![]() The two warrior epitomized violence and destruction as they wrecked havoc in Uruk, damaging walls and doorposts. The people were secretly hoping that Enkidu would prevail against their harshly and overly arrogant king. Enkidu is challenging Gilgamesh for the right to rule Uruk and to change the order of things. They grappled and their heavy breathing was described as like raging bulls locking horns in a fight for territorial supremacy. One of the most distinct depiction of violence can be observed in the scene where Gilgamesh and Enkidu finally met to test their mettle against the other. The people made their lamentations known to the gods and they responded by creating the anti-thesis to Gilgamesh and they hoped to bring him down when they meet in battle. The tyrant now residing in Uruk created a magnificent city with strong walls and it became famous not only for its beauty but also of the notoriety of its king. One can arrive at this conclusion because the narrative says that no husband, warrior or hero can stand against Gilgamesh. It was implied that Gilgamesh used force, in fact violence to coerce people to follow his every whim and desire. With his uniqueness and capabilities it was easy to understand why he wields absolute authority and thus it is also easy to comprehend why absolute power has corrupted him absolutely. With his strength, wisdom and comely appearance he ruled Uruk with an iron hand. He was also created to be beautiful and wise. He was created to be very strong, having no equal among men in that department. Gilgamesh was created to be part man, part divine but mostly godlike in appearance and abilities. This epic centered on the story of two men, Gilgamesh and Enkidu. Every-Man on the other hand is not an exhaustive narrative of human violence but it is included here because it provides a counterpoint in the idea that the strong will rule the weak and challenges the idea that violence will greatly reward those who wield its awesome power. Gilgamesh is also an important component of this discussion because it reveals that violence existed since recorded history or even beyond that. Gilgamesh is a good place to start because it is one of the most ancient pieces of literature ever discovered. The second one is the morality play called The Summoning of Every-Man. The first one is the Epic of Gilgamesh which is truly an amazing masterwork of a nameless ancient author. For this particular study, the proponent finds it interesting to start with two world-renowned literary works. There are too many angles and there can be multiple ways to begin the research. It is truly an understatement to say that the study of violence is a complex endeavor. Yet, history tells us that this goal of living a peaceful life is almost impossible especially in areas where unstable governments and tyrannical leaders can be seen co-existing in one place. Another common denominator among major religions is the desire to live in peace among others and the strict avoidance of violence. For Christians there is the Ten Commandments, for others their sense of right and wrong is simply bound by the golden rule – do unto others what you want others to do unto you. #The epic of gilgamesh codeIt is also a well-known fact that in most organized religions – created around the belief of a certain deity – there is a common denominator, the existence of a code of conduct. ![]() ![]() This leaves the story very open to interpretation.An overwhelmingly significant portion of the world’s population believes in the existence of a Supreme Being. Unfortunately, some of the tablets are fragmented, and the story has to be pieced together from different versions. After this discovery, archaeologists dug up more and more tablets and scholars busied themselves with translations. ![]() This announcement set off an immediate sensation because it suggested that the authors of the Bible might have been familiar with Gilgamesh’s story (though possibly both versions come from an earlier source). The tablets were transferred to the British Museum where they received little attention until 1873, when a scholar named George Smith realized that they included an account of the flood (recounted in the Bible as the story of Noah’s ark). His library disappeared after the fall of Nineveh in 612 BCE, and was uncovered by archaeologists in 1839. Ashurbanipal (668-627 BCE) was a great king of the Assyrian empire and a collector of literature from all over the Middle East. #The epic of gilgamesh seriesThe most complete version of Gilgamesh yet discovered is a series of eleven tablets in the Akkadian language found in the library of Ashurbanipal in Nineveh. ![]()
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |