Theme Of Power In The Epic Of Gilgamesh

Is murder still murder if there’s a justifiable cause? Is it ok to sympathize with a murder? While most side with justice for moral’s sake, there’s no denying the sense of relief when a character in a work of fiction who’s given a justable cause to be disliked (i.e. is a jerk) is cut down. Is someone’s bad attitude a free pass for murder? Of course not, but thats the luxury of fiction. As I read the Orestes I was introduced to Clytemnestra. While trying to portray the role of the loving wife, she sat on the throne of Argos plotting her husband, Agamemnon, demise. Through the trilogy we see her character transform from the intelligent trickster to the personification of the phrase, “Hell hath no fury like a woman scorned.” But she didn’t

Greek Mythology is notoriously anti-female revolution. From Aeschylus’s depiction of Clytemnestra’s thirst for power to one’s own Euripides’ depiction of Medea’s rampage of revenge, Greek mythology is terrified of powerful women. The Bacchae by Euripides makes no exception and continues stifling female empowerment; however, Euripides adds his own unique spin on terrifying female depiction. Instead of just representing women in power as monsters to fear, he instead blames femininity as the culprit. He uses the Bacchae, Dionysus, and Pentheus as examples of the danger in accessing one’s own femininity. The Bacchae’s own control of their sexuality, as Pentheus describes “They creep off one by one to lonely spots to have sex with men”, and their feminine features, as their breasts swell and their hair cascades, creates an example of women gone wild with power over themselves

The Greek polis, or city-state, arose in the Archaic Period spanning from 800 to 500 B.C. This period followed three hundred years of a Dark Age in which the people of Greece lived in nomadic groups following the fall of Mycenaean civilization in 1100 B.C. Though life was arduous for Greeks in the Dark Ages and no written records exist from the time, this period allowed for the dissolving of Mycenaean structures and the rise of Archaic Greece. City-states of the Archaic era were unified, urban centers that spread throughout the Mediterranean basin due to vigorous colonization. With this shift back to state-level society came the organization of polis populations into a hierarchy of citizens, foreign residents, and slaves.

Her grace, power, and overall determination gained the respect from all the women. Close to the beginning of the poem Lysistrata states "But if the women gather together here—the Boeotian women, the Peloponnesian women, and ourselves—together we'll be able to rescue Greece." (I. 39). She uses the word rescue to show how detrimental this war is and Lysistrata knew if everyone came together the war would end. She knew what the war was all about and ultimately she knew it was wrong. Voicing her opinion on such topic was unheard of but the fact that she did, changed the whole course of the war. In most cases men have the final say but because of Lysistrata’s determination she ultimately ended the war with the help of all the

In Homer’s The Odyssey, particular characters have some sort of disguise that allows them to deceive others. In the epic, there is also a demonstration of inequality between men and women. The idea of guile in The Odyssey was raised multiple times throughout the epic and it was often considered to be wisdom. From the beginning of the epic, we see characters praising men for their “wisdom” and women are oppressed for the majority of their actions, including lying. This patriarchal system that oppresses women for their actions, including shunning them for being deceptive, reveals the double standard in society, but also reveals the social statuses in this time period that oppressed women and bound them from being able to change the overall epic.

In the Epic of Gilgamesh, Enkidu was an example of the character archetype, “The Sidekick,” because he was a faithful and supportive companion of Gilgamesh. Although Enkidu and Gilgamesh initially fought, a strong friendship was sealed between them.

Enkidu, raised by animals, rivals Gilgamesh in the measure of his great strength; however, he was a man of the wild and had never known civilization. As stated in The Epic of Gilgamesh "He knew neither people nor inhabited land, / He dressed as animals do. / He fed on grass with the gazelles" (Unknown 100-102). This changes when a hunter stumbles upon him at a watering hole. The hunter, in a sense of awe and frustration with him sought the consultation

Lysistrata tells the women that they must resist their men in order for them to stop fighting in war. These women swear on oath, by pouring wine in a bowl, to not have sex with their husbands until the war is over. They will try to seek the mens attention by dressing vulgarly and wearing a lot of makeup but they will not have sex. Once the war is over the Spartans and Athens get together with Lysistrata and the goddess Reconciliation. In this scene Lysistrata tells them what to do so they could make peace, she explains to them how they have both done many good things for each other so this is why they should not be going to war. The ambassadors of both cities use Reconciliations body as a map of Greece pointing to different parts of her body to emphasize their points and make negotiations. They conclude the play by agreeing with Lysistrata and by making an agreement of peace. They also sing a hymn to the gods of ancient Greece. The way this play ends portrays how the main character, Lysistrata, is being admired for her opinion. Lysistrata ends with an easy victory because she is able to convince the ambassadors and the people of Athens and Sparta to create nonviolence which makes the audience feel content. The men of Athens will probably degrade their women after seeing this play because during this time women were not treated

The roles and social status of women in ancient times are being described by many well-known playwrights and poets. Yet, different works shows different opinions towards “women power”. In this essay, I am going to compare Homer’s Iliad and The Code of Hammurabi along with Sophocles’ Antigone.

People of Uruk suffered from tyranny and were brutally oppressed. They complained to Aruru, the goddess of creation, that she must make someone stronger than Gilgamesh. Aruru listened and made Enkidu. Enkidu was made of clay and Aruru’s saliva, and had nearly equal power as Gilgamesh. Hairy and brawny, Enkidu lived with animals in the wilderness. Unlike Gilgamesh, Enkidu was the ideal leader. He had good manners, and protected the oppressed people of Uruk from Gilgamesh. The people of Uruk began hailing Enkidu as their hero. However, Enkidu chose friendship over becoming the perfect leader. After Enkidu challenged Gilgamesh to a contest of strength, they became best friends. Enkidu’s friendship makes Gilgamesh calm and helps him to become a better king. Throughout the epic, Gilgamesh and Enkidu kiss and hug each other frequently. After conflicts between the two, they kissed and formed friendship. But Gilgamesh is never seen sleeping with a woman after conflict, and he even rejected Ishtar, the principal goddess of Uruk. “Come, Gilgamesh, be you my bridegroom! Grant me your fruits, O grant me! Be you my husband and I your wife! Let me harness you chariot of lapis and gold, its wheel shall be gold and its horns shall be amber.

Literature, art, and music have always found ways to transcend the physical barriers and borders humans put up. They influence cultures other than the ones of their origins. Similarities between religions, mythologies, and folk stories have been noted often throughout time by academics and historians. The holy texts of some major religions like The Old Testament and the Quran share many overlapping literary themes and events with older religions and folk tales, like the ancient Sumerian poem; “The Epic of Gilgamesh”. Many examples of overlapping themes is the presence and references to great floods, supernatural influences, otherworldly gardens, and battles between good and evil. Not only do these shared themes point to an innate psychology present in all people in every culture, but perhaps even to a direct influence of “The Epic of Gilgamesh” on these holy texts.

“Power tends to corrupt and absolute power corrupts absolutely.” In The Tragedy of Julius Caesar, this is a prevalent quote to most of the characters. This was true in particular to the characters of Brutus, Julius Caesar, and Cassius. Although some of these characters in the start of the play may have seemed without the corruption of power, they all developed it at some point in the play. To Brutus it seemed to make him nobler without the gain of any success from power. To characters like Cassius and Julius, it made them both corrupt with power, it was the main reason that Caesar had gained the success he had, and the search for power was all that Cassius was after. All of these characters though went through the good and the bad with each

In William Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream, the female characters' desire to question the law of Athens and select their own husbands drives most of the conflict in the play. In a way, Hermia, Helena, and Titania are the protagonists of the play because each of their desires are being thwarted by the patriarchal structure of the society in which they live. The way the women try to overcome such hurdles does not sit well with the men. Accordingly, the men get on edge when their patriarchy is disrupted, so they make strict laws to try and keep the women under their control. The men of Athens feel threatened when women show agency because their whole patriarchal system depends on female complacency. Although Athenian society

Lysistrata, a middle-class woman and wife of one of the Athenians soldiers, decides to hold a meeting with all the women within the Greek territory and discuss a way to end the terrible war afflicting

Ruthless Tyrants. Fictional Characters. Normal People. Power is seen everywhere and witnessed by everyone. Lord Acton, an English politician and writer, said,”All power tends to corrupt; absolute power corrupts absolutely.” What Acton was really trying to say was, a persons sense of morality lessens as his/her power increases. This contention, “All power tends to corrupt; absolute power corrupts absolutely,” has been seen in, current events (Saddam Hussein), literature (Lord of the Flies), historic situations (Mao Zedong), and is true when one leader or person is given an excessive or absolute amount