Compare the heroes Gilgamesh and Rama Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Compare the heroes Gilgamesh and Rama - Essay Example First, Gilgamesh is a sacred king in the ancient Babylonian kingdom who greatly possesses the trait of â€Å"two-thirds divine† (Mitchell 10). By virtue of his god-like character, the Babylonian people fear and follow the absolute monarchy practiced by Gilgamesh, the demigod of the bygone civilization. Like Gilgamesh, Rama is a divine king in the age-old India who greatly ruled his devoted subjects with â€Å"universal or social conscience† (qtd. in Leeming, Madden, and Marlan 803). Second, Gilgamesh and Rama have sameness with respect to their journeys in finding their missions in life and/or love. On the one hand, Gilgamesh travels to varied and tortuous places in order to find the person who â€Å"can tell him how to escape death† (Mitchell 1). After his friend’s death, Gilgamesh journeys into the terra incognita which he, consequently, â€Å"suffered all and accomplished all† (qtd. in Mitchell 9). On the other hand, Rama travels to the land of h is mortal enemy in order to rescue his beloved Sita. On this way, Rama constantly remembers in the need to avoid the â€Å"sense enemies’ lust, ire and greed† (Das 69). And third, both epic heroes greatly share tragedy (Gupta 23). The tragedy of Gilgamesh lies in his failure to attain immortality while Rama’s tragedy lies in the unfaithfulness of his beloved. Both stories of Gilgamesh and Rama are, by and large, shaped by their cultures and societies.