The Epic Gilgamesh and its Effects on Modern Heros The Epic of Gilgamesh is one of the oldest surviving written pieces of literature, there are various versions of the epic but one of the most widely read, and the one I will be using for reference, is the modern english one translated by N. K. Sandars. The Epic of Gilgamesh is about the tyrannical King of Uruk, Gilgamesh, who is part man, part god and follows his journey and transformation as he becomes a true hero. Though the story is fictional some historians believe that there was indeed a King of Uruk named Gilgamesh between 2700 and 2500 B.C.E with evidence that he appears on the Sumerian King List. The story strongly follows a structure that James Campbell, an American Mythological researcher,
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The Epic of Gilgamesh is no exception to the structure Campbell calls “the monomyth” and in fact follows several of of the stages Campbell lays out. There are three key stages in the hero's journey that the Epic of Gilgamesh follows including Departure, Initiation, and Return. In addition to following these stages the epic also follows many of the subcategories like meeting a supernatural aid, crossing the first threshold, transformation, and many more. To delve into how The Epic of Gilgamesh follows the monomyth we have to analyze the different stages of the story and how they compare to Campbell's overall hero's …show more content…
One of the biggest examples being Star Wars, in fact George Lucas himself has admitted to being inspired by Joseph Campbell's book “The Hero With a Thousand Faces” and a comparison to the plot of his movies and Campbell's monomyth easily reflect that. The comparisons however don't end there and several other modern stories showing the archetypal hero's journey include The Matrix, Batman Begins, and the Lion King. The fact that these stories continue to be told and remain popular give us insight on all of us as humans and why Gilgamesh has been able to stand the test of time. Joseph Campbell has given many interpretations on why he thinks myths and stories are so important but my favorite one would have to be his remark about how “Shakespeare said that art is a mirror held up to nature. And that’s what it is. The nature is your nature, and all of these wonderful poetic images of mythology are referring to something in you. When your mind is trapped by the image out there so that you never make the reference to yourself, you have misread the image.” To me it seems like Campbell is referring to our own need to tell stories and myths relevant to to us as humans and what our experiences are. It’s my own belief that we create these stories to inspire us and allow us to realize what it is to be human and
The Epic of Gilgamesh is no exception to the structure Campbell calls “the monomyth” and in fact follows several of of the stages Campbell lays out. There are three key stages in the hero's journey that the Epic of Gilgamesh follows including Departure, Initiation, and Return. In addition to following these stages the epic also follows many of the subcategories like meeting a supernatural aid, crossing the first threshold, transformation, and many more. To delve into how The Epic of Gilgamesh follows the monomyth we have to analyze the different stages of the story and how they compare to Campbell's overall hero's …show more content…
One of the biggest examples being Star Wars, in fact George Lucas himself has admitted to being inspired by Joseph Campbell's book “The Hero With a Thousand Faces” and a comparison to the plot of his movies and Campbell's monomyth easily reflect that. The comparisons however don't end there and several other modern stories showing the archetypal hero's journey include The Matrix, Batman Begins, and the Lion King. The fact that these stories continue to be told and remain popular give us insight on all of us as humans and why Gilgamesh has been able to stand the test of time. Joseph Campbell has given many interpretations on why he thinks myths and stories are so important but my favorite one would have to be his remark about how “Shakespeare said that art is a mirror held up to nature. And that’s what it is. The nature is your nature, and all of these wonderful poetic images of mythology are referring to something in you. When your mind is trapped by the image out there so that you never make the reference to yourself, you have misread the image.” To me it seems like Campbell is referring to our own need to tell stories and myths relevant to to us as humans and what our experiences are. It’s my own belief that we create these stories to inspire us and allow us to realize what it is to be human and