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Essay / Research Paper Abstract
A 3 page essay that discusses the viewpoints of the Epic of Gilgamesh and the Book of Genesis concerning the meaning of the flood narrative. The story of a great flood in Gilgamesh, the ancient Babylonian epic, and in the Book of Genesis are remarkably similar. They both concern deities deciding to destroy humanity through water and the salvation of one specific man and his family. But while these stories parallel each other in many of their details, they also indicate that the cultural themes of ancient Iraq and Israel were actually quite different. The Babylonian myth concerns the capricious nature of the gods, along with the reassuring message that humanity is meant to live, while the Hebrew myth is designed to emphasize the standards of behavior that Jehovah demands in order to avoid retribution against wickedness. No additional sources cited.
Page Count:
3 pages (~225 words per page)
File: D0_khgvg.rtf
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Unformatted sample text from the term paper:
water and the salvation of one specific man and his family. But while these stories parallel each other in many of their details, they also indicate that the cultural themes
of ancient Iraq and Israel were actually quite different. The Babylonian myth concerns the capricious nature of the gods, along with the reassuring message that humanity is meant to live,
while the Hebrew myth is designed to emphasize the standards of behavior that Jehovah demands in order to avoid retribution against wickedness. Genesis 6:5 states: "The Lord saw how
great mans wickedness on the earth had become, and that every inclination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil all the time." As his indicates, the story of
the flood in Genesis is clearly connected to the deeds of the people. Noah is saved because of his righteousness, as he was "blameless among the people of his time,
and he walked with God" (Genesis 6:9). Tablet XI of the Gilgamesh epic, which recounts the story of the flood, never gives a reason why a council of the
gods decides to destroy humanity with a flood (Tablet XI). In fact, after the flood, all of the gods, except for Enlil, claim to have been opposed to the idea
(Tablet XI). As this indicates the Babylonian myth does not associate the disaster of the floor with any sort of immorality. Likewise, the Babylonian man who survives, Utnapishtim, is
not chosen because of his character. Rather than to his character, Utnapishtim owes his survival to the cleverness of the goddess Ea, and not to any special virtue. When he
realizes that he needs help to build his ark, Ea suggests that he lie to the people and say that they have been promised a great harvest of "bread and
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