Myth of Er

It is often said that life is short, so make it count. The brevity of life is enough to drive makes life itself one of the most precious gifts there is. Therefore, how one spends his life is of the utmost importance. Both the Epic of Gilgamesh and the Bible recognize the concision of life. While death looms, the principles regarding life and death shine forth in both narratives. In this paper, an exploration of what each has to say about life and death will be handled, including a…

Didactic literature teaches, instructs, or demonstrates principles of mortality and well being. In The Epic Tale of Gilgamesh, the readers are taught several lessons within the text. The most easily found lesson that is learned within The Epic Tale of Gilgamesh is that death is unavoidable. Gilgamesh was a jealous man, and envied the Gods for their immortality. However, Gilgamesh came up with a plan of his own. Gilgamesh and his friend Enkidu realized that even though they can’t live…

Topoi of revealed secrets occur in over twenty-five ANE sources, ranging from Sumer, Babylon, and Persia in the east to Egypt and Greece in the west. In the following subsection is three positive-revelation sources possibly holding a parent-child relationship with Second Temple writings. The second subsection contains two for negative revelation. The three most likely sources for parent-child relationships are (1) the Ascent of Enmeduranki, (2) the Assyrian version of the Epic of Gilgamesh, and…

Water is not only present on 71 percent of the Earth’s surface it also present nearly 100 percent of “The Talented Mr. Ripley.” It is used throughout the book and movie many times as the setting for several events and as a symbol for a variety of ideas. Death, salvation, rebirth and deception by water in both the book and the movie adaptation of “The Talented Mr. Ripley.” Death is the first and perhaps most apparent of the three. Water is seen by many as a symbol of life and good health, but to…

Javier Romero Dr. Felipe English Comp 3 August 13, 2015 The Epic of Gilgamesh The Epic of Gilgamesh shows realities between the unruly natural world and civilized Mesopotamia. This epic is the journey of a warrior, Gilgamesh, filled with great hubris, as he searches for the key to immortality. Gilgamesh is the king of Uruk but is seen more like a overpowering tyrant than a kind leader to his people. The gods send a wild man, Enkidu, as a buffer to Gilgamesh’s hubris. When Enkidu dies he is…

Gilgamesh and The Acceptance of Death “Why should I fear death? If I am, death is not. If death is, I am not. Why should I fear that which cannot exist when I do?” —Epicurus The Epic of Gilgamesh speaks to the human fear of death and the death of the people who they love and care for. It answers to the existential question of what comes with death and what of the life and connections that have been made during our time one Earth. The character Gilgamesh goes through different stages while…

What exactly is a hero? According to Webster’s Dictionary, a hero is “a person who is admired for great or brave acts or fine qualities.” Whether intentional or coincidental, these persons have a great impact on others. However, many of those characters that are deemed heroic figures are also ones that are identified as “tragic heroes”. This suggests that, despite the real or potential good that a character does, he is flawed and often acts in ways that lead to his downfall or to his…

The Bible begins with the book of Genesis, also known as the book of beginnings. Genesis is the first of five books collectively referred to as the Pentateuch. The name is derived from the first word of the LXX, which is translated to mean beginning. Most scholars agree that the book consist of two parts, chapters 1-11 and 12-50. The first section is referred to as the primeval history, beginning with creation, and concluding with the genealogy of Shem. There are some who offer other suggested…

The story of Enuma Elish is inscribed on seven cuneiform tablets, recovered by a collector named AH Layard in Iraq (Matthews and Benjamin). This story has some parallel tales told in the Old Testament, such as Genesis, Exodus and the Psalms. This story presents the father and mother, Apsu and Tiamat, who represent saltwater and freshwater who were present before the creation of the universe. This story provides a description of a series of gods that were created: “When on high ... No heaven HAD…

In the epic of Gilgamesh, water is shown to be an importance through out the story as it is mentioned in tablet XI. In tablet XI, Gilgamesh talks to Utanapishtim on how he was granted immortality by the gods. Utanapishtim tells him about his recap of his life before he became immortal by building a boat that would survive the flood. After Utanapishtim tells Gilgamesh of his life, Gilgamesh continues to go on his journey to become immortal. In the story of Gilgamesh water plays a crucial role in…