The Epic of Gilgamesh (PDF)
Author: Unknown
Date: c. 2000–1200 BCE
Location: Mesopotamia
Course Unit: Parallels and Influences
Context:
"The Epic of Gilgamesh is the most influential literary epic to come out of ancient Mesopotamia. It narrates the journey of Gilgamesh, a young kind of Uruk, whose search for solace from despair and human mortality leads to the threshold of life itself. Although the story is more than four millenia old and from a culture long past, Gilgamesh is familiar; he is an individual, a person with deep feelings who treats life as an adventure, makes mistakes, battles giants, grieves for the death of a friend, and embarks on a long quest into the unknown in search of a way out of the pain of loss and the meaning of life. Gilgamesh is someone with whom a modern reader can sympathize, even identify." (Epic of Gilgamesh)
Epic of Gilgamesh. Bedford Anthology of World Literature: Compact, Vol. 1, edited by Paul Davis, et al, Bedford Saint Martin’s, 2009, pp. 42-77.
Topics/Questions to Consider While Reading:
Have you seen or heard of versions of this story in modern books, films, etc.?
How is the "The Monomyth and Hero’s Journey" (PDF) demonstrated? Also view video.