The Epic Hero Definition: Comparing Two Heroes in ‘Gilgamesh’ and ‘Harry Potter’

The word "hero" can be defined in many ways. At a younger age, it was a mother or father and maybe even a professional athlete or actor. As more birthdays pass, the word "hero" tends to veer more towards people whom have impacted lives in a way one wishes they could do in the future. In ancient mythology, the word "hero" isn't defined the same way people are used to hearing. There are many characteristics that define an "epic hero" and those would not apply to a normal human. Some characteristics include, an unusual birth, battles monsters and/or demands, and even descending to the underworld or afterlife and knowing how their journey went. Gilgamesh and Harry Potter are two literary figures that fit into almost every aspect and characteristic of the definition, an epic hero, but contrast in the ways they fit into the characteristics.

An unusual birth is a common characteristic of an epic hero. Harry Potter, for example, has a witch as a mother (Lily Potter) and a pureblood wizard as a father (James Potter). This is rare because Harry Potter's mother was born into a muggle family, but she was born a witch. Gilgamesh is a demi-god and was born 2/3 god and 1/3 human. His father was a priest and his mother was a god. I would compare Lily Potter to Ishtar in the Epic of Gilgamesh because Lily Potter sacrifices her life to save her son's and Ishtar is the goddess of love and fertility, which makes her a nurturing mother figure.

Although Gilgamesh did not have any threats during infancy, Harry Potter had a big one that really shaped how others viewed him. Harry Potter's villain, Voldemort (the man who shall not be named), tried to kill him when he was an infant. The reasoning behind Voldemort wanting to kill Harry is because Voldemort was lead to believe that Harry would be the one whose powers would cause him to vanquish. Once he found this information out, he entered into the Potter's home and cast a killing spell on Harry, but it did not work because Lily and James were in the way. The killing spell that was cast at Harry caused the lightning bolt scar on his forehead. This lightning bolt scar that Harry has on his forehead can be symbolic towards Zeus who was the King of the Olympian Gods and was known for carrying around a lightning bolt to show his status.

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Since Harry Potter's parents sacrificed their lives to save him as an infant, he was sent to live with his Aunt Petunia and Uncle Vernon, The Dursley's, which meant he would not grow up in a Wizard and Witch community. With that being said, Harry Potter missed out on a lot while living with the Dursley's. Not only did they treat him like he was worth-less, but they made him sleep in a closet under the stairs. The reasoning for the Dursley's mistreating Harry is because when Petunia and Lily (Harry's mom) were younger, Petunia was jealous that Lily got into Hogwarts, a school for wizards and witches, and then became angry when Dumbledore wouldn't let Petunia go to school there also, but Petunia was not a witch so there was no reason for her to go there. Gilgamesh didn't face any exiles during his youth; it came later in his life when he followed Utnapishtim and his wife to Dilmun, an island that was paradise-like. He followed them because he was seeking immortality, but unfortunately did not find it for himself.

One of the most common characteristics of an Epic Hero is having an alter ego. Harry Potter's alter ego is Tom Riddle. Tom Riddle is a young man who eventually turns himself into Voldemort. Tom Riddle, in his younger years, is just like Harry in the ways that they are both half bloods, meaning one of their parents is muggle-born. For Harry, it is his mother and for Tom it is his father. They both are also orphanages raised by muggles. They are both able to speak to snakes; Harry discovers this when he is out with the Dursley's for his cousin, Dudley's birthday and he ends up telling the snake to come through the glass and attack his cousin. Without question, Enkidu is Gilgamesh's alter ego. This is demonstrated throughout the story when Gilgamesh and Enkidu go against Humbaba and the council of gods decides that one of them must die and Enkidu is chosen. It is said that Enkidu is the clay-version of Gilgamesh's conscious.

During each characters story, they faced many trials and overcame adversary. Basically Harry Potter's entire life was a series on events that tested his ability. Some examples would include, finding the Sorcerer's Stone (the person that wants to find it, but not use it, is the one who will find it and Harry fell into that requirement), winning the Triwizard Tournament and finding the horcruxes to destroy "He-Who-Shall-Not-Be-Named". The Triwizard Tournament was a huge deal for Harry because no one his age had ever competed and also because these games are so intense that many contestants die while competing. Gilgamesh faced Ishtar and Humbaba, both in which tested his skills.

Throughout his journey to Dilmun, he faced lions, intricate tunnels that no mortal has made it out alive, Humbaba and the Bull of Heaven. Gilgamesh overcomes the Bull of Heaven, which was sent by Ishtar because Gilgamesh won't love her, by killing it with Enkidu and they offer the heart to Shamash.

Having a helper while being an epic hero is a must. Ron Weasley and Hermione Granger are two of Harry Potter's best friends and put their lives on the line to help Harry. They are there for him whether they are working together to find answers to unanswered questions or supporting him while he competes in a Quidditch Match or at the Triwizard Cup. They are the definition of friendship. Gilgamesh and Shamash have a special bond because when Gilgamesh is in trouble, Shamash helps in anyway possible. For example, when Gilgamesh was fighting Humbaba, Shamash sends the 13 winds to bind Humbaba.

Marriage is present in both characters lives and is only briefly mentioned. It is known in the Epilogue of the 7 Harry Potter Book that Harry Potter ends up marring Ginny Weasley, Ron's younger sister, and they have three kids together. As for Gilgamesh, there is not much information about his wife.

The journey to the underworld/afterlife is an event that we, as humans, cannot understand. In Book 7, Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, Harry is "killed" by Voldemort. Briefly in his previous years at Hogwarts, it was inferred that part of Voldemorts soul lives inside of Harry Potter. Hence, why he was not affected by the killing curse when he was an infant. So when Voldemort tries the killing curse on Harry again, the soul of Voldemorts that rests inside Harry's is the one that dies.

So when Harry Sacrifices his life and takes the hit from the spell he falls to the ground and "dies". While one of his souls is dying, he sees Dumbledore and the horcrux that is inside him dying. Gilgamesh's journey to the underworld is his trip to Dilmun. This is when he follows Utnapushtim and his wife. Gilgamesh is lead to the gate and tunnels that lead to Dilmun. He passes through 12 leagues of darkness, has to make 300 boat poles (90ft long each) to get a boat ride to Dilmun. When he arrives, he is told about the immortality plant, so he dives down in the water and brings it up, but a serpent steals it and Gilgamesh is out of options.

Along with a journey to the underworld, comes death. Harry Potter comes back to life when Voldemort's soul is completely dead. So he does not actually die. Gilgamesh dies when he goes back to Uruk because he is not granted immortality. He is buried under the riverbed and is forever remembered as a great hero.

When Harry Potter first came to Hogwarts he was known as "the boy who lived" and "the chosen one" and now after sacrificing what he thought was his life to kill Voldemort, he is honored by being a face on the chocolate frog cards, which could be compared to the American Baseball or Football cards. Gilgamesh on the other hand was scorned in the beginning of the story and although he still took on god-like tasks he wasn't a role model. As the story goes on, he goes from having sexual intercourse with virgins to actually caring about how people will view him when he is gone. Through the actions he takes in his journey, he strengthens the reasons of how he is defined as a hero.

In conclusion, these two literary figures exemplify their heroism through the ten characteristics but they demonstrate each specific characteristic in their own ways. Something that both characters have learned throughout their journeys is that "the people who you love never really leave you" and Harry Potter experiences this with his parents and Gilgamesh with Enkidu.

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