Gilgamesh and Odysseus are categorized as hero myths that have similar but different history backgrounds. Both Gilgamesh ad Odysseus have the strength and an intimidation feature. Due to both going through growth and change throughout out their conquest. The archetype of these heroes are, sidekick/helper, and temptresses and they both must embark on journey's that teach them better moral values. Gilgamesh and Odysseus find out their meanings of life through trials and tribulations just as any ordinary men in the world from their times. Heroic features Gilgamesh prove him as being so gigantic and strong that the other "normal" people in his city couldn't stand him because he would force them to "compete" in games against him that he …show more content…
His most distinguishing trait, however, is his sharp intellect (Sparknotescom, 2015). Many scientific discoveries would have seen that Odysseus' actions as consecrated, with a kind of judicial. Tremendous endeavor posed by Odysseus’ journey, heroism the ancient and modern perceptions of heroism include fortitude ways of life that demonstrate his worth. In Homer's world, fate is inescapable. Odysseus has all the defining character traits of a Homeric leader: strength, courage, nobility, a thirst for glory, and confidence in his authority. Odysseus is brave, loyal, smart, arrogant at times, wise, strong, shrewd, cunning, majestic, and an epic hero (Enotescom, …show more content…
Besides the typical traits of an epic hero, Odysseus shows great humility, Strong courage, with great faithfulness, and strong brave leadership. Odysseus’s goal of his journey is for a homecoming. This is where the virtue of humility and loyalty is proven. One particular example is while Odysseus is stuck on an island called Calypsos. He has promised immortality and a lustrous life if he were to stay with Calypso on her island. Odysseus discontinues this bad idea, decides to build a raft on his own, and starts his journey home. He remains loyal and an extraordinary humble mood does not desire to be godlike. Odysseus is shown as a brave leader throughout his entire journey. This great ruler explicitly commands and protects his men in adverse obstacles and remains stable and without a doubt calm given the situation. When traveling the sea and passing the Sirens, he demanded that his men to put beeswax in their ears so they may not be affected by the Sirenas song. He and his men safely navigate
One of Odysseus's many qualities is determination. He remains determined throughout the entire saga to get back to his family. During Odysseus's Odyssey he encounters many obstacles, beast, god, and nature. Odysseus must get through all of these hardships before he can make it back to his family and home. On his way back Odysseus is next to Charybdis and she swallows his boat. He must holds on to the branches of a fig tree to survive, "But I clung grimly, thinking my mast and keel would come back to the surface when she spouted. And ah! How long, with what desiree, I waited! Till, at the twilight hour...the long poles at last reared from the sea"(12.560-64). Odysseus shows his determination to get home, because it would be easy for him to just let go and drown, but no Odysseus hangs on so he can see his wife again. Once he is at home he finds suitors at his house. Odysseus kills one of them and the others beg for mercy, ??Not for the whole treasure of your fathers, all you enjoy, lands, flocks, or any gold put up by others, would I hold my hand??(22.65-67). Odysseus is determined to get revenge on all of the suitors and he will not be satisfied until they are all dead. Without his strong will and determination Odysseus would not have made it through his trials. Although determination is a must for a journey such as Odysseus?s cunning is also just as essential.
Although Gilgamesh was forced to battle mythic beasts sent by the gods his most important conflict was with himself where he was forced to face the selfish, awful and wicked person he had become. To understand Gilgamesh’s transition it is important to first understand his background. Gilgamesh was born the product of a man and a goddess. He was a king of the Uruk and
Another characteristic that Odysseus had to be an epic hero was that he was brave. Even though Eurylochos urged Odysseus to not go to Circe and leave the island without his crew Odysseus refused to. He responded to Eurylochos by saying “…as for me, go I must and go I will.';(p.117). Odysseus was a loyal leader, and even though he knew that he faced an impossible task, he went to Circe’s to bring his men back to safety.
Gilgamesh and Odysseus are two heroes from two different time periods that were both in search of the meaning of life. The epics that the two characters are featured in Gilgamesh, was developed from early Mesopotamia and the Odyssey in early Greece. Gilgamesh was a very popular and it was very valuable to the historian of Mesopotamian culture because it reveals much about the religious world, such as their attitudes toward the gods, how a hero was defined and regarded, views about death and friendship.
One of Odysseus’ traits is bravery. One example of Odysseus’ bravery is when he injures a Cyclops that is 5 times his size, “I drew it from the coals and my four fellows/ gave me a hand, lugging it near the Cyclops/ as more than natural force nerved them, straight forward they sprinted, lifted it, and rammed it/ deep in his crater eye. 329-332” This quote shows how brave Odysseus and his men are to face the Cyclops. Odysseus was intelligent to think about this idea, but he was brave for actually following through and doing it. Odysseus was also brave for fighting Penelope’s suitors even when he was outnumbered, “Now shrugging off his rags the wiliest fighter of the islands/ leapt and stood on the broad doorsill, his own bow in his hand/ he poured out at his feet a rain of arrows from the quiver/ and spoke to the c...
In the epic poem, The Odyssey, Odysseus’ heroic deeds are recounted through a narrative, written by Homer, that describes his arduous journey of his return from the Trojan war to his homeland of Ithaca. Loyalty, patience, and determination, are necessary traits to survive the perilous, painstaking journey that Odysseus embarks upon to return to his native land. Loyalty is exhibited when Odysseus goes to rescue his crewmen on Kirke’s Island despite the probability of jeopardizing his own life. Odysseus presents patience throughout the entirety of his journey, but most specifically when his crew opens the bag of wind, which causes much regression on the embark homeward. Determination is displayed when Odysseus is on Calypso’s island.
In Greek literature, the character Gilgamesh from The Epic of Gilgamesh and Odysseus from The Odyssey can be compared by their similar journeys and differing heroic qualities.
When people think of Odysseus, they think of a great, cunning, warrior. Who wouldn’t see him that way, he fought his way through Troy and embarked on a journey back home to see his son and wife again. On the surface Odysseus seems like a genius but in Homer’s, The Odyssey, Odysseus shows many instances where he outwits his foes but his foolishness heavily outweighs his smarts; he becomes boastful after a victory which leads to more hardships, he leaves precious cargo in the open for his brutish crew to mess with, and refuses help from the gods which nearly leads to his demise.
Gilgamesh and Odysseus are leaders in the Uruk and Ithaca communities respectively. The two leaders are heroes in their society who constantly defend their people against external aggression. Although the two heroes defend their communities against external attacks, their leadership styles and approach to situations differ significantly. For instance, Gilgamesh is oppressive and is not liked by the people whereas Odysseus is liked and cares for the people. Gilgamesh goes to fight for self-gratification whereas Odysseus fights for genuine welfare of the people. Odysseus is witty in his manners whereas Gilgamesh relies only on physical strength. The story of both heroes show
In The Odyssey, book nine and ten written by Homer, Odysseus constantly embodies the principal characteristics of a hero which are : cleverness, leadership, and selflessness. Thus, this character is regarded as an idol among the other characters and greatly captures the reader’s sympathy for his choices and the fruit to his actions in life. First, Odysseus displays cleverness in Book Nine when he tricks the Cyclops Poluphemus that his name is “nobody” in order to escape the horrors of the cyclop’s cave. He states: “Nobody--so my mother and father call me, all my friends” (Homer, 18). Second, Odysseus is a brave leader of his army especially in book ten when he displays leadership by motivating his comrades in keep trying to sail despite the
They represented them, physically, emotionally, and mentally to overcome every task that was handed to them. Although their strengths differ, they were both given strengths and with these strengths they prospered and at times were their down fall as well. Both were great heroes. Odysseus and Gilgamesh had to go through life and figure out its meaning. They had to go through all the trials and tribulations to discover what they were put on earth to do. Gilgamesh and Odysseus both had to go on the quest to find self-discovery, but in the end found themselves right back in the lives they started out with. The people during this time looked for a hero so express traits like, courage, faithfulness, leadership, bravery, and even humility. They needed their god like figures to represent them as people as well. The bravery is shown multiple times. Odysseus showed bravery when he traveled to the sea, passing the sirens. He told his men to put bee-wax in their ears so that they couldn’t hear the Siren’s song. He acted quick and in the end, saved his men. Gilgamesh was a true hero when he defeated the monster Humbaba. The creature lived in the Forest and frightened everyone around it. The people of Urok told Gilgamesh not to fight it, but Gilgamesh tricked the monster when he offered his sister to be his wife. Gilgamesh then beheaded the monster, this skill and bravery was extremely heroic. Odysseus and Gilgamesh
The next trait that shows Odysseus as an epic hero is his intelligence. While on his Grand journey to get back to Ithaca, he gets caught in many situations where using brute strength is not enough to get out so he must rely on his intelligence to
The challenges that Homer give the protagonist is all a test of character. Odysseus continues to pass the obstacles with flying colors, but his arrogance is the one flaw that is in dire need of correction. Some of the many challenges Odysseus overcomes on his voyage home is defeating the Cicones, surviving the Island of the Lotus Eaters, outsmarting the Giant Cyclops, saving his men from Circe, Traveling to Hades, passing between Scylla and Charybdis, escaping Calypsos’ Island and many more. Odysseus survives these obstacles and uses his smarts to escape near disaster. Often times he was the only one to survive these things and his crew often lost their lives due to their own stupidity. “‘We left the island and resumed our journey in a state of gloom; and the heart was taken out of my men by the wearisome rowing. But was our own stupidity that had deprived us of the wind.’”(P127 L75-79) Odysseus shows how he is an extraordinary man by being much smarter than his crew and the men that follow him. As a part of this stripping of Odysseus, Homer shows that Odysseus is a collective symbol of Everyman. On the one hand Odysseus is a great warrior, who is extremely intelligent, noble, and a great man. Although he has many god- like qualities he is still human. He shows that he is human and like every man, because of the fact that he still has major flaws. The
Of all the many similarities of The Epic of Gilgamesh and The Odyssey, the sharing of the main character’s archetype can be considered to be the most significant similarity of the two epics. Odysseus, the main character of The Odyssey, and Gilgamesh, the main character of The Epic of Gilgamesh, both fall under the character archetype of a hero, the man in charge of saving the day. This sameness implies that the two characters had similar fates and characteristics; both had the distinct traits of a hero. Both Odysseus and Gilgamesh were kings, strong, brave, and blessed by the gods. In addition, they both angered a god and suffered from the consequences. In The Odyssey, Odysseus had to change his route to avoid Poseidon’s wrath. In The Epic of Gilgamesh, Gilgamesh angered Ishtar which consequently led to Enkidu’s death as a punishment ( “The Epic of Gilgamesh” 29). Both Gilgamesh and Odysseus had elements of arrogance in their personalities, and it was their arrogance that backlashed and caused...
Homer’s The Odyssey is a Greek story that follows the journey of its primary character, Odysseus, back to his home in Ithaca after the Trojan War. Odysseus encounters many challenges in his journey home, from encounters with Polyphemus the Cyclops, the witch Circe and even the ghosts of dead Greeks. Meanwhile, his household in Ithaca is being threatened by suitors of his wife, Penelope, all wanting to inherit Odysseus’ possessions in the belief that he was already dead. Like many epic heroes, Odysseus possesses many admirable qualities. Three good characteristics of Odysseus are—cleverness, bravery and strength—here are some supporting instances from the epic that demonstrates Odysseus possession of such characteristics.