| Both the historical
characters come within the realm of mythology
and legend. Their fame is attributable to legend.
Both men hold high places in the folk lore of
many a centuries ago. Both are credited with stories
of valor and heroism. Both these legendary figures
possessed extraordinary physical powers gifted
to them by the gods. Both the stories were initially
written in the form of epic poems serenading their
respective heroes.
So as to enable the reader to better understand
the commentary on comparison the stories of Gilgamesh
and Odysseus are briefly recounted here.
Gilgamesh was the Babylonian king of Uruk (modern
day Iraq). The people of the city prayed to the
sky god Anu to provide them relief from the tyranny
of Gilgamesh. One might wonder at this strange
situation. On the one hand those who were ruled
by Gilgamesh prayed for succor from his oppressive
and harsh rule. On the other hand he assumes the
role of the hero of the story. Obviously there
has to be a character transformation or else the
change is for simply giving a twist to the story
in order to create interest. This contradiction
can be a subject for research which is outside
the scope of this brief paper.
The sky god provides relief in the form of a
man named Enkidu who has phenomenal strength.
He is to serve as a check on the desires of Gilgamesh.
The two men have a bout and since no one emerges
as a clear winner they become friends and travel
together sharing many adventures. They slay wild
beasts and soon their reputation reaches far and
wide.
Back in Uruk the two men kill the Bull of Heaven
sent by Ishtar to destroy the city as Gilgamesh
does not return her overtures for a courtship.
The gods doom Enkidu to death. A brief quote from
a book is reproduced below:
“Through the medium of a dream, Enkidu
learns that he has been singled out for punishment.”
(Kovacs)
After Enkidu’s death Gilgamesh becomes
disconsolate. He seeks the secret of immortality
from the sage Utnapishtim. Gilgamesh however cannot
retrieve the sea plant which has the properties
of immortality as the plant is devoured by a serpent.
He returns crest fallen to Uruk to live out his
remaining life there.
Odysseus was the ruler of the island kingdom of
Ithaca. He was one of the original suitors of
Helen of Troy but was frustrated when Menelaus
succeeded in marrying Helen. This frustration
showed when he put on an act as being insane while
plowing fields. When his infant son was put before
the plow he could not hide his normality. Odysseus
though fought heroically in the Trojan War. His
return from Troy to Ithaca took ten years as the
journey was plagued by many mishaps and calamities.
His wife though waited dutifully for his return
as is evidenced from this passage from page 199
of the book by Woodhouse referenced in the bibliography.
“WHAT of Penelopeia? The folk-tale did not
offer the poet very much. The chaste and faithful
Wife was a somewhat shadowy figure, hardly in
the foreground-essential indeed to the story,
but of little individual significance, and with
little to do.”
His ship was struck by lightening and only he
survived. He reached the island of the nymph Calypso
who made Odysseus her lover and captive. When
released after seven years he set sail in a small
boat but was again caught in a storm and swam
to safety to the island of Phaeacians. The islanders
here treated him well and escorted him to Ithaca.
Homer portrays Odysseus as a bold and clever warrior
and as a master strategist. It was he who conceived
the idea of the Trojan Horse. (Bulfinch)
Commentary/Comparison:
Odysseus is a Greek warrior hero. He belongs to
the area which is now mainland Europe.
As opposed to this, the Gilgamesh Epic is a Middle
Eastern literary work written on twelve tablets
of clay. Some of these tablets may not have survived
the ravages of time. It is in the form of an epic
poem dedicated to its hero, Gilgamesh. It is perhaps
one of the oldest stories known to mankind. It
is an ancient tale from Sumeria. It reflects the
backdrop of the Tigris-Euphrates civilizations.
The language used for the original version may
also be extinct now (Epic of Gilgamesh, 2004).
Of the two stories the tale of Gilgamesh is more
ancient. It appears as being more mythical, imaginary
and supernatural than the story of Odysseus. The
story of Gilgamesh tests the limits of ones powers
to accept surrealism. As a corollary the Odysseus
saga appears more credible by comparison.
We have seen that Enkidu was doomed to death fro
joining Odysseus in fighting the demon of Cedar
forest. Here again one has the right to inquire
whether the gods held supreme powers and the human
forms were merely to carry out their orders or
did they have liberty and freedom to exercise
their own judgment and minds.
Another negative aspect is the cutting down of
the Cedar trees. One is at a loss to understand
what was so brave about bringing destruction to
the wealth of nature. There is no such negativity
in the tale of Odysseus.
A weakness of Gilgamesh was that he cried when
he lost his friend Enkidu and also when the serpent
snatched the sea-plant which has the immortality
properties. One may concede that he was only human.
And that in real life there is no such thing as
a black or white situation. It will always be
varying shades of grey. The ‘good guy-bad
guy’ formula exists in movies. Having said
this, it is also true that a story must have coherence
and consistency. We find that the story of Gilgamesh
does not explain, at first reading, the following:
1. The role of Gilgamesh as a oppressive ruler
and his later day character as a humane fearless
and noble warrior. This needs reconciliation to
put at ease the reader’s lack of comprehension.
2. The weakness displayed by Gilgamesh on the
death of Enkidu and on losing the sea plant of
immortality to the serpent.
3. The role of gods. Whether they actually directed
Gilgamesh or was the latter free to act at will
is also a question that begets a reply.
Odysseus comes across as a better strategist than
Gilgamesh. His idea of entering the enemy’s
fortified domain trough the Trojan Horse is indeed
a unparalled historical masterpiece. Then again
he fights his way through adversities during the
ten eventful years. He successfully faces all
the challenges and emerges victorious. That places
him above Gilgamesh in terms of endurance and
perseverance.
Another area where Gilgamesh has his image tarnished
is his oppressive rule as the King of Uruk. Odysseus
does not carry any such negative perception vis-à-vis
his rule over Ithaca.
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