The Role Of Power And Rule In The Epic Of Gilgamesh
Anna’s Traits How would the Byzantine empire be today if Anna Comnena, a princess born to inherit the throne but died in a nunnery due to a failed attempt of murder, actually inherited the throne? Anna of Byzantium is a novel written by Tracy Barrett in 1998. It is a historical fiction book telling of Anna Comnena, a Byzantine princess and the events that happened to her in her lifetime. Anna Comnena, the ambitious heir the throne of the Roman Empire, was a well educated, arrogant, and vengeful person.
Instead of feeling safe under a divine ruler, people feel threatened and pray to gods to protect them. Gilgamesh oversteps the family boundaries, and this constant violation causes Gilgamesh to lose favor and love from his own subjects. A good king can lose the favor of his people because without them, the glory of being a monarch diminishes, losing the respect and loyalty from his subjects. As a result, Gilgamesh’s corruption prohibits him from calling himself a great king among other
Gilgamesh: The Transformed King In many literary works the hero goes through major transitions as the story is developed. This also is the case with Gilgamesh in The Epic of Gilgamesh. Gilgamesh is seen in four main ways- as an arrogant ruler resented by his people, a courageous fighter, a disheartened man, and a man who is satisfied with what he has accomplished. These transitions cause Gilgamesh’s attitude towards life to change.
101 Ways to Royally Screw up and Still Be Successful May Tun During the respective reigns, David and Gilgamesh are known to be the greatest kings among all the other kings, but there are moments that portray them as wicked rulers. They both possess divine and absolute power, and as a result, complications arise such as corruption and misconduct since they have the freedom of doing whatever they desire. A king is responsible for protecting the people by putting the welfare of the country above their own personal benefits at all times, for they are given the authority to lead and serve the people. David and Gilgamesh’s failures are the results of their misuse of power and their incapability of managing political and personal affairs, while their successes are a reflection of their abilities to learn from mistakes in order to become wise rulers.
He had many extraordinary qualities, and heroic characteristics. The most obvious being that he is a king, a man of highest level in society. He was also known and appreciated for building many walls and temples around his city, which no man who followed ever matched. However, after the presence of Enkidu was made, Gilgamesh started to become the more noble and favored ruler of Uruk. Since he finally knew what it was like to have a companion and someone of his level of greatness, he no longer terrorized his city as he did before, and is still aware that death is inevitable.
Gilgamesh is not a virtuous character because he mistreats women and he is impatient. One thing that has always been agreed upon as the sign of a virtuous character is treating the people around in a kind and considerate manner. Gilgamesh, however, treats the people around him, especially women, like objects to be used at his discretion. Gilgamesh rapes women as shown on page 101, “Gilgamesh leaves no girl to her mother” (Putchner et al). This quote means that Gilgamesh forces women away from their mothers so that he can do what he wishes to them, also known as rape.
Gilgamesh is a powerful yet emotional king. Gilgamesh shows his weak side by saying “I have wept for him day and night…” After this he remains an epic hero in my opinion. The text states he went on a great dangerous journey and survived and killed the guard of The Cedar
. John Emerich Edward Dalberg Acton once stated, “Power tends to corrupt and absolute power corrupts absolutely.” However, the usage of power can be implemented positively or negatively, depending on the intentions of an individual. By definition, power is stated as the capacity or ability to direct or influence the behavior of others or the course of events. Characters from The Epic of Gilgamesh by Sin-Leqi-Unninni and Lysistrata by Aristophanes demonstrate that not all who wield power results in corruption.
Enkidu’s friendship makes Gilgamesh calm and helps him to become a better king. Throughout the epic, Gilgamesh and Enkidu kiss and hug each other frequently. After conflicts between the two, they kissed and formed friendship. But Gilgamesh is never seen sleeping with a woman after conflict, and he even rejected Ishtar, the principal goddess of Uruk. “Come, Gilgamesh, be you my bridegroom!
An archetype is a term of Greek origin that is commonly defined as a recurrent symbol or motif in literature, art or mythology. “The Epic of Gilgamesh” and “Noah and the Flood” are both stories that are stories from different millennia long ago. Through the characters, theology, culture, and setting, when reading “The Epic of Gilgamesh” and “Noah and the Flood” it is immediately apparent that there are numerous similarities as well as differences that separate the two. Nonetheless they are reminiscent of a common archetype. Beginning by cross examining the characters in “The Epic of Gilgamesh” and “Noah and the Flood” we can begin to understand how they alter the path their stores take including both similarities and differences.
Literature, art, and music have always found ways to transcend the physical barriers and borders humans put up. They influence cultures other than the ones of their origins. Similarities between religions, mythologies, and folk stories have been noted often throughout time by academics and historians. The holy texts of some major religions like The Old Testament and the Quran share many overlapping literary themes and events with older religions and folk tales, like the ancient Sumerian poem; “The Epic of Gilgamesh”. Many examples of overlapping themes is the presence and references to great floods, supernatural influences, otherworldly gardens, and battles between good and evil.
The Epic of Gilgamesh is the oldest story known to mankind, being written on Sumerian clay almost five thousand years ago (Garone). Since the story was originally known orally, the culture and themes from The Epic of Gilgamesh must have existed long before it was finally inscribed (Mark 4). Having known this, the cultures and themes can be compared to today’s society, discovering about how they have shifted and evolved, and also observe how they are similar. The ancient days of Gilgamesh has brought culture that has greatly influenced today’s society. Because Gilgamesh was set around the time of late Babylonian or early Sumerian society, the Babylonian and Sumerian cultures also play a role in shaping the world into what is is today (Mark).
Cultural Values A demigod named Gilgamesh, tragically loses his best friend, then he goes on a journey to find the secret of immortality. One could say that these specific cultural values work effectively for the Gods and the people of Uruk, such as rituals, war, and making sacrifices to make this culture successful. Commonly this culture mostly performs rituals for everlasting life or immortality. Gods are afraid of mortality and death itself.
In the Epic of Gilgamesh interrelationships between the humans and gods are not what we are used to in most modern monotheistic societies. Perhaps the greatest difference between the power of humans and gods is when Gilgamesh is referred to as “Two-thirds of him was divine, one-third of him was human!” (39) as this reveals Gilgamesh to be the son of Lugalbanda the former king and the goddess Ninsun. This would indicate that the line between human and god is an extremely thin one and thus gods cannot and are not that vastly different from their human counterparts. Indeed, throughout the journey of Gilgamesh we are confronted by gods and goddesses who are similar to humans in their desires and means of achieving them.
The Epic of Gilgamesh: Relevant Truth for Today’s Society The Epic of Gilgamesh is set in Uruk, an ancient city of the ancient Mesopotamian civilization of Sumer, now modern-day Iraq. The epic was said to be written by Sin-liqe-unninni, but it is based on five earlier Sumerian poems with no known author. The piece was difficult to translate, and there are two main version for the Epic of Gilgamesh. This is the result of the environment during the time the piece was being written.
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