Comparative Essay of The Epic of Gilgamesh and The Little Mermaid Film
By: Hannah
Although The Epic of Gilgamesh and Walt Disney’s The Little Mermaid Film may not come to mind as alike, there are many shared similarities between the two works. The Epic of Gilgamesh was written in 2100 BC from ancient Mesopotamia. However the text compared in this essay is a translated version by Stephen Mitchel. In The Little Mermaid and The Epic of Gilgamesh the characters share similarities in their connection to the animal world and first love encounters, but they differ in their life priorities.
Enkidu from The Epic of Gilgamesh and Ariel from The Little Mermaid had a very similar upbringing. From the time they were young, Enkidu and Ariel were surrounded by animals. Mitchel’s translation of the story shows that animals were in fact a very large part of Enkidu's upbringing, “Aet grass with gazelles, and when he was thirsty he drank clear water from the water holes, kneeling beside the antelope and dear.”(p. 75) Enkidu is clearly united with the animals around him rather than living in habitation with beings of his own kind. Similarly, Ariel is close to fish and other sea creatures which helped to raise her from when she was little. Along with having similar lives prior to the climax in their stories, the force driving them out of there communities were also quite similar.
Enkidu and Ariel had similar first encounters with humans that they both had romantic relationships with. Ariel met her prince, eric when she climbed out of the water and on to his ship, instantly falling in love. In Gilgamesh, Mitchel translates the writing describing Enkidu as he falls in love with Shamhat. “Endkidu saw her and warrily approached. He sniffed the air. He gazed at her body. He drew close.” (p. 78) Both Ariel and Enkidu fell in love with humans. And it was the drawing force, that led them to discover why they both had to leave their non-human world and families behind. However, the two of them soon learn that they want to pursue different lives in the human world.
Ariel wants to marry Prince Eric while Enkidu has no interest in marriage. Instead, his goal is showing all of Uruk that he is both mentally and physically stronger than King Gilgamesh. After Enkidu meets Shamhat, he quickly looses interest, only wanting to go to human civilization to defeat the great Gilgamesh. Ariel’s love for eric is her one and only drive throughout the film to leave the ocean and her family behind. Mitchel translates directly after Enkidu is with Shamhat, “[Enkidu] Take me with you to great-walled-Uruk, to the temple of Ishtar, to the mighty king. I will challenge him. I will shout to his face: I am the mightiest! I am the man who can make the world tremble! I am supreme!” (p. 80-81) Although Enkidu met Shamhat not long ago, the story quickly shifts to his new focas.
Although The Epic Of Gilgamesh and The Little Mermaid may not seem alike, two central characters from the novel and movie share many characteristics. However, they differ in their main goal. Enkidu and Ariel were both closely connected to the animal world; Ariel’s friend flounder, a fish, was very dear to her and Enkidu’s animal like behavior showed how close he was with the native species he lived with. When Enkidu met Shamhat and Ariel locked eyes with prince eric, the two fell in love early on in the story with humans. However, unlike The Little Mermaid that follows Ariel on her goal of marrying the charming prince, Enkidu quickly moves from a focus of romance to one of power.
