Compare And Contrast Gilgamesh And Noah

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There is numerous flood stories scattered around the world. One of the earliest of these stories being The Epic Of Gilgamesh and one of the most popular being Noah And The Ark.. I believe that Noah and The Ark is a modified copy of The Epic Of Gilgamesh because of the overwhelming amount of similarities presented in each of the stories. The parallels and historical background prove to be enough evidence in itself. The Epic Of Gilgamesh was written around 2,000 to 650 B.C. while the Noah and The Ark was written around the time of 75 to 339 CE, at least roughly seven hundred years later. It shows us that there's at least a minuscule possibility of the story being transferred from one religion to another.

The main difference between the …show more content…

They however do so for different reasons. God from Noah and The Ark destroyed mankind because he believed mankind to be too wicked to continue living on earth. In The Epic Of Gilgamesh, Enlil, the Thunder God, destroyed mankind because he thought people were too sinful. Also, both main characters, Noah and Utnapishtim, were warned by the gods to build a boat but by different means. God came to Noah directly while, Ea, a God came to Utnapishtim in a dream. When the time came, great floods poured down and drowned the earth. Utnapishtim was granted eternal life while Noah was rewarded with ‘dominion over animals’. Both in a sense were granted providence.

One of the most convincing similarities that leads me to believe that Noah and The Ark is a modified copy of The Epic Of Gilgamesh is that both stories took place around Mesopotamia. In Genesis 8:4, The Noah and The Ark was said to land on the mountains of Ararat, near modern day Turkey and what was once Mesopotamia. Utnapishtim landed the boat on the mountain of Nisir, also nearby Mesopotamia. Preparing for landing, both main characters sent out a dove and other birds to find the land. They did this several times to spot for land. After the flood, all the Gods promised to never end the world by flood

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