By Anna Richardson
Gilgamesh is the oldest written story ever found. When you think about it, you have to consider that it might have inspired current stories that we all know and love. Because of this, there are a lot of similar stories to Gilgamesh, with Wicked being one of them, though cheesy beyond cheesy. Gilgamesh and Wicked are similar in plot and character development, but differ in plot and character development as well.
One of the similarities between Gilgamesh and Wicked’s plots is that they both have two heroes that hate each other at first but then become best friends. In Gilgamesh, Enkidu hates Gilgamesh and wants to kill him, and Gilgamesh knows basically nothing about Enkidu until he tries to kill him, but after Gilgamesh wins the fight the two become best friends. Gilgamesh says, “When Gilgamesh reached the marriage house, Enkidu was there. He stood there like a boulder blocking the door. Gilgamesh, raging stepped up and seized him, huge arms gripped huge arms, foreheads crashed like wild bulls, the two men staggered, they pitched against houses, the doorposts trembled, the outer walls shook, they careened through the streets, they grappled each other, limbs intertwined, each huge body struggling to break free from the other’s embrace. Finally Gilgamesh threw the wild man and with his right knee pinned him to the ground. His anger left him. He turned away. The contest was over.”(p. 89) Similarly in Wicked, Elphaba and Glinda sing loathing and Glinda tricks Elphaba into wearing an ugly witch’s hat to a party. Glinda, feeling bad, decides to befriend Elphaba(Popular) and the two become close soon after. Another similarity between Gilgamesh and Wicked is the character development.
In Gilgamesh, Enkidu and Gilgamesh help each other become better people throughout the book. In the beginning of the book, Gilgamesh is this really horrible king who uses women and kills babies. On the other hand Enkidu is a wild man fueled by rage. When the two become friends they start turning each other into caring men who want to help others. Sure Gilgamesh is still selfish, but he also starts to care more about others, especially Enkidu. Gilgamesh “Hear me elders, hear me young men. My friend, my beloved friend is dead, he is dead. My beloved brother is dead. I will mourn as long as I breathe.”(p.142) In Wicked once Glinda and Elphaba become friends Glinda becomes less petty and selfish, and Elphaba becomes more open to trying new things and putting herself out there. Despite the similarities, there are still differences.
One difference between Gilgamesh and Wicked is that once Gilgamesh and Enkidu become friends they stay that way, but in Wicked Elphaba and Glinda have an off and on friendship. In Gilgamesh up until the end Enkidu and Gilgamesh are each other's lifeboats, they help encourage each other in trying times. Gilgamesh and Enkidu’s relationship is like a six year old girl’s relationship with her friends at a sleepover. Gilgamesh, “The two friends washed themselves in the river and returned to the palace hand in hand.”(p.140) In Wicked, Elphaba and Glinda become the best of friends until Elphaba messes up and runs away. Then Glinda turns on her and the two become rivals almost. Other things mess up their friendship before this though, like both girls having a crush on the same boy(this is described in “I’m not that girl” and “I’m not that girl reprise”). In the end the girls part one last time from each other. But on a note of “You were my friend once, but things have changed.” whereas in Gilgamesh, Enkidu and Gilgamesh part on the note of, “You’re my friend, my brother, my savior! I’m going to make a statue of you just to prove how awesome you are!” which is a major difference.
In conclusion Gilgamesh and Wicked are similar in a lot of ways, both are stories of best friends who are different yet similar. They both show how becoming friends with someone can help you become a better more evolved person. Though there are some differences in the stories such as characters parting ways in Wicked, and the use of gods and goddesses in Gilgamesh, there may be some influence. Gilgamesh, though a written story, was probably also passed down through speech and changed as the generations retold it, it must have evolved into thousands of different stories, maybe the Wizard of Oz was one of them, (because it got turned into Wicked).
