Odysseus And Gilgamesh Research Paper

Source of Strength

In both The Epic of Gilgamesh, translated by Andrew George, and The Odyssey translated by Stanley Lombardo, the royal protagonists are kings. In both, Gilgamesh and Odysseus are renowned kings who go on harsh journey’s being obstructed by the gods. Both are considered one of the strongest people of their times. Interestingly, Gilgamesh and Odysseus are reasonable different types of king, the former being more harsh. Although both kings survive the harsh quest, Gilgamesh and Odysseus seemingly swap places as being more ruthless to their kingdoms. Gilgamesh’s change parallels Odysseus’ change from a caring to ruthless king and vice versa.

In the beginning of both stories, Odysseus and Gilgamesh are contrasting figures of

Returning to his kingdom of Ithaca, Odysseus ruthlessly “[...] [took] dead aim at Antinous’ throat and shot” (Odyssey, 199), killing him before the rest of the suitors, who would meet the same fate. Odysseus’ mercilessness to his townsfolk is a stark change from his dedication to his crew members earlier. The massacre of the suitors is similar to Gilgamesh’s behavior earlier on as king of Uruk, harsh and unforgiving. On the contrary, Gilgamesh plans to use the Plant of Heartbeat and “[...] feed some to [an ancient]” (Gilgamesh, 98). Planning to share the plant with the power of youthfulness to the old men of the city illustrates the progression of Gilgamesh from a tyrant to a more thoughtful king. The plan to share the plant also shows the similarity to Odysseus’ earlier commitment to his crewmates. Another change in Gilgamesh’s behavior is shown when he urges “Ur-shanabi [to] climb Uruk’s wall and walk back and forth! Survey the foundations, examine the brickwork [...]”(Gilgamesh, 99). Gilgamesh is eager to show off his kingdom of Uruk to Ur-shanabi, also complementing it. He shows a sense of pride, being proud of the kingdom wanting to invite him in. By the end of both king's quest’s, they change between being thoughtful to ruthless.

In both The Odyssey and Gilgamesh, powerful kings go on dangerous quests. After returning, both change mirroring the other’s previous style of ruling. Odysseus’ massacre at the end and tyrant-like behavior is similar to Gilgamesh’s original style of ruling, brutal. On the other hand, Gilgamesh’s consideration to even share the youth-giving plant to his elder citizens is a big change from his “terrible” labelled history. Gilgamesh ends how Odysseus began as, thoughtful. By the end of the stories, Odysseus ends up being more cruel than