ipl-logo

Women In The Epic Of Gilgamesh Essay

685 Words3 Pages

This essay examines the effects that women and heroes have on the lives of those that are a part of the society in which Gilgamesh is the ruler. A comprehensive analysis is made to discuss the various ways women and heroes demonstrate their power. The capability that women have to change a man, regardless of the flaws that the she may be incline to demonstrate, clearly resembles the amount of power that they have. More specifically, in the poem, The Epic of Gilgamesh, the powerful King of Uruk’s outlook on life and his pursuit of immortality depicts the women as a representation of a significant part of the life in the ancient society where men, need the power of women, despite their negative qualities and characteristics, for more than sexual pleasure; women are seen and needed as more than mere sexual objects, but as a benefit for the life improvement of all the men, gods, and heroes.
The Epic of Gilgamesh began with an important task assigned to a …show more content…

“The nobles rejoiced: ‘A hero has appeared for the man of proper mien! For Gilgamesh, the godlike, his equal has come forth’” (lines 66-70). “Gilgamesh is most splendid among the heroes, Gilgamesh is most glorious among me” (lines 149-150). Due to…
The role of women in The Epic of Gilgamesh can be construed as a peculiar role when only reading the surface of the text, but once the text is examined and interpreted deeper, the role of women is similar to the role that they have in today’s society. Women have been applaud for shaping society as a whole. Although Gilgamesh turns out to be a hero, he is a man who inevitably desired women. At times, these women were mere objects used for sexual pleasure, and at other times, women were powerful and capable of taming those who behaved as animals.
Once again, it is noticeable that a woman is sent to fix the problem that Gilgamesh, a man, needed to be

Show More
Related

  • Comparing Homer's Iliad And The Code Of Hammurabi

    704 Words  | 3 Pages

    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.

    Read More

  • Humbristic To Humble Gilgamesh Analysis

    746 Words  | 3 Pages

    Always encountering success, Gilgamesh was once a tyrant to his people. Reflecting on his rule, he recalls that, “He demanded from an old birthright/the privilege of sleeping with their brides” (15). His triumphs fostered arrogance. To him, everyone else paled in comparison. When he experiences defeat, however, Gilgamesh grows as a leader, seeing the similarities between him and his subjects, their common humanity.

    Read More

  • The Virtue In The Epic Of Gilgamesh

    496 Words  | 2 Pages

    Gilgamesh is not a virtuous character because he mistreats women and he is impatient. One thing that has always been agreed upon as the sign of a virtuous character is treating the people around in a kind and considerate manner. Gilgamesh, however, treats the people around him, especially women, like objects to be used at his discretion. Gilgamesh rapes women as shown on page 101, “Gilgamesh leaves no girl to her mother” (Putchner et al). This quote means that Gilgamesh forces women away from their mothers so that he can do what he wishes to them, also known as rape.

    Read More

  • The Submissive Women In The Odyssey

    825 Words  | 4 Pages

    Meanwhile, Penelope is in Ithaka busy dealing with the suitors who vie for her hand in marriage, tending to her loom, and directing her serving maids at work. In Homer’s epic poem, women, and goddesses are treated differently than men and gods when it comes to their freedom, expectations, and image. One common occurrence in this epic poem is unequal freedom for women,

    Read More

  • Similarities Between Gilgamesh And Achilles

    961 Words  | 4 Pages

    In comparison, it’s always observed on how different scholars find the similarity of especially marital settings, characters, and as well as the wanderings of the mythological world. Different events within the life of these characters cover broadly a huge range of epic encounters that are heroic. The character, emotional and psychological development of Gilgamesh can be borrowed especially from the ancient heroic perspectives of mortality and death while comparing with Achilles. Mesopotamian civilization has had several phases in which hero Gilgamesh has been in existence, however having similar attributes. One of the earliest stories of Gilgamesh is developed from Sumerian texts, one of the most influential and well-known poems (Michelakis & Pantelis 2007).

    Read More

  • Gilgamesh Successes And Failures Essay

    1577 Words  | 7 Pages

    People of Uruk complain about the nature of Gilgamesh’ tyranny to gods as they can no longer tolerate the king’s unjust behaviors: “His companions are kept on their feet by his contests, [the young men of Uruk] he harries without warrant. Gilgamesh lets no son go free to his father, by day and by [night his tyranny grows] harsher. (Gilgamesh, I.166-170)” People rely on the king to protect their rights and the country, but Gilgamesh does the opposite by taking away their sons and daughters for his personal needs. The people of Uruk feel oppressed under Gilgamesh’s rule as Gilgamesh gives himself the right to sleep with women on the first night of marriage and to take away sons from the household to appease his appetite for war games.

    Read More

  • Analysis Of Whores, Wives, And Slaves By Sarah B. Pomeroy

    1899 Words  | 8 Pages

    This paper will discuss the well-published work of, Pomeroy, Sarah B. Goddesses, Whores, Wives, and Slaves: Women in Classical Antiquity. New York: Schocken, 1975. Print. Sarah B. Pomeroy uses this book to educate others about the role women have played throughout ancient history. Pomeroy uses a timeline to go through each role, starting with mythological women, who were called Goddesses.

    Read More

  • The Odyssey Essay: The Role Of Women In Homer's Odyssey

    1255 Words  | 6 Pages

    In spite of the fact that Homer’s Odyssey is an epic story of a man’s gallant journey, women play a huge part throughout. Their unique yet controversial personalities, intentions, and relationships are vital to the development of this epic and adventurous journey of Odysseus. The poem by Homer was written at a time when women had an inferior position in society, yet that didn’t stop them from being any less influential. All of the women throughout the Odyssey possess different qualities, but all of them help to define the role of the ideal woman.

    Read More

  • Women In Ancient Greece Essay

    1413 Words  | 6 Pages

    In ancient times, there is a general sense that women were simply items and slaves to their husbands. Ancient Greece specifically has a renowned reputation of favoring men. Men possessed the dominant role in public affairs and events while most women were pressured to stay at home. Very few records extensively discuss women; the records focus mostly on men. Despite the lacking records, it is certain how ancient Greeks viewed their women and their relationships with their male counterparts.

    Read More

  • Ideal Heroic King In Epic Of Gilgamesh

    902 Words  | 4 Pages

    The Epic of Gilgamesh gives a lot of insight to what was happening and what was expected in ancient Mesopotamia. The epic poem which revolves around a king, includes many details in to the civilization, beliefs, and values of the Mesopotamians. The king thrives to be remembered and many of his actions reflect that. The Epic of Gilgamesh show how an ideal heroic king should be in ancient Mesopotamia. The first thing it shows us is that hero kings should be strong.

    Read More

  • Women's Roles In Athens And The Hellenistic Era

    569 Words  | 3 Pages

    Women’s roles has changed dramatically throughout history. By looking at the lives of women, it would be possible to tell how the civilians at that specific period of time were living. In this paper, women’s lives in mainly three civilizations would be discussed, the Sparta, the Athens, and the Hellenistic era. In Sparta, women were needed to live at home, while their husbands remained in military barracks until the age thirty.

    Read More

  • Epic Of Gilgamesh Suffering

    1147 Words  | 5 Pages

    Human suffering is one of the major themes in The Epic of Gilgamesh. When confronting with painful circumstances in our lives, we often ask ourselves why is life so difficult and wonder if suffering is necessary. In the Epic of Gilgamesh, the two heroes, Gilgamesh and Enkidu both go through suffering either physically or mentally. There are many beliefs to the reason why suffering is inevitable. In this epic, it is portrayed that the two heroes’ sufferings are the results of their fundamental flaws, such as their hubris and their attachments of to be remembered.

    Read More

  • Culture And Themes In The Epic Of Gilgamesh

    2037 Words  | 9 Pages

    The Epic of Gilgamesh is the oldest story known to mankind, being written on Sumerian clay almost five thousand years ago (Garone). Since the story was originally known orally, the culture and themes from The Epic of Gilgamesh must have existed long before it was finally inscribed (Mark 4). Having known this, the cultures and themes can be compared to today’s society, discovering about how they have shifted and evolved, and also observe how they are similar. The ancient days of Gilgamesh has brought culture that has greatly influenced today’s society. Because Gilgamesh was set around the time of late Babylonian or early Sumerian society, the Babylonian and Sumerian cultures also play a role in shaping the world into what is is today (Mark).

    Read More

  • Comparison Of Women In Mesopotamian Society

    1261 Words  | 6 Pages

    Different societies view women in different lights. Therefore, a woman’s position is greatly different from one society to the other. The societies in question do not necessarily have to exist at the same time. Even in the same time frame, two societies could exist, where one treat women as equals to men, and another that treats women differently than men, whether better or worse. The societies in question are: Mesopotamia, Greece, China, Rome & Europe, and this essay aims to study different societies’ viewpoints on women, and to compare and contrast them against each other.

    Read More

  • Essay On Role Of Women In Ancient Society

    981 Words  | 4 Pages

    Over generations, the role of women in society has shifted and changed immensely, improving upon many aspects of rights and values that women have. The changes occurred gave women opportunities to provide ideas, to have the same rights as men, giving women freedom, leading to many contributions of many significant and valuable events. But from current roles of women being equal to those of men, how women stood in ancient society significantly differs and contrast with ours today. Throughout history, the role and significance of women were always outweighed by the dominance and influence of men. The role of women in ancient times varied throughout, depending on the place and area in the world, in which women had different roles and impacts on their own society.

    Read More

More about Women In The Epic Of Gilgamesh Essay

Open Document