Many cultures in the ancient and medieval worlds found courage as a value and virtue associated with warriors. To a great extent, western cultures also find courage as an attribute of warriors. This courageous cultural tendency gets its imaginative manifestation in literature of heroic societies such as The Epic of Gilgamesh, homer’s Iliad and Beowulf. These Epic heroes which show human conditions are Gilgamesh, Achilles from Homer's Iliad and Beowulf. Although, the actions and lives of these warriors occurred at different times in history, their stories are passed on from generations to generations and they share a lot of commonalities but with some discrepancies based on their lives, their choices, ideals and beliefs. These warriors present human conditions in terms of their heroism, weaknesses and mortality. All demonstrate the nature of humans and their constant struggles with understanding and curiosity which drives …show more content…
Gilgamesh and Achilles are the products of divine mothers. Their divine blood gives them unrivaled strength and skill needed to be outstanding warriors. As a hero, Gilgamesh is admirable in the same measure as he is arrogant and tyrannical. He saves his people by preventing catastrophic outcomes to the people of Uruk by fighting the beast. He also makes sacrifices when he engages in a battle with Humbaba. Moreover, He deems himself an equal by establishing friendship with Enkidu who is just a commoner but calls him a ‘brother’ and grieves at his death. This shows that he has a human compassionate heart. However, Gilgamesh, who is more divine than human, uses his powers as if he was a god where his actions had no consequences. He turns into a tyranny more by the passing day, becomes abusive, exploits newly-weds sexually, insults the goddess, kills a forest guardian who is divinely appointed for the role, which is responsible for the death of Enkidu, his warrior
Achilles, son of Thetis, also had divine blood flowing through his veins. He, however, was well aware of his mortality, as he chose a shortened lifespan full of glory over a longer, non-glorious life. "Alas, that you should be at once short of life and long of sorrow above your peers," exclaims his mother. (Butler, I). Despite accepting his mortality, Achilles, like Gilgamesh, was blessed with unequaled strength and skill as t...
In the beginning, Gilgamesh is a fantastic athlete and warrior. As one would expect from an individual who is two thirds god and one third man, his beauty, strength and courage surpassed all others. He built great walls for his city and temples for the gods. Gilgamesh's flaw, however, is that he is a poor king. He is known for sleeping with virgins before their wedding night, stealing children, and exhausting his men.
Gilgamesh and Odysseus are similar not only in their physical appearances but also in the way the two of them deal with life's dilemmas. Although Gilgamesh and Odysseus possess great strength and sharp minds, their own flaws blind them similarly, which does not aid in their quest for what they desire. As part of their heroic character, the gods must guide them in order to reach their goals. In every epic from antiquity, the greatest challenge a hero must overcome is not a monster or an evil tyrant but themselves. They wish to have glory, honor, and a place in history forever. Doing something that no one else could ever do again is what a hero desires to do. From Gilgamesh to The Odyssey, epic heroes constantly have to reinvent themselves to overcome their own weaknesses and shortcomings. Each has to learn from their previous mistakes, using the gods? help, so they can fulfill their dreams. In doing this, Odysseus and Gilgamesh will reach their goals.
The qualities that enables Gilgamesh success is bravery, superhuman strength, and value great honor. Throughout the story, Gilgamesh exhibits skills of being a warrior and leader. In the prologue the gods created Gilgamesh as perfection, “Adad the god of the storm endowed him with courage, the great gods made his beauty perfect, surpassing all others” (61). Also, it is said that Gilgamesh is, “one-third human
Homer. The Odyssey. Trans. Stanley Lombardo. The Norton Anthology of Western Literature. Ed Peter Simon. 9th ed. New York: Norton, 2014. 291-581
Schein, Seth L. The Mortal Hero: An Introduction to Homer's Iliad. Berkeley: University of California Press, 1984.
As Homer’s The Iliad begins, Achilleus, a god-like mortal and the greatest among all warriors, comes into light as a lead character; one whom brings about the complex issues within the poem. The poem forms while illustrating different overlying ideals such as anger, honor, greed, destruction, forgiveness, and others. Characters come and go, displaying the ideals and warlike lifestyle housed by the warrior-like men of ancient Greece throughout the text; however, Achilleus’ character develops portraying new and different values and beliefs of a soldier of his stature.
In conclusion, there is no indifference against the form we take or the life we lead but what we make of what we have been given. Every story has a hero, no matter how insignificant or secondary they may seem, and any individual does not require any extra powers to make a difference in someone's life than can affect tens, hundreds, even thousands of people. A person is bestowed with the title of a “hero” in the same manner any other person has to earn respect. Our stories shape our character, and lead us to becoming influential people despite our origin. A hero can be anyone, and can come from anywhere. Our literary figures today face their struggles and come out victorious which make them the ideal warriors to role model and aspire to become. A hero's origin is merely the basis for leaving an everlasting impression on the world.
In Gilgamesh, he fights Humbaba with Enkidu, his best friend. Humbaba is the guardian of the Cedar Forest who was assigned by the god Enlil. Gilgamesh doesn't fight for the world, but he has his own reasons. In the text, it states, “Even if I fail I will have made a lasting name for myself’’ (181). In other words, Gilgamesh's motivation to slaughter Humbaba is not just to get rid of evil but to let his people remember him. Gilgamesh is being selfish because if he's dead, Uruk won't have a ruler, which means Uruk will be out of control. The choice Gilgamesh makes causes him not to care about Uruk but only himself. However, the encounter of Enkidu's death has turned Gilgamesh into another person. He couldn't confront the truth that Enkidu has died. Enkidu was more than a best friend to him, he was a brother whom he loved. Because of his love for Enkidu, Gilgamesh builds a statue so everyone in Uruk will remember him. This demonstrates Gilgamesh changing from selfish to selfless. This change is part of Gilgamesh's transformations towards becoming a hero. Gilgamesh changes as a result of Enkidu's death. According to the text, it states, “Gilgamesh interferes in the lives of his subjects beyond his right as king”(175). This proves that Gilgamesh was bothering and annoying the people of Uruk. Gilgamesh is going to become king soon and he shouldn’t disregard or interfere with his subject’s private life.
It was of extreme importance to a man during this time period to die in war and leave a memorable name in society. In the Spartan society even a mother was accustomed to the idea that her son had to die to be a “hero” or perhaps be remembered as one. In the Iliad and the Odyssey, Achilles mother...
Gilgamesh is a man with no equal, so he feels superior. Although Gilgamesh starts out cruel, he develops into a very kindhearted man. He is extremely supportive of Enkidu and encourages him in various situations. When the men are fighting, Humbaba Gilgamesh says, [you] will surpass all of them. a friend who knows battle understands fighting.
Lattimore, Richard. Introduction. The Iliad of Homer. New York: University of Chicago Press. 1961. 7–55.
Some of Gilgamesh’s qualities are that he had a “beauty… surpassing all others” and was “two thirds… god and one third man” (13). Before Enkidu, Gilgamesh acted horribly. He was a terrible ruler and a terrible man. Gilgamesh was not all good, for example, “his lust leaves no virgin to her lover, neither the warrior’s daughter nor the wife of the noble…” (13). He was a terrible ruler. Gilgamesh was arrogant, but very powerful in his country. His people had no choice but to listen to him. They were forced to go along with his unlawfulness and stubbornness.
The story itself reflects an image of the cultural situation in which it was conceived. One major difference between this ancient society and our own is the way in which we sustain our leaders. Gilgamesh's character, whether based on an actual person or not, is portrayed as a very powerful and proud person. He was created to be better and stronger than common man and he is favored by the gods. This portrayal of a super-human king indicates a deep respect for leadership by those who told this story. Likely, these people lived under the rule of a monarchy in which the King was the all powerful leader and lawmaker. In today's society though, it is not common for one person to have unlimited power. Our governments are designed to divide ruling power between numerous parties; in order to keep any one person from becoming all powerful. Today's society would not tolerate a king who could do as he pleases, even if he were a noble and just man. In the story, Gilgamesh's super-human strength and power are not always convenient to his subjects. "His arrogance has no bounds", and "his lust leaves no virgin to her lover," yet the people respect his authority. The supremacy of Gilgamesh in the story reflects the feelings toward leadership held by that society which created the story. The respect they had for an all powerful monarch is hard for us to understand today. Our society looks down on those who rule as dictators and labels them tyrants and enemies. It is odd to imagine living in a society where a king is to be respected.
Gilgamesh was considered a hero because he had many great qualities, such as loyalty, perseverance, and heroism. Although these are heroic traits, he also had his flaws and was self-righteous, selfish, and prideful. Gilgamesh was a great man and was seen as flawless and “perfect in strength” (4). He represented almost a human version of a god; therefore, making it hard to see his flaws because he seems so ideal. He appeared like the perfect man that had absolutely nothing wrong with him. He was very courageous and this was evident when he states, “There dwells in the forest the fierce monster Humbaba, [You and I shall] kill [him] [And] wipe out [something evil from the land]” (18). This statement shows both a heroic quality and a flaw in Gilgamesh. It shows his heroism and how he felt that he could accomplish great things. His statement also shows how prideful he was because he always wanted the glory and wanted to be seen as the hero. This comes from the fact that he was part human and part god and he knew how amazing everyone thought he was and felt that he needed to live up to that expectation. This can be seen as both positive and negative because it shows his determination, but yet shows his pride. Being prideful is not necessarily a good thing because in this situati...