Similarities Between Roland, Aeneas, And Gilgamesh In The Song Of Roland

What Makes a Hero?

The characters Roland, Aeneas, and Gilgamesh are similar in that they possess the principal qualities of an epic hero. What makes an epic hero is an individual who is, righteous, gallant, impressive in war, an advocate for his society, and has impacted history in some way. In The Song of Roland, Roland transpires as a hero as his deeds are motivated by his gallantry and dedication to the ruler. He represents the good in the epic’s theme: good versus evil. The evil is embodied by Ganelon, Roland’s stepfather who is responsible for his death. Roland is one of the strongest warriors in King Charlemagne's military. He is a courageous and daring soldier who is unafraid to fulfill and carry out his obligations.
Throughout the epic Roland is portrayed as fierce, “When Roland sees that there will be a battle, it makes him fiercer than a lion or leopard” (The Song of Roland, 1208, lines 812-813), a manner which highlights his bravery. He is a loyal friend and is merciful, especially when Oliver accidentally stabs him with a sword. Roland is quick to forgive his comrade when he says “I am not harmed, not harmed, I forgive you, Friend, here and before God” (1222, lines 1352-1354). The tale of Roland was produced as an advertisement for warfare. The character Roland was created to be an inspirational fighter and icon, as well as a model for how a warrior is supposed to act. His duty was to preserve the Christian faith and protect France and the French army. The purpose for his existence was to pass on the stories of battle against the Saracens, and report what actually took place. This is shown when Roland is almost at death’s door after his brain damage caused by blowing the horn to signal King Charlemagne. Roland uses the little time he has left to position the bodies of his dead soldiers so they are facing the enemy army. He does this so that Charlemagne will see that none of his men surrendered or walked away from battle. This is shown in The Song of Roland when Roland says “My noble lord, I beg you, give me leave: our companions, whom we have loved so dearly, are all dead now, we must not abandon them. I want to look for them, know them once more, and set them in ranks, side by side, before you.” “So Roland leaves him, walks the field all along, seeks in the valleys, and seeks in the mountains. He found Gerin, and Gerer his companion, and then he found Berenger and Otun, Anseis and Sansun, and on that field he found Gerard the Old of Roussillon; and carried them, brave man, all, one by one, came back to the Archbishop with these French dead, and set them down in ranks before his knees.” Death, to Roland, is a more honorable consequence than shame or indignity. His noble deeds and devotion to his Christian beliefs, earn him his entry into heaven and God’s protection. The story illustrates “Then he held out his right glove to his Lord: Saint Gabriel took the glove from his hand. He held his head bowed down upon his arm, he is gone, his two hands joined, to his end. Then God sent him his angel Cherubin and Saint Michael, angel of the sea’s Peril; and with these two there came Saint Gabriel: they bear Count Roland’s soul to Paradise” (The Song of Roland, 1231, lines: 1701-1708). Roland is dedicated to his duty as a warrior and is willing to sacrifice his life to preserve the faith of Christianity. The wellbeing of France is very important to him as he exhibits strong patriotism to his country. He demonstrates a selfless attitude in almost everything he does. In battle he fights until the end, even when he is the last French man standing. Roland dies a great hero having fulfilled his duty and staying true to his vow that “he would not die in a strange land before he’d passed beyond his men and peers, he’d turn his face toward the enemies’ land and so, brave man, would die a conqueror” (1234, lines 1826-1830). Roland is also epic because, even after his death, he is regarded as a legendary hero. In the Aeneid, we watch Aeneas grow as a hero. He was created to be the last Trojan soldier after the fall of Troy, whose task is to find the new city Rome. He sets out on an adventure in search of his motherland of Italy. Along the way he tackles countless obstacles; the gods’ interference. The god Mercury is the one who reminds Aeneas of his duty to fulfill his mission of finding a homeland. “Aeneas! In Carthage now do you lay foundations and plan a handsome town for a wife? Your throne, your state—are they forgotten? From shining Olympus he has sent me down—the king of gods, whose nod makes Heaven roll. He bade me fly with the wind to bring his word: what plans, what hopes hold you at leisure here? If nothing of promised glory moves your heart, and for your own renown you’ll spend no toil, what of your sun? He’s growing! Your heir, Iulus: what of his hopes? A kingdom—Italy—Rome: these are his due!” (Virgil, 613, Lines 265-276) Aeneas is empowered by the gods with the task of leading the Trojan refugees from their destroyed city to Italy, where they will make the beginning of an empire. Aeneas’s status as a hero is different than the status of Roland and Gilgamesh. He is responsible not only for succeeding his own glory, but also the glory of his father and son, embodying the past and the future. Aeneas serves a major function in both the history and mythology of Rome. He shaped Roman history as his celebrated voyages are recognized as the native masterpiece of Rome. Aeneas’s journeys come alive in mythological writing and an inspiration to modern literature. From his journeys, Aeneas realizes what his duty in life is and is prepared to get the job done. Different from Roland, Aeneas is selfless, putting the wellbeing of others before his own needs and desires. His selflessness is portrayed when he carries his weak old father Anchises on his back. Aeneas tells Anchises “Come then, dear father, and climb upon my back. Ride on my shoulders; the load will not be heavy. Whatever may happen, we’ll share a single risk, a single rescue” (Virgil, 590, Lines 707-710). Aeneas is a hero in the sense that he conquers his obstacles.
He is a hero in the end as he steers the Trojans to conquer. The story closes with the death of Aeneas, “with a groan for that indignity his spirit fled into the gloom below.” Aeneas dies a hero having fulfilled his mission and duty of founding Rome. In The Epic of Gilgamesh, even though Gilgamesh is egotistic and self-centered, he proves to be a hero while on his mission to discover eternal life. Different from Roland and Aeneas, Gilgamesh was born one-third human and two-third god. He felt that he was superior to everyone else. Arrogance was one of his flaws that also made him different from other epic heroes. During his journey to find immortality, Gilgamesh is unaware that the gods were observing him from above. Throughout his adventures he endures many obstacles. One of his obstacles is battling the giant Humbaba; Gilgamesh uses his might and conquers the giant. “He took the axe in his hand, he drew the sword from his belt, and he struck Humbaba with a
thrust of the sword to the neck…” (The Epic of Gilgamesh, 809) Killing Humbaba did not give Gilgamesh everlasting life, but brought him nearer and each obstacle broadened his knowledge. The gods had planned for this to happen right from the start. Like Roland, Gilgamesh was a loyal friend as he stood by Enkidu’s side while he was dying from illness. His loyalty to Enkidu is also described when it says “Then Gilgamesh issued a proclamation through the land, he summoned them all, the coppersmiths, the goldsmiths, the stone-workers, and commanded them, “Make a statue of my friend.” The statue was fashioned with a great weight of lapis lazuli for the breast and of gold for the body”’ (The Epic of Gilgamesh, 815). Gilgamesh was created to go on an adventure that furthers his understanding of life until he is finally able to grasp the meaning of human existence. It is this transformation that exhibits Gilgamesh’s fundamental acceptance of his himself as a person. The adventure for Gilgamesh in both The Search for Everlasting Life and The Forest Journey is both persuaded and lead by the gods. Gilgamesh’s relationships with the gods of ancient society prove the major impact that religion had for the Sumerian society during this era. Gilgamesh is arrogant and selfish and never achieves immortality which is what he sets out on his journey to find. He is very different from other epic heroes like Roland and Aeneas who are selfless in everything they do. Another aspect that separates Gilgamesh from traditional epic heroes is the fact that he is not ashamed to give up so easily when at first he doesn’t succeed.
He quits his mission without putting up a fight till the very end. Roland, on the other hand, fought until his life’s end, staying true to his nation, his emperor, and his Christian faith. He would sacrifice his life before he would ever walk away from his duty. Aeneas completed all of his tasks and conquered his homeland Rome. Not once did he throw in the towel or go running back to Dido, the woman he loved. When the gods give Gilgamesh opportunities to obtain everlasting life, he falls short at both chances. When the test of going without sleep for a week comes, Gilgamesh fails miserably. This was the first challenge Gilgamesh was unable to achieve. This taught him that he does not need to overpower to be powerful. When given a second chance at immortality, he is unsuccessful in his task to protect the secret plant when a serpent steals it from his possession. He decides to quit his journey after his failure to find immortality and return home. Even though Gilgamesh could not find eternal life, it was discovered through his legend which he carved into stone. While The Epic of Gilgamesh will continue to be told to future generations, he will forever be celebrated as a wonderful king and hero who created the sturdy walls of Uruk. He recognizes that he will eventually die, a concept
that

he was previously ignorant of. Gilgamesh accepts the fact that he is human and returns to Uruk a better man and having compassion for others. In a way, Gilgamesh did achieve immortality in the sense that he succeeded in making a name for himself that would last an eternity. “This too was the work of Gilgamesh, the king, who knew the countries of the world. He was wise, he saw mysteries and knew secret things, he brought us a tale of the days before the flood. He went a long journey, was weary, worn out with labour, and returning engraved on a stone the whole story” (The Epic of Gilgamesh, 823). An important concept to understand when analyzing the role of heroes in ancient times is the idea that the common people looked up to heroes in a similar way that we look up to movie stars and rock stars. The common people want to relate to a higher power, be it a rock star or an ancient hero. The role of a hero in ancient times was inspirational and encouraging; the stories of Gilgamesh, Aeneas, and Roland provoked people’s imagination and gave them a strong, powerful and just role model to look up to. And the fact that Gilgamesh was part mortal and later came to realize that although he yearned to be immortal, their was allot of pride and strength associated with being human and facing death like all other natural creatures. It was this understanding of life and death that helped Gilgamesh relate to the common people.

Sources

Davis, Paul, Gary Harrison, David M. Johnson, Patricia Clark Smith, and John F. Crawford. Western Literature In A World Context (The Ancient World through the Renaissance). Volume One. Boston, MA: St. Martin's Press, Inc., 1995. Print.