Comparison Of Enuma Elish And Theogony

The Origin of Creation

Even though “The Enuma Elish” and “Theogony” may appear to be similar creation stories, where younger gods overthrow older gods, they actually have a pivotal difference that sets them apart. In the “The Enuma Elish”, the deaths of the gods facilitate creation through the corpses of the deceased. Whereas in “Theogony”, sex enables creation. Throughout the text, Gods give birth either to cultural concepts or to physical aspects of the world. The most significant difference between “The Enuma Elish” and “Theogony” is the driving force of creation.

In “The Enuma Elish” the physical world is created by the gods; however, creation only takes place when death occurs. The first instance of death sparks creation through the killing

Since creation only occurred at these times it reinforces the idea sex and death directly precede creation. This would address the counter-claim that creation can occur under multiple circumstances. Another counterclaim to address is the specific case of Athena. The opposing argument states that she was not created from sex because she was birthed from Zeus’ head, “From his own head he gave birth to owl-eyed Athena” (“Theogony” 929). However, she was actually created through sexual intercourse as stated earlier in the passage. When “[Metis] was about to deliver the owl-eyed goddess Athena, Zeus tricked her, gulled her with crafty words, And stuffed her in his stomach” (“Theogony” 893). Since Athena was originally created through intercourse the argument that sex instigates creation is still

In “The Enuma Elish” where death is the source of creation, the gods are methodical in their creations. They take the body parts of the dead gods and use them to create the world and humanity. However, Marduk is an exception since he was not purposely created. Since he becomes the supreme ruler and this cannot be perceived the same as other examples of creation. While in “Theogony”, creation is out the gods control. None of the gods or goddesses have any control over who they birth or what they create. However, this does not mean that “Theogony” necessarily supports the idea that creation is random. In the passage, gods were often told prophecies of having children that would overthrow them. An example of this happens when Earth and Ouranos tell Kronos that Zeus will overthrow him. As a result of this prophecy Kronos decides to eat his children in an attempt to change his fate. Despite all of Kronos’ efforts he was not able to do so. In this text there is a stronger focus on fate rather than chance. The different intentions between the creative forces emphasizes their relevance in the