Sundiata was written in Africa. Gilgamesh was the oldest one written. Other works include the Iliad and the Odyssey, which were written by the blind prophet Homer. What do all these works of literature have in common with each other? The similarity that all these works of literature have is that they are all epics. What does this mean? What is an epic? The definition of an epic is that an epic is a long, narrative poem with a hero that goes on a quest. What is the hero?
Well, the characteristics of a hero is that they all go on a quest, which is a long, arduous journey, he usually descends to the underworld, and many other traits are possessed that determine if a hero is an epic hero. Does an epic have characteristics like an epic hero? The answer is yes. An epic has several characteristics. The characteristics of an epic are that an epic must have an epic hero, which goes on a journey. An epic must be a long narrative poem that tells a story. An epic must have vast settings.
It must begin in the middle. Epics have women who are dream interpreters, who serve the will of men and/or are nurturers. Lastly, an epic must have sustained elevation. Three epics that have been read and will be discussed are Gilgamesh, Sundiata and last but not least Sundiata. First, the epic Gilgamesh will be discussed. The story of Gilgamesh is one of the oldest tales ever written. Gilgamesh is a very old epic of a half god, half man creature who befriends a half god, half animal creature named Enkidu.
King of Uruk, Gilgamesh, was an evil tyrant. For the reason of being a tyrant, the people of Uruk prayed to the Gods to send hope. As an answer to the people’s prayers, the Gods sent Enkidu. At the end of Gilgamesh’s journey, he was forced to return home with nothing but very important, well-learned lessons. Secondly, the next epic that will be discussed is Sundiata. Sundiata was an African epic about a very unusual king of Mali. It all began in 1200 back when Sundiata’s father, Nare Fa Maghan, ruled over Mali.
Until one day Maghan, were to marry a very ugly, yet powerful female named Sogolon Kedju to be the most powerful king of Mali. Ironically, not only did he marry the ugly woman, they birthed Sundiata. Sassouma was Maghan’s first wife and reviled Sogolon because Sundiata would now possibly be king instead of her son Dankaran. The rivaling brothers bickered and fought one another until the rightful king Sundiata took his place at the throne. Thirdly, the epic entitled the Odyssey will be discussed. The Odyssey was an epic written by homer a blind prophet who wrote two stories about the Trojan War.
The first epic was the Iliad and it took place during the Trojan War. Why did the Trojan War begin? Paris, the prince of Troy, abducted Menelausus’ wife, Helen. The Odyssey was the sequel to the Iliad and it began telling the tale of one of the Geek soldiers, Odysseus, began his journey home. It takes him twenty years to make it home however; while he is gone his home encounters many hardships. Odysseus loses his friends on this journey home, while not to his knowledge his son, Telemachus, has encountered the threat of his life.
Finally, after all the struggles, hardships, and even some temptations Odysseus makes it home just in time to claim his throne and restore faith and home as it was before the war. All three epics share the characteristics of starting in the middle, women are dream interpreters, and they serve the will of men and/or are nurturers, and most importantly they all have an epic hero. Now you know everything I know about epics. What do I think about an epic? After reading these three epics I feel mixed feelings.
Epics from a teenager’s perspective, at first, I thought what most teenagers’ think, they were boring and I could not wait until we stop reading them. Now that I have taken time to analyze how I truly feel about the three epics, Sundiata, Gilgamesh, and the Odyssey. Sundiata, I related to the least, because I never have worn the responsibility of being a monarch of my own country. However, I learned a lesson of persistence. I know the importance of being persistent, but one can never learn too many life values about why working hard and never quitting is a very important life lesson.
Sundiata as well as the other epics I read could have all been more interesting and written in a more straightforward way. One other lesson that Sundiata taught is that underdogs can reach the top. For instance, look at Sundiata he was lazy and gluttonous, but he was able to become the king of Mali. Through hard work and determination he was a good leader as well. Gilgamesh, I can relate to the most, because I have lost people close to me throughout my life. Not only did I lose friends but I lost family members as well.
Not only did I loose people to death, I lost them to growing pains. It is always hard to loose someone you care about, and sometimes it is even harder to move on. Gilgamesh taught me that it is important to live your life and keep moving on. Ironically it also taught me not to be unappreciative of the things that you are granted, such as life. Life is a privilege granted by the one praised above it is not guaranteed, so all people should cherish it. The Odyssey, the one I learned from the most, because it mainly taught maturity.
