Transcript Epic of Gilgamesh Background Notes

The Epic of Gilgamesh and
Ancient Mesopotamia
Mesopotamia– Geography (circa 4000 BC
)
• Mesopotamia means “the land
between the rivers.”
• It is located in an agriculturally
rich region between the Tigris
and Euphrates rivers (also known
as the “Fertile Crescent” or
“cradle of civilizations”.
• It was located in the region
known today as Iraq as well as
parts of Iran.
Mesopotamia’s Ruling Societies
from 5000 BCE – 600 BCE
S
Sumerians (5000-2100 BC)
Sumerians (5000-2100 BC)
2. Government and Society
Sumerians lived in city-states. These cities were
walled (fortified) for protection and surrounded by
vast, open land.
The largest city-states were Ur, Uruk, and
Lagash. The Sumerians never developed a
central, unifying government between the three,
leaving them vulnerable to attack.
Sumerian society developed a three-level class
system (nobles, middle class, peasants).
Sumerian
City States
Sumerians (5000-2100 BC)
3. Religious Beliefs
-The Sumerians (and later the
Babylonian people) worshipped a
pantheon of gods and goddesses.
-Regardless of one’s actions in life,
they did not believe in life after death.
They believed that after one dies
there is only emptiness.
Anu – father of gods
and god of the sky
(similar to Zeus)
Enlil – god of the air
Utu – sun god;
lord of truth and justice
Sumerians (5000-2100 BC)
4. Cultural Achievements
Developments in math and science – A
precise 12 month calendar, the concept of
zero, “Pythagorean theorem”
Sophisticated technology –
terraced temples (ziggurats),
wheeled vehicles, sail boats, animaldrawn plows.
A Ziggurat.
World’s first writing
system – cuneiform.
Formed by reed markings
on wet clay tablets.
The Epic of Gilgamesh, the
first work of fiction ever
recorded, was etched on
stone tablets in cuneiform on
over 40,000 clay tablets in
2,000 BCE.
History of
Epic of
Gilgamesh
While there is no evidence that the
events in the epic actually happened,
there was a Gilgamesh who ruled the
Sumerian dynasty of Uruk in 2,700
BCE
Akkadians (2100 - 2000 BC)
The Akkadian people easily take over
Sumerian culture – perhaps because of
Sumer’s lack of a unified government.
However, Sumerian culture is maintained through these shifts in power; and,
the Akkadians produce their own version
of Gilgamesh.
Babylonians (2000-1700 BC)
The Babylonians recognized the value of
Sumerian culture and adopted much of it as their
own. Sumerian became a literary language
(much like Latin today).
Hanging Gardens of
Nebuchadnezzar
King Nimrod’s
Tower of Babel
Code of
Hammurabi
Under the Assyrian
empire the Epic of
Gilgamesh took on its
final written form.
Assyrians (700-600 BC)
The final translation was added
to the King’s library at Nineveh.
After the destruction of
Nineveh by the Chaldeans in
612 BCE, the epic was lost
until the library was excavated in
1872 CE.
KEY FACTS
Enkidu - Companion and friend of Gilgamesh. Hairybodied and brawny, Enkidu was raised by animals. Even
after he joins the civilized world, he retains many of his
undomesticated characteristics. Enkidu looks much like
Gilgamesh and is almost his physical equal. He aspires to
be Gilgamesh’s rival but instead becomes his soul mate.
The gods punish Gilgamesh and Enkidu by giving Enkidu
a slow, painful, inglorious death for killing the demon
Humbaba and the Bull of Heaven.
Utnapishtim - A king and priest of Shurrupak, whose
name translates as “He Who Saw Life.” By the god Ea’s
connivance, Utnapishtim survived the great deluge that
almost destroyed all life on Earth by building a great boat
that carried him, his family, and one of every living creature
to safety. The gods granted eternal life to him and his wife.
Urshanabi - The guardian of
the mysterious “stone things.”
Urshanabi pilots a small
ferryboat across the Waters of
Death to the Far Away place
where Utnapishtim lives. He
loses this privilege when he
accepts Gilgamesh as a
passenger, so he returns with him
to Uruk.
Partial List of Important Deities and Demons:
Anu - The father of the gods and the god of
the firmament.
Aruru - A goddess of creation who fashioned
Enkidu from clay and her spittle.
Ea - The god of fresh water, crafts, and
wisdom, a patron of humankind. Ea lives in
Apsu, the primal waters below the Earth.
Humbaba - The fearsome demon who guards the Cedar Forest
forbidden to mortals. Humbaba’s seven garments produce an aura
that paralyzes with fear anyone who would withstand him. He is the
personification of awesome natural power and menace. His mouth is
fire, he roars like a flood, and he breathes death, much like an erupting
volcano. In his very last moments he acquires personality and pathos,
when he pleads cunningly for his life.
Tammuz - The god of vegetation and fertility,
also called the Shepherd. Born a mortal, Tammuz
is the husband of Ishtar.
Enlil - God of earth, wind, and air. A superior
deity, Enlil is not very fond of humankind.
Shamash - The sun god, brother of Ishtar,
patron of Gilgamesh. Shamash is a wise judge
and lawgiver.
Ishtar - The goddess of love and
fertility, as well as the goddess of
war. Ishtar is frequently called the
Queen of Heaven. Capricious and
mercurial, sometimes she is a
nurturing mother figure, and other
times she is spiteful and cruel. She
is the patroness of Uruk, where she
has a temple.
Ereshkigal Terrifying
queen of the
underworld.
Ninsun - The mother
of Gilgamesh, also
called the Lady
Wildcow Ninsun. She
is a minor goddess,
noted for her wisdom.
Her husband is
Lugulbanda.
Importance of Gilgamesh
Earliest known literary work.
Contains an account of the Great Flood and
the story of a virtuous man named Utnapishtim
who survived (a secular version of Noah)
Expresses values of ancient civilization – such
as the belief in divine retribution for
transgressions such as violence, pride, the
oppression of others, and the destruction of
the natural world