Men’s Pride Essay

In a story or a work of fiction, the characters are remembered by beliefs and personalities only they possess. These personality and belief make them stand out from all the other characters in the story. They do not have to be the lead protagonist or the main antagonist; rather, their belief or trait makes them the best in the eyes of some readers. In the case of two greatest works of fiction, â€Å"Epic of Gilgamesh† and â€Å"Othello†, it is the pride of the character and their belief in themselves that makes them stand out from the others. It is the pride and later the ability to set it aside and apologize for their deed. In the â€Å"Epic of Gilgamesh†, Gilgamesh, the great king stood out because he was the proudest of the proud. His belief in himself caused most of the misfortune that took place in the story. Only in the end did he realize his mistakes. The same may be said on Othello in the play that Shakespeare wrote. He was also proud, and this pride has caused as much misfortune in the story as did the trait of Gilgamesh. This also made him stand out from among the other characters. The Mighty Gilgamesh The Epic of Gilgamesh is an epic that originated in Iraq. It is a Sumerian legend about a great King, who is like a God. He has a strength that cannot be equaled. He is also as powerful as their gods wherein neither man nor animal can defeat him. As such, the gods decided to create another being that can equal him. When Gilgamesh met this being, whom the gods named, Enkidu, Gilgamesh immediately liked him. They easily became friends despite the initial plan of the gods to have Enkidu kill Gilgamesh. Their bond was instantaneous. They started doing a lot of adventures together, even those that are forbidden and may offend gods (Hooker). Unfortunately, in one of their adventures a god was offended and as punishment for this, Enkidu died. After Enkidu’s death Gilgamesh was almost out of his mind and did more dim-witted decisions that caused misfortunes. However, despite what he saw, he did not apologize but rather remained proud. Only after all his adventures did he come to his knees and realized his mistakes (Hooker). From this short synopsis of the epic, it may be seen that at the very beginning, Gilgamesh already showed his pride and belief in his self. He was aware of his great power and the gift of strength that destiny has gifted upon him. The king of Uruk knew that none of his subjects can defeat him or defy him. As such, he lived by this knowledge and used it to his advantage (â€Å"Epic of Gilgamesh†). He was a proud and tyrannical king and he stood out because of this. Even though his arrogant actions caused the death of his best friend Enkidu, this did not erase the fact that he was a memorable character because of it. He was much known than Enkidu not only because he carried the namesake of the epic’s title, but also because he went against the society. He did not become what other kinds are. He was cruel to his subjects. He was almost an antagonist rather than the lead protagonist due to his pride. He made the story move by not conforming to the people’s expectations (â€Å"Epic of Gilgamesh†). However, despite the seemingly terrible character of Gilgamesh he should also be commended for being proud of himself. It should be noted that to stand up and remain proud despite other people’s constant prodding to become nicer is a hard task especially for a king. Even the gods were urging him to become kinder to his subjects but he never gave in. Also, it should be noted that his pride is his strength. Because of it, he was able to overcome other difficult tasks that saved his kingdom. Had he not been that arrogant, he would not have risked his life for the tasks that he was assigned to and he would not have been able to save his people. Furthermore, he would have committed suicide as a sign of apology for his actions. Thus, with this, the non-conformity and the trait of Gilgamesh made him a character that is very memorable. The Proud Othello Shakespeare’s â€Å"Othello† is about the moor Othello, whose life suddenly made a turn because of the envy of one of the other characters. The great Othello was promoted in his job and his first action was to appoint an assistant. Iago, who was expecting to get the job, was not chosen. Instead Cassio became Othello’s lieutenant. In his fury, Iago sought revenge against Othello and Cassio (Shakespeare). In order to have his revenge realized, Iago weaved lies in the lives of both Cassio and Othello, and even in the lives of other characters involved with the two. This twisted the story to the point that this not only caused Othello and Cassio’s death, but as well as other people whose lives were connected to them. Most of the people, including Othello, believed the lies that Iago told them. By the end of the story, Othello could no longer contain his guilt and killed himself and claimed responsibility (Shakespeare). From this short synopsis it may be derived that Othello’s life had been simple in the beginning. It was only made complex by the lies that Iago weaved in order to realize his revenge. Despite the fact that Iago’s characteristics may actually make him stand out, Othello still is the most memorable character. As in the case of the Epic of Gilgamesh, Othello stood out because of his pride and belief in himself. Being a moor, many would have contradicted his promotion. The society may dislike the fact that a man foreign of nature should not lead the army of Italy. However, because of Othello’s pride and confiedence, he proved himself worthy of the title (Black). To further prove that he was not like anyone else, an instance in the story told that most men try to use potions in order to attract the beautiful Desdemona. Desdemona’s father even believed that Othello did the same when he learned that Othello was sleeping with his daughter. But then, because of Othello’s pride and self-belief, he went against the society’s expectations. He was able to lure Desdemona without potions or magic (Shakespeare). Despite the seeming good results of Othello’s arrogance though, it should not be neglected that the same arrogance killed Desdemona at the end of the story. The inability to accept the truth caused him to kill her. This may be considered saddening as it was not entirely his fault. However, he was still the one who smothered her with the pillow (Shakespeare). Othello’s pride and belief in himself made him stand out from the crowd. He did not conform to the expectations that as a foreigner he cannot be a good soldier to their country. He also proved that he can get the woman he admires with sheer manliness and not through potions or magic. Even the fact that he got himself into trouble because of his pride made his character that is not like any other. He defied society’s expectations especially when he took his life at the end of the play. This was an act of remorse for rebelling against the expectations that he did not want to apologize for. He did not conform because it would have meant hurting his enormous ego. Conclusion From the given information, it may be concluded that the two characters in the two given pieces of literature, â€Å"Epic of Gilgamesh† and â€Å"Othello†, are characters that stood out from the crowd because of their pride and self-belief. Because of being proud, they could not afford to follow what other believed them to follow. They had to show their ability to decide for their own even though it may mean misfortune. They stood out because they went past the people’s expectations and proved themselves better than any other man. They had to act according to their will because of their pride which took great strength. More importantly, in the end of their tales, they showed remorse by killing themselves rather than apologizing which the society expects from them. Works Cited Black, Edward. 2009. â€Å"Oedipus and Othello: Pride and the Tragic Hero†. Lone Star College. 30 April 2009 < http://northharris. lonestar. edu/30938/ >. â€Å"Epic of Gilgamesh. † 2009. Mythmanhelp. 30 April 2009 < http://mythmanhelp. tripod. com/id9. html >. Hooker, Richard. 1999. â€Å"Gilgamesh†. World Civilizations. 30 April 2009 < http://www. wsu. edu/~dee/MESO/GILG. HTM >. Shakespeare, William. 2003. â€Å"Othello†. shakespeare-literature. com. 30 April 2009 < http://www. shakespeare-literature. com/Othello/0. html >.