Comparing Noah And The Flood And The Epic Of Gilgamesh

Eden Elkayam
Ms. Foley
English IV; Period 5
25 October 2015
The Myths That Changed Society The Epic of Gilgamesh tells the tale of a hero who ruled over Uruk and was set out to be the most powerful and incredible god and man of all existence. His power and sacrifices for his people made him almighty and he stood out to his people. Gilgamesh is united with Utnapishtim in hopes of setting out to becoming immortal by proving his strength and lord-like ways. Utnapishtim explains his story to Gilgamesh of his journey from becoming mortal to immortal and transforming into a god so Gilgamesh could follow in his footsteps. Utnapishtim tells Gilgamesh of his story of the flood and his survival, opening Gilgamesh’s eyes even more to the godly ways that

In both myths, the god(s) are not pleased with the order of the earth and the people that they have created, which leads them to want to completely destroy the people and start on a clean slate. The people do not pray enough, are not well behaved, and are audacious, which proves to the god(s) that what they have created is not good enough. “‘The end of all flesh is come before [Him]; for the earth is filled with violence’”, God was telling Noah as he explained to him what he wanted him to do with the ark (70). When the god(s) want to put a stop to the destruction of the people, in both myths, the god(s) choose one specific person to be rescued and have a second chance at proving their mightiness, in “Noah and the Flood” it was Noah and in “The Story of the Flood”, it was Utnapishtim. These characters are bold and are favored by the gods for their dedication and they tell them each man how to build their sacred shelter and what to bring onto the boat/ark they build. Noah is told to save himself, his wife and children, and two of every animal, both male and female to the ark he would create. Utnapishtim is told to create the boat and save himself, his wife and children, and different craftsmen who could be helpful in providing more

In the story of “ Noah and the Flood”, the flood wiped out the entire earth and lasted for 40 days and 40 nights. In “The Story of the Flood” in The Epic of Gilgamesh, the flood also wiped out the entire earth but only lasted for 6 days and 6 nights, causing a different effect than the flood of the ark did. As god wipes out the earth in The Epic of Gilgamesh, he explains how “‘[he] has brought them forth’” and has the power to destroy them just as easily (42). Both gods believed that they have created their people and they have disowned them, but both believed so for different reasons. Moses, who wrote the bible for the Hebrews which was then called Genesis, believed that the people have truly been disobedient and wants to create a more peaceful culture. The story of Gilgamesh has been sent down for generations and generations, as it is a sacred and ancient story, so the creator of the ideas of Gilgamesh argued that the gods thought the humans were too noisy and wanted more contained beings, so destroying them was the only way to that