The Epic of Gilgamesh, translated by N.K. Sandars and Braveheart, directed by Mel Gibson

The Epic of Gilgamesh and Beowulf contain everything we can expect from a great epic literature. It portrays fantastic geographies, exotic characters, exhausting quests, heroic battles with monsters, supernatural beings and natural forces. Most important of all, they are two outstanding stories of a great epic hero who is compelled to meet his destiny and who rises to every challenge with courage and determination.

The Epic of Gilgamesh is one of the world’s oldest existing stories that were collected in Mesopotamia. It is a story about a heroic king named Gilgamesh, who treated his people in a nasty way. He was a domineering, and cruel leader, feared by many because of his unnatural strength. He forced his people into labor in order to expand his kingdom. The people cried unto the gods and they created Gilgamesh’s equal Enkidu, who they later became friends. Gilgamesh witnessed the death of his close friend Enkidu, and this made him to search for immortality because, he was afraid to die. However, he learnt that, no human was immortal, and that he was destined to die, just like his friend Enkidu.

Gilgamesh, written by David Ferry, illustrates a story about a man who knows everything, but continues to try and learn more. Although Gilgamesh may be arrogant, he still remains a great ruler and commander of Uruk. Throughout the book, the adventures of Gilgamesh fit Joseph Campbell’s idea of the hero’s journey. After analyzing the pieces to the hero’s journey, Gilgamesh is proven to be a true hero because his journey parallels that of the hero’s journey described by Campbell. The latter part of this paper will prove Gilgamesh is a hero using Campbell’s model, by analyzing the pieces of the hero’s journey: separation or departure, the initiation, and the return.

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.

Fame and glory have been the most admirable characteristics in the middle Ages and even before Christ in the ancient civilizations. The epics of Gilgamesh and Beowulf are stories of heroism and immortality gained through fame. The aim of the main characters, Beowulf and Gilgamesh, is to be a good warrior by being courageous, respectful and prudent, a protector and servant to their king (only in the beginning of Beowulf, as he later becomes king and Gilgamesh already is) and their country. In both poems the fights of the main

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

Later, Enkidu is punished for killing the Bull of Heaven and Humababa, Enkidu suffers from illness and ends up dying. Enkidu’s death affected Gilgamesh a lot; Enkidu’s death marks a change in Gilgamesh life. Gilgamesh change from a harsh and a strong person into someone who has feelings and a loving heart. Gilgamesh keeps thinking that if Enkidu can die then he can die too and all that Gilgamesh

Throughout history, there have been stories of great warriors of one distinction or another. This semester has been full of them. Some have been gods, demigods, or great men protected by gods. Most have, in one fashion or another, been greater than common men. Stories were created to explain how these men came to be and how most have risen to the heights of kings in many cases. The Epic of Gilgamesh and the Song of Roland are two of these stories that tell tale of great epic heroes. They were both larger than life though both were flawed in different and similar fashions. They share the similarities of a complementary companion. Those companions differed greatly in their own character and judgement.

end, Enkidu 's death also forces Gilgamesh to continue living the life he still has left. He was so

Perhaps one of the main reasons the Epic of Gilgamesh is so popular and has lasted such a long time, is because it offers insight into the human concerns of people four thousand years ago, many of which are still relevant today. Some of these human concerns found in the book that are still applicable today include: the fear and concerns people have in relation to death, overwhelming desires to be immortal, and the impact a friendship has on a person’s life. It does not take a great deal of insight into The Epic of Gilgamesh for a person to locate these themes in the story, and even less introspection to relate to them.

British literature like Beowulf and Gilgamesh hold several characteristics that make this type of literature unique. Each of theses stories hold similarities and difference that alter the course of the main character. Both Beowulf and Gilgamesh took vast journeys in their ruling as leaders, but they each took the journeys for different reasons. These two epic heroes of british literature both used the up in coming benefits of christianity in their journeys expressed in the novels, yet the two characters used the beliefs in different ways. Both of these men are viewed as having great amounts of power and through analyzing it can be determined that the men use their powers to different extents. Gilgamesh and Beowulf are two heros that have a number of similarities and differences in their epics.

Back in the days of ancient Greece and before this time, epic heros have had their lives chronicled and the stories of them passed on from generation to generation, all the way to our present day in our lives. Two of the greatest heros that have been expressed in past epic stories were Gilgamesh from the epic named after him, and Achilles from Homer’s Iliad. The two of their stories however, transpired in two different eras, their lives both had a surprising number of common points. Of course with things in common, there always comes differences, in the way they lived and the ideals they believed in.

The Epic of Gilgamesh and The Odyssey both are held in high respect by literature analysts and historians alike for the characterization of the hero and his companion, the imagery brought to mind when one of them is read, and the impressive length in relation to the time period it was written in. The similarities that these two epics share do not end with only those three; in fact, the comparability of these works extend to even the information on the author and the archetypes used. However, The Odyssey and The Epic of Gilgamesh contrast from one another in their writing styles, character details, and main ideas. Both epics weave together a story of a lost man who must find his way, but the path of their stories contrast from one another.

The two Homeric epics, the Illiad and The Epic of Gilgamesh, both contain a Hero’s Journey. They show the readers a look into heroic life during the time of the Trojan War. Achilles and Gilgamesh’s Heroic Journeys are not identical, however the characteristics and qualities of them is what holds the similarities. The two characters have a compelling outlook on death, and immortality. They seek different end results; however, their relationship with death is the same. They are considered a hero on a Hero’s Journey, as they fulfill the mandatory requirements. Their journey changed them from people of negativity to people who have been refined

The Epic of Gilgamesh details two fundamental types of heroic journeys or questions: external and internal ones. The first journey is an external one, in which Gilgamesh proves himself to be the most valiant of all warriors, overcoming Enkidu and Humbaba. The second type of journey is an internal one, in which Gilgamesh seeks to understand the meaning of life, after the death of his beloved friend Enkidu. When Gilgamesh realizes that his strength is meaningless in the face of the gods and he cannot triumph over death, he realizes he must seek another answer to the problems of life.