Gilgamesh and Odysseus, are consdired as both heroes, coming from two distinct backgrounds. They existed at different times in history and were both in pursuit of finding the true meaning of why human being came into existence and what man should do while still alive. Gilgamesh lived in Mesopotamia while Odyssey was from the early Greece. Gilgamesh is a familiar figure in Mesopotamia having contributed a lot towards the growth of religion in the region. Gilgamesh is credited with influencing the shaping of various attitudes and mindsets towards the belief in gods. Other opinions shaped by Gilgamesh include how the society defined their heroes, and the position actors were accorded in the society. The activities and debates championed by Gilgamesh helped the community develop various concepts about human social interactions such a friendship and cross-gender relation and how members of the society were to relate with their neighboring communities, visitors who came to their territory and how the culture was to be integrated with other cultures.
On the other hand, Odyssey was as well famous during his time. He grew up in Greece and most of the time he was concerned about the Greece people civilization. He undertook many studies trying to understand various aspects of the community with the aim of developing a better society than how he had found the society. He desired to transform the community to ensure development in the social and economic fronts were realized. Odyssey set out to explain various myths that existed in the society at that time in history. Through observation and relating with the members of the community, he was determined to provide answers to various questions about various phenomena that the community was going through (Jaramillo, 2015). Many issues that he attempted to solve lacked scientific explanations or solutions. The community was always amazed and left to wonder when such strange occurred. Many people had tried to provide explanations to why some aspects existed the way they did, but they never managed to give convincing answers.
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Gilgamesh was the brave man of the ambitious Gilgamesh. Gilgamesh was for a long time in history the Supreme political ad socioeconomic leader of the Uruk civilization which occupied Babylon for many years. The geographical location of the place was on the offshore of river Euphrates in the modern day state of Iraq. It is believed and written in many historical books that Gilgamesh about 2700 BC. Similarly, on the other hand, Odysseus was a protagonist in the epic the Odyssey. He was the supreme ruler of the island kingdom of Ithaca. He is considered on of the Greek leaders of the Trojan battle. The two individuals are similar in that they both exhibited particular unknown understanding and power in their communities. For example, it is believed that Gilgamesh had the personal unique physical strength that helped him accomplish something for his community (Jaramillo, 2015). Similarly, Odysseus had mental strength that he sued to help the society overcome certain issues they were faced.
Another similarity between Gilgamesh and Odysseus is that they acted as a link between their communities and the gods that their people believed. Gilgamesh was born of the lineage of the gods, and throughout his life, he was involved in the secret affairs of the gods and provided direction for the community by giving instruction on how the community was to conduct several affairs. On the other hand, was tasked with being the ruler of the people in his community who had taken an expedition due to Poseidon killing his son Cyclops. At some particular moments, Odysseus brought the anger of the gods to fight the Trojan war (Jaramillo, 2015). The affair of the communities that the two people are involved in make them exceptional individuals are they are a link between the people and their gods. They represented the people issues to the gods while the gods used them to communicate with the people. Such similar actions and point between Gilgamesh and Odysseus make them have divine powers within a particular sphere of their societies. Both held proper positions in their communities and are remembered for having done great things on behalf of the communities (Jaramillo, 2015).
Despite the similarities between Gilgamesh and Odysseus, there exist clear differences between them too. Odysseus acts in a cordial manner with all those he interacts with in his daily life. He respects all people in equal measure despite their social status in the society. On the contrary is Gilgamesh. Sometimes, he was arrogant while dealing with his people. Secondly, Odysseus appears to use his brain a lot when confronted with various issues in the society. He thinks a lot before taking action. Sometimes resorts to cunning or diplomacy to get things done according to his desires. Gilgamesh on the other side is a rough and used force to have things done the way he desires. On various instances, he becomes brutal using excessive force to have things done. He never has time to persuade people to do what he believes. He forces them to follow his thought (Jaramillo, 2015). Those who seem not to agree with him are dealt with roughly. Thirdly, even though Gilgamesh and Odysseus face many hardships in the lives, many unfortunate happenings that happen to Gilgamesh appear to be initiated by his mistakes. That is not the case with Odysseus. Odysseus suffering through his life seems to result from luck not being on his side.
Reference
Jaramillo, A. (2015). The Presence and Power of the Hero Theme in Cultural Myth. A Reflection of a Culture's Values?
