The Struggle In The Epic Of Gilgamesh

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Storytelling is possibly one of the oldest pastimes in human culture. Stories have been passed around from every culture, and some epic tales stick more than others. The Epic of Gilgamesh is one of these stories. The Epic of Gilgamesh has not just been passed down from generation to generation, it is the oldest written story. Although this piece of literature is the ancient, it is relatable to people all around the world in modern society. The epic is about a powerful tyrant king named Gilgamesh. Gilgamesh was created by the gods with a perfect body, strength, and courage. He was two thirds god one third human (Sanders). However, this almighty king of Uruk was faced with challenges that he overcame. The struggles Gilgamesh faced is what makes …show more content…
In The Epic of Gilgamesh, the story centers around the hero, Gilgamesh. At first, it seems as if the tyrant king plays the role of the bad guy. He terrorized the towns people and conquered all in his path. He was undefeatable because he was blessed by the gods and partly divine. A troubled hero is quite common in modern culture and media. For example, the superhero known as Spiderman struggles to become the hero of the story with his gifted abilities. Although Gilgamesh is a tyrant in the beginning of the epic that soon changes when he is faced with his equal, Enkidu. Just as in the film Spiderman he is challenged by The Green Goblin. Both hero’s face off. And in the end the hero wins. From modern pop culture to ancient stories the epic hero wins the battle and with the victory of that battle they begin to truly understand what it means to be the hero. Without the death of the hero’s equal there wouldn’t be a development in the hero (Abusch). When Gilgamesh witnesses his friend Enkidu’s death it caused a change in his personality. The death left Gilgamesh to ponder, he then wished for immortality so he would not meet the same end as Enkidu. Similarly, when Spiderman witnessed the death of the Green Goblin, he too began to question his way of life and if he really wanted to be the hero. Each hero goes through a change when they realize this is how their life is going to be and it is not always fun, and sometimes there is a …show more content…
The gods play a large role in the life of Gilgamesh, they seem to always throw objects into his path. Gilgamesh could do what no other in his time could. Almost every epic hero has a superhuman ability, which is one of the traits that makes them unforgettable. Gilgamesh has his strength gifted to him by the gods, Spiderman has his spider like abilities he received from a bite from a genetically modified spider. Gilgamesh was completely unique, that is until the townspeople grew tired of his tyrant ways and prayed to the gods for help. The god Anu acknowledges their prayers and went to the goddess of creation where he then asked, “You made him, O Aruru; now create his equal; let it be as like him as his own reflection, his second self; stormy heart for stormy heart. Let them contend together and leave Uruk in quiet” (Sanders). The goddess heard him and created Enkidu. With this creation, Gilgamesh was no longer unique and he responded by fighting with Enkidu because Enkidu believed he could defeat anyone (Sanders). Spiderman is presented with a similar conflict. Mad scientist Norman Osborn, his best friend’s father, attempts to genetically modify himself which results in him becoming the Green Goblin. Of course, the Green Goblin is the bad guy in the film and fights with Spiderman a few different times. A conflict between supernatural forces is a very common theme in both ancient and modern culture.
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