience. Even though many people may not be on an active quest to find immortality, the Epic of Gilgamesh tells a story that also explains

As long as humans have lived and died, we have strived to know the meaning of life. We assume that there is a meaning or importance to life, and in doing so try to provide some permanence to our existence so that a greater machine might continue to function. It is only natural, then, for us to be interested in the concept of immortality. If there is purpose to an ending life, a life that does not end must be supremely important. This idea is exemplified throughout time in stories both historical and fictional. The Epic of Gilgamesh is one such story. Gilgamesh deals with immortality on nearly every level, and at the same time points back to mortality, trying to extract a reason for living and dying.

men, hear me! Hear me, O elders of teeming Uruk, hear me! I shall weep

In the ?Epic of Gilgamesh,? Gilgamesh deals with an issue that nearly destroyed him. He sought after immortality so much that he put his own life on the edge. Centuries later, this quest unites our high tech, fast paced culture with the remote and different culture of Gilgamesh. Humanity has yet to find the secret of letting go of the idea of everlasting life.

Gilgamesh’s obsession with becoming a hero and establish an enduring name was not without a setback and that is his fear of death. The arrogance and selfish ways of

In the Epic of Gilgamesh, the protagonist Gilgamesh is ⅔ god and ⅓ man and only gods are immortal. The driving force in the story is Gilgamesh trying to become immortal because he is greedy. He literally goes to the end of the earth to try to become immortal. But when Gilgamesh gets to the end of the world and asks Uta-Napishti if he can become immortal, Uta-Napishti says, “What you seek you shall never find. For when the Gods made man, They kept immortality to themselves. Fill your belly. Day and night make merry. Let Days be full of joy. Love the child who holds your hand. Let your wife delight in your embrace. For these alone are the concerns of man.” (10.90 George) In this quote Uta-Napishti is telling Gilgamesh that nothing lives forever and he should use the life he has and live in the moment. This is when Gilgamesh realizes that he will never be immortal. But in this time period people do not seem to care about greed, it is just a fact of life. People will be greedy regardless. But this isn’t the

Gilgamesh had a interesting journey to immortality. Close to the end of his travels he met Urshanabi who then took him to the place where the very thing that could make him immortal was. The magical thing he has been looking for is a plant that grows underwater. He dives underwater and takes this precious plant. Once he had the plant it was taken away from him by a serpent. I found lots of things surprising in Gilgamesh search for immortality. He said he was going to share his immortality with others, I did not expect this. I thought he would be selfish and keep it to himself. I also did not expect his immortality to be taken away from him, especially so soon. I found it very surprising that he did not find immortality and even more so that

In The Epic of Gilgamesh, the theme is to accept one’s mortality. The epic

Even though these two epics were written in two different time periods, their views of mortality are very similar with only a few slight differences. Mortality is a recurring theme in most epics. In every epic poem we are introduced to a strong and brave hero, who faces the possibility of death in the form of an epic battle against a formidable foe. In the Epic of Gilgamesh, Gilgamesh has an epic battle against a monster named Humbaba, the guardian of the Cedar forest. Going into this battle, Gilgamesh does not fear death. At this point, Gilgamesh does not truly understand the inevitability and the burden of mortality. Because he has such a big ego he believes that the reality of him dying is highly unlikely. He is

Towards the end of the epic, Gilgamesh laments about the loss of the plant that would have saved him from his own mortality and ultimately it seems like the whole trip to Utnapishtim is wasted when the snake slithers in. However, Utnapishtim gives something much better to Gilgamesh earlier in their interaction. In lines 118 through 245, Utnapishtim asks Gilgamesh why he is defying his mortality and brings up the point that he may even bring about his death quicker by going on such a perilous journey in the pursuit of immortality. I don’t think Gilgamesh ever thought he was going to find any intellectual enlightenment when he set out to find the cure for mortality because of how straightforward his thinking is and in the end he misses out on

The epic of Gilgamesh is the story of the hero, Gilgamesh, who was seeking for the immortality after the death of his friend, Enkidu. Even though, he couldn’t achieve it but his story will be retold from one generation to another generation.

With the death of his dearest friend Enkidu, Gilgamesh now begins to actually fear death and begins searching for the one man that was made immortal by the gods to ask him how to overcome death. In Gilgamesh’s own words, the death of his friend Enkidu has shaken him to the core. When speaking of his death he says “Enkidu, whom I so loved, who went with me through every hardship. The fate of mankind has overtaken him. Six days and seven nights I wept for him…I was frightened..I have grown afraid of death, so I roam the steppe, my friend’s case weighs heavy upon me..my friend whom I loved is turned into clay…Shall I too not lie down like him, and never get up forever and ever?” (pg. 78) Where before Gilgamesh wanted immortality so that he could continue a life of fame and