how is the bible story of a great flood not really plagarism from Epic of Gilgamesh, a Mesopotamian story?

Question

http://www.ancienttexts.org/library/mesopotamian/gilgamesh/tab11.htm

O man of Shuruppak, son of Ubartutu:
Tear down the house and build a boat!
Abandon wealth and seek living beings!
Spurn possessions and keep alive living beings!
Make all living beings go up into the boat.
The boat which you are to build,
its dimensions must measure equal to each other:
its length must correspond to its width.
Roof it over like the Apsu.
I understood and spoke to my lord, Ea:
'My lord, thus is the command which you have uttered
I will heed and will do it.
But what shall I answer the city, the populace, and the elders

bible is younger, get your facts straight

The oldest surviving fragments of the Babylonian epic we now call Gilgamesh date back to the 18th century -- the 18th century before the Christian era, that is, more than 3,700 years ago. Etched in the wedge-shaped letters known as cuneiform on clay tablets, Gilgamesh stands as the earliest classic of world literature. Surprisingly, it is a classic still in the making, for scholars continue to discover and piece together shards -- in Akkadian, Sumerian, Hittite and other ancient languages -- that occasionally add a few more lines to this story of an ancient Middle Eastern king's quest for immortality and his coming to terms with the inevitability of death.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/03/01/AR2007030102109_pf.html

Answer 1

Plagiarism, as a legal concept, is not relevant here.

Are Noah and Gilgamesh cognate stories? Absolutely.

As are Genesis' creation and the Enuma Elish: http://www.sacred-texts.com/ane/enuma.htm.

But I suspect that the differences are as significant as the similarities.

I have thought of Genesis as a demythologizing of Mesopotamia.

Answer 2

comparable bills upload weight to the prospect that they are in keeping with actual activities. they do no longer talk to which account is the marvelous one. there are a number of similarities between the Genesis account and the Gilgamesh Epic. those talk to an hassle-free source. yet there are additionally some impressive variations. Gilgamesh interior of sight flood Lasted 7 days Boat became a cube (and subsequently no longer seaworthy) Boat became seven thoughts extreme Utnapishtim complained on the subject of the flood Utnapishtim launched a raven final. Noah international flood Rained 40 days and nights stable boat shape (on the subject of yawing, pitching and heeling). Boat became 3 thoughts extreme Noah did no longer ***** Noah launched a dove final (raven first). Noah found out that the non-return of a carrion feeder (which incorporate a raven) indicated little. The dove became a extra logical decision. The Noah account is extra possible.

Answer 3

When studying basic anthropology we learn that when words have similar sounds and meanings they must have a common origin and when legends are similar they must have a common origin.

Both Science and Christianity believe this is true, that everything comes from common origins.

The disagreement is th oldest on the books, it is the chicken or the egg question. Which came first the chicken or the egg?

Christians believe in Creation so the chicken came first, the story of God came first and other religions took these stories and used them as their own.

Now, if only we could find a verified first edition of a hand written document for both of these stories that are thousands of years old we could scientifically establish that one was written down before the other.

Of course that does not mean that the one written first was verbalized first since the original scripture was spread by word of mouth.

Answer 4

This question could just as well be asked: "How is the Epic of Gilgamesh, a Mesopotamian story, not really plagarism from the Bible story of the great flood?

Answer 5

We all have stories from our loving ancestors. My family genealogy is full of interesting stories.

I believe that originally, in the flood story, there was no mal-intent in regards to plagarism. However, Church Empires tend to twist and turn stories around to claim their superiority and uniqueness. -

My ancestors knew how to handle these stories. Their maxim was: Learn from every source, but when folks start bragging on themselves, "take it with a grain of salt".

Answer 6

Couldn't the Epic of Gilgamesh be plagarism from the story of the Bible?
I am sure the story of the Flood was told from generation to generation by those who had experienced it.

Answer 7

Because the event happened as the Bible foretold - there is no plagarism- only second hand reporting.

Answer 8

Because the story of Noah is older and Gilgamesh is from noah for another culture.

Answer 9

Was there two woodpeckers on the Arc...and did they peck holes on the sides of the Boat.

Answer 10

So what. So the christians "borrowed" heavily from many religions that they went on to look down on. Hell, they even "borrowed" their god from the Jews, and then they went on to treat them badly.