Odesseus and Gilgamesh

1861 Words4 Pages

In literature there are many aspects and different narratives of the same story which is subject to change. There are numerous ideas which can be captured and conceived according to the reviewer and very good examples of such literary work are Mythological tales. Most commonly renowned mythological work is of “Homers Odyssey” and the “Epic of Gilgamesh” with major emphasis on the tentative issue of “heroism”. Odysseus belonged to mainland Europe and Gilgamesh Epic is Middle Eastern work with Gilgamesh’s tale having been written on twelve tablets of clay. Both these tales are folklore and are considered an Epic which means a saga, Heroic Poem, narrative or Legend. A frenzy of events takes place including achievements and prominent individuals playing their roles in the course of history. An exemplar or a hero is present in both the narratives which are “Odysseus and Gilgamesh” respectively.

We will highlight the concept of “heroism” and how it brings about a change in the lives of the people who are related to the tale directly or indirectly. Many messages are conveyed in the tales ranging from sacrifice, bravery, hedonism, power, ruthlessness and discipline to name a few.

The Odyssey is written by Homer while Gilgamesh is written by Shin-Eqi-Unninni which is a debatable issue because it is believed that the Epic of Gilgamesh was written in 2500 BC and was present in severe form. Both the characters possess traits such as friendliness, valor and eventually heroism. Odysseus had a hereditary right to the throne and ruled Ithaca which was complimented by his impartiality, ruthlessness and diplomatic skills. On the other hand Gilgamesh was the king of Uruk in Babylonia who is physically sturdy and strong having supernatural powers a...

... middle of paper ...

...the beast and after killing it travel back to Uruk.

Odysseus, on the other hand through Athena’s divine assistance, along with Telemachus, and a couple of herdsmen, manages to kill all of the suitors. The katabasis followed by an anabasis is generally referred to amongst many others as a trip to the supernatural underworld. Katabasis is also adverted to a journey through this world to another plane in this incident the trip to the underworld.

Works Cited

Callen King, Katherine. Ancient epic. Chichester,West Sussex: Wiley-Blackwell, 2009.

George, A. R. The Babylonian Gilgamesh epic. New York: Oxford University Press, 2003.

Launderville, Dale. Spirit and reason: the embodied character of Ezekiel's symbolic thinking. Texas: Baylor University Press, 2007.

Louden, Bruce. Homer's Odyssey and the Near East. New York: Cambridge University Press, 2011.

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