The story of Gilgamesh has been viewed as an example of several different narrative genres. This thesis establishes how scholarship in English published between 1872 and 1967 has described Gilgamesh as a myth, or denied Gilgamesh status as a myth and discusses new the meanings that the context of myth brings to the story. This thesis represents preliminary work on a larger project of exploring present day artistic meaning making efforts that revolve around Gilgamesh.

The story of Gilgamesh has been viewed as an example of several different narrative genres. This thesis establishes how scholarship in English published between 1872 and 1967 has described Gilgamesh as a myth, or denied Gilgamesh status as a myth and discusses new the meanings that the context of myth brings to the story. This thesis represents preliminary work on a larger project of exploring present day artistic meaning making efforts that revolve around Gilgamesh.

This thesis creatively reconsiders the ancient Sumerian Epic of Gilgamesh and offers a design of the ancient epic as a contemporary, illustrated text. The work is concerned with notions of heroism, and methods relating to construction of imagery. The manifestation of this investigation is the illustrated book Gilgamesh, the Hero of Mesopotamia, which comprises the principal site of research in the project. It consists of thirty-six drawings that explore cyclic composition as a form of narrative discourse.

This thesis creatively reconsiders the ancient Sumerian Epic of Gilgamesh and offers a design of the ancient epic as a contemporary, illustrated text. The work is concerned with notions of heroism, and methods relating to construction of imagery. The manifestation of this investigation is the illustrated book Gilgamesh, the Hero of Mesopotamia, which comprises the principal site of research in the project. It consists of thirty-six drawings that explore cyclic composition as a form of narrative discourse.

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Thèse--Faculté de théologie d'Angers. / Autographed. 100 copies printed. "Principaux ouvrages cités," p. vi-viii.

Thesis (D.Lit.(Semitic Languages)--University of Pretoria, 2004. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves B1-7)

This practice-based research study investigates the structures underlying both a performance art practice, and the ancient epic of Gilgamesh, revealing the relationship between the form and content of this performance practice. This study has asked: 1) What is mythic structure? 2) What is the form of this performance practice? 3) What is the content of this performance practice? 4) How can mythic structure be related to a creative practice? 5) What is the relationship between the form and the content of this performance practice? Addressing these questions, this researcher produced and reflected upon a new body of performance artworks engaging with the ancient epic of Gilgamesh. Observations were then examined in the context of mythographic research, particularly the three-stage ‘hero’s journey’ advanced by Joseph Campbell. Both strands of research were scrutinised in the light of key concepts including the individual and collective unconscious, Salomean identification, and alogicality. This study discovered that the form and content of this performance practice are linked. Critical aspects of the three-stage structure underpinning some ancient myths (typically a separation, liminal period, and reintegration) were identified in the development and performance of the Gilgamesh Cycle works. The performance content reflects an alogical sphere that characterises Campbells’ liminal period. This alogicality privileges connectivity between persons, materials, ideas, and states. Such connectivity exemplifies what this researcher (extending Kaja Silverman’s analysis of poetry and installation art), has termed Salomean identification. Campbell’s use of ‘hero’ as a figure representing the structure described above, is therefore misguided. This researcher has recast this figure as a ‘medium’: a conduit rather than a conqueror. Finally this study has reflected on the success of the Gilgamesh Cycle as performance art practice, concluding that unanswered questions are necessary for the continued production of work. The increasing elucidation of this body of work has, for this researcher, rendered it finite.

Understanding Gilgamesh – brokenly – is to understand life brokenly. The Epic of Gilgamesh is the narrative of life. It records the full cycle of the nerve and aplomb of youth, of the doubt and crisis of midlife, of the acceptance and quiescience of maturity. Moreover, this understanding is a broken understanding. It starts with the clay tablets that are broken in a literal sense of the word. Further, the narrative is a narrative of broken-ness – the story ends in tears. A man has lost his last chance of obtaining life everlasting. Yet he manages to recuperate despite his failure. The first part of this thesis examined the world of Gilgamesh. Initially he was known as the Sumerian king Bilgames. He makes his appearance in the form of oral compositions that are recited or sung in the royal courts of kings during the Sumerian period: sheer entertainment, nothing really serious. At his side is his loyal servant Enkidu who supports his master in everything he does. Akkadian gradually ousts Sumerian as vernacular, yet the latter continues to dominate as the language of culture and court. Bilgames survives the reign of the Sargonic dynasty, and even revives during the glorious Ur III period of Shulgi and of Ur-Nammu. Sumerian Bilgames-poems are recorded in writing. However, by the time that Hammurapi draws up his legal codex, the Sumerian Bilgames is known as the vibrant Akkadian king Gilgamesh. His servant Enkidu is elevated to the status of friend. Together they defy men, gods, monsters. When Enkidu dies, Gilgamesh goes even further in search of life everlasting. He reaches Uta-napishtim the Distant in order to learn the secret of eternal life. The optimism of the Old Babylonian Kingdom is replaced by the reflection and introspection of the Middle period. Life is difficult. Life is complex. The Gilgamesh Epic is once again re-interpreted and supplemented by a prologue and an epilogue: both begin and end at the same place, at the walls of Uruk. Here Gilgamesh looks back and forward to his life and contemplates about the meaning of life in general. The second part of this thesis dealt more specifically with the story – the literary aspects of the Epic. Genette’s theory illuminated several interesting literary devices with regards to the rhythm and pace of the narrative. However, much of the reflective nature of the Epic was also revealed. There were moments of looking forward, and looking backward: after Gilgamesh broke down in tears at the end of the Epic, he suddely gained perspective on life. Somehow a broken narrative focused into a meaningful whole that may just make future sense. Jauss’s theory illuminated why Gilgamesh refuses to be forgotten, why he is once again alive and well in the twenty first century. Although he was buried in the ruins of Nineveh for a thousand plus years, he is suddenly back on the scene – and not for academic reasons only. Not only scholars of the Ancient Near East take an interest in the old Epic, but also people from all sectors of life. Somehow Gilgamesh seems to respond to questions that are asked even by those who understand nuclear physics – but who grapple with the paradox of living meaningfully. Understanding Gilgamesh – brokenly – understands life. / Thesis (DLitt)--University of Pretoria, 2006. / Ancient Languages / unrestricted

Cette thèse étudie le parallèle établi par les chercheurs et les spécialistes de la littérature comparée entre Esfandiyâr et Achille. L'objectif majeur de cette étude est de savoir si le poète iranien Ferdowsi était sous l'influence de son homologue grec, l'aède de l'Iliade et l'Odyssée, lors de la création de son œuvre le Chahnameh, épopée nationale persane, et plus précisément du héros de celle-ci, Esfandiyâr. L'étude de la figure d'Esfandiyâr suivie de celle de l'oiseau légendaire Sîmorgh, de celle de Rostam, le meurtrier du prince kayanide, et enfin, l'étude de l'espace mythique du Sistân font l'objet de la première partie de la thèse. Dans la deuxième partie, nous étudions de façon détaillée le parallèle existant entre Achille et Esfandiyâr tel qu'il a été proposé par les chercheurs étrangers et iraniens en tentant une approche plus minutieuse et approfondie de cette étude à propos du héros grec Achille. La troisième partie propose une nouvelle approche comparative des héros dans laquelle sera étudiée, à côté de la figure d'Achille et de celle d'Esfandiyâr, celle d'un troisième héros, Gilgamesh appartenant à la tradition mésopotamienne. Cet élargissement a pour but de se demander si les traits que les chercheurs précédents ont dégagés comme preuves ou indices du parallèle entre Achille et Esfandiyâr, puisqu'ils se retrouvent au moins en partie chez Gilgamesh, ne sont pas tout simplement caractéristiques du héros épique et représentatifs du genre de l'épopée. / This thesis deals with the parallelism the researchers and comparative literature specialists established between Esfandiyâr and Achille. The main goal of this study is to know whether Ferdowsi, the Iranian poet, was influenced or not by his Greek homologue, the bard of the Illiad and the Odyssey, when he created the Persian epic Chahnameh, and more precisely its hero, Esfandiyâr. In a first part, we will study this very figure along with that of the legendary bird Sîmorgh and that of Rostam who murdered Prince Kayanide. We will eventually study the mythical space of the Sistân. In a second part, we will thoroughly analyze the parallelism between Achille and Esfandiyâr the way foreign and Iranian researchers saw it. We will yet try to offer a more detailed and thorough study of the Greek hero Achille. The third part will deal with a new comparative study of the heroes in which we will ponder over a third hero, Gilgamesh, belonging to the Mesopotamian tradition, along with the figure of Achille and that of Esfandiyâr. This expansion aims to wonder if the features that previous researchers have identified as evidence or clues of the parallel between Achille and Esfandiyâr, since they exist at least partially in Gilgamesh, are not just characteristics of the epic hero and representative of the style of epic.