Comparing the Epic of Gilgamesh, Hesiods Theogony, and Ovids Metamorp

Comparing the Epic of Gilgamesh, Hesiods Theogony, and Ovids Metamorphoses There are many parallels between the Epic of Gilgamesh, Hesiods Theogony, and Ovids Metamorphoses. The prototypal similarity is immediately apparent structure. We can view the structure of the Gilgamesh study as three concentric cliques a story within a story within a story. In the outer circle, a narrator prepares the audience for the radical narrative, contained within the second circle the tale of Gilgameshs adventures. Within this second circle a third narrative, the flood story, is told to Gilgamesh by Utanapishtim. Ovids Metamorphoses is told in a similar way Ovid starts out by telling of his intention and invoking the gods help to tell the story. He then tells many tales as the primary narrative, and within the primary narrative exists other narratives, such as Venus tells Adonis the story of Atalanta in give 10. Even Hesiods Theogony is similar to some extent. He has a bit of a prologue in which he explains how the Muses have inspired him to write of the creation, and then he enters the primary creation narrative. This method of storytelling does a variety of things. First, it prepares the reader to deliver the story. In Gilgamesh, the narrator tells us that Gilgamesh has set down his adventures in his own hand. This leads the reader to accept the story as an authoritative one, especially considering it has come from a mortal, like us, who is part god. Because Gilgamesh is part god, we realize that if he can accept his lot in life, his mortality, then we mere mortals should be able to do the same. In Theogony, Hesiod prepares his audience to accept the story by telling (ad nauseum) that the Muses have worked through him to create... ...M.E.L. Early Mesopotamia and Iran. McGraw-Hill brand-new York, 1965. Ovid. Metamorphoses. Trans. Rolfe Humphries. Bloomington, IN Indiana UP, 1983. Rosenberg, Donna. Gilgamesh. World Mythology An Anthology of the Great Myths and Epics. 3 rd ed. Lincolnwood, IL NTC Publishing Group, 1999. 26-57. Swisher, Clarice. The Ancient Near East. Lucent Books San Diego, 1995. Works Consulted The Epic of Gilgamesh An Outline. Online. 15 Feb. 2000. http//www.hist.unt.edu/ane-09.htm Sumerian Mythology FAQ. Online. 15 Feb. 2000. http//webster.unh.edu/%7Ecbsiren/sumer-faq.html Gardner, John and John Maier. Gilgamesh Translated from the Sin-leqi-unninni version. New York Alfred A. Knopf, 1984. Harris, Stephen L. Gilgamesh. The Humanist Tradition in World Literature. Ed. Stephen Harris. Columbus, OH Charles E. Merrill Publishing Co., 1970.