find it difficult to compare Bible stories with tales from other cultures,

because our own belief system is wrapped up in the prior, and it is hard for many

of us to go against our traditional faith to evaluate them objectively. But in a

comparison of the Biblical book of Genesis with the ancient Sumerian text, Epic

of Gilgamesh, many parallels suggest that the same type of spiritual searching

inspired the composition of both works. It would seem that both cultures shared

a concern for the nature of human life, and how its shortness affects the way life

should be lived. However, the conclusions each culture derived from their

observations are very different, and this led them to develop very different

Gilgamesh is an interesting story because it contains several

episodes in common with the Judeo-Christian Bible. For example, John Noss

"The original flood story was Sumerian and came out of grim

experiences of the overflowing of the two rivers [the Tigris and the

Euphrates]. Several of the later versions of the tale, mostly fra

"was thought of at first as a dim place where there was no particular torture, but

the death of his best friend, Enkidu. After Enkidu's death, Gilgamesh is

was quite a lot. There were the Sumerian Seven Tablets of Creation; there was

like him, never again to move " (Gardner 221).

than mine. I'm like you" (Gardner 226).

Some common words found in the essay are:
Babylonian Gilgamesh, Isaac Asimov, Thou Gilgamesh, Enkidu Weeping, Utnapishtim Tear, Sumerians Hebrews, Enkidu Enkidu's, John Noss, Epic Gilgamesh, According Becker, near east, enkidu's death, john maier gilgamesh, knopf 1984 substitute, free press, york free, death york, denial death, ernest denial, becker ernest, york knopf 1984, gilgamesh york knopf, avenel 1981, maier gilgamesh york, york avenel,
Approximate Word count = 1924
Approximate Pages = 8 (250 words per page double spaced)