How Does Gilgamesh Exist
The Epic Gilgamesh The Epic of Gilgamesh is one of the earliest known pieces of literature. According to Sumerian tradition, he was an early ruler of the city-state of Uruk. “He is said to be the son of the god Ninsun and a mortal father, however, historians have not obtained clear details on that matter” (McCaughrean, pg.5). It is also unclear whether the King Gilgamesh actually existed, but his story still acted as “instructive text” for the people of Mesopotamia.
The Epic of Gilgamesh opens with a prologue that sets off the story of Gilgamesh’s life. The narrator does not have a name, but he states, “I will proclaim to the world the deeds of Gilgamesh” (Ferry, pg. 61). Gilgamesh is a tyrant and exploits his rights as king. He is also arrogant, spiteful, restless, powerful, impulsive, and does whatever he wants to whomever. For example, “There was no withstanding the aura or power of the Wild Ox Gilgamesh. Neither the father’s son nor the wife of the noble; neither the mother’s daughter nor …show more content…
the warrior’s bride was safe” (Ferry, pg.4). Gilgamesh is two thirds god and one third man, and he has beauty, strength, and is fearless. Because of these things, he lords it over the people. Some readers may say that Gilgamesh does not change throughout the story, but he does (Celi, pg.2). In the story Gilgamesh gains a friend, Enkidnu, and he makes a name for himself by killing Humbaba with the help of his mother also.
Once Gilgamesh defeated Humbaba, the goddess of love and beauty, takes notice of his beauty of offers to become his wife. He refuses with insults by listing all of her mortal lovers and how they died after meeting her. Ishtar becomes enraged and cries out to her father to release the Bull of Heaven so she could get revenge. Her father says yes and he sends the bull to terrorize the people of Uruk. Gilgamesh and Enkidnu team up to slay the beast.
The death of Humbaba angered Gilgamesh’s protector, Enlil, the victim of the god’s rage falls upon his friend Enkidnu. After the death of the Bull of Heaven, Enkidnu suffers for twelve long days. Finally Enkidnu dies. The one thing he is really known for is the quest to become immortal because of the death of his friend. Through all of these actions Gilgamesh’s personality changes and that makes him a better person. Once the god kills his friend, Gilgamesh becomes very frightened. He suddenly realizes that he is not immortal. His quest of immortality consists of crossing the ocean. As he tries to find a good enough of reason of why he has to find everlasting life, he sounds pathetic. Many people feared Gilgamesh. They would consider him, just like Humbaba, evil (ancienttexts).
Enkidnu is made to make Gilgamesh more human. In the very first tablet of the great epic, the gods are angry with Gilgamesh and they send down an equal of him. The equal that they send down is Enkidnu. The gods send down this creation because the people of Uruk called out to them. At the beginning of the epic all Gilgamesh was doing was terrorizing the people. Part of the reason he changes is because he has an equal. Gilgamesh and Enkidnu become close as if they were brothers.
Some may question the fact of whether they were lovers or not. One may say yes. They go to sleep holding hands. Gilgamesh loves Enkidnu as if he were a woman. Once he loses his friend, Gilgamesh almost goes insane (ancienttexts). He appears to regress into a state of wilderness, which is described as wandering through the woods like a savage beast. The very friendly friendship that appeared between Gilgamesh and Enkidnu is part of the reason he changed. Basically, Gilgamesh changes because of Enkidnu.
Love motivated change in Gilgamesh. Enkidnu changes from a wild man into a noble one because of Gilgamesh. Gilgamesh changes from a bully and a tyrant into an exemplary king and hero. Enkidnu puts a check on Gilgamesh’s restless powerful energies, and Gilgamesh pulls Enkidnu out of his self-centeredness. They both learn that the gods are too dangerous even for mortals (ancienttexts).
Gods tend to live by their own laws and frequently behave as emotionally and irrationally as children. They expect obedience and flattery whenever possible. They are sometimes helpful, but angering them is pure madness. A character’s reverence for the gods is no guarantee of safety. Thus, the world of The Epic of Gilgamesh differs markedly from that of the Juedo-Christian tradition, in which God is both a partner in a covenant and a stern but loving parent to his people. (SparkNotes Editors, 2004)
Gilgamesh is rich in religious symbolism. The religious rituals in Mesopotamia involved sacrifices, festivals, sex, dream interpretation, and shamanic magic. All of these appear throughout the epic. Enkidnu’s shagginess symbolizes the natural, uncivilized state. The walls of Uruk symbolize the great accomplishments of which mortals are capable. In the context of the ancient king who built them, they represent the immortality he achieved through his acts.
The tale ends with Gilgamesh, at the end of his journey standing before the gates of Uruk inviting Urhsanabi to look around and view the greatness of this city. The city contained high walls, mason work, and a stone of lapis lazuli on which is carved Gilgamesh’s account of his exploits (McCaughrean, pg.92).
As the poem comes to an end, calmness sets in. The exploits and travels reflect on the undeniable soul of a man who set out to achieve everything. The 5900 year old tale is as accessible and captivating as could be. Its heroes are guided by enchanting dream passages, which deeply illustrate the complexity and creativity of humanity. The reader sees one vision, the heroes hear another, or pretend to, and the inevitably tragedy touches the most human of feelings. The vanity of youth, the weakness of the old, instability, morality, incomprehensibility, love, loyalty and the lust for life.
Although Gilgamesh insisted to Utnapishtism that he wanted to live forever, he gives him a test.
He says that if Gilgamesh thinks he can stay awake for a week then surely he can for an eternity. Gilgamesh fails immediately. So he is ordered to put back on his royal garments again, and return to Uruk where he belongs. Just as he is departing, however, the wife of Utnapishtism convinces him to tell Gilgamesh about a miraculous plant that restores youth. Gilgamesh finds the plant and takes it with him with the intentions of sharing it with the elders of Uruk. But a snake steals the plant one night while camping.
When he returns to Uruk, Gilgamesh is empty-handed but reconciled at last to his mortality. He knows that he cannot live forever, but that humankind will. Gilgamesh now sees that the city he had rejected in his grief and terror is a magnificent, enduring achievement. He sees it as the closes thing to immortality which a mortal can
aspire.
Works Cited
Ferry, David. Gilgamesh. New York: Farrar, Straus, and Giroux, 1992. Print
McCaughrean, Geraldine. Gilgamesh: The Hero. Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co., 2003. Print.
Davis, Kenneth C. Don’t Know Much About Mythology: Everything You Need To Know About The Greatest Stories in Human History But Never Learned. New York: Harper-Collins Publishers, 2005. Print.
“The Epic of Gilgamesh.” ancienttexts. n.p. Web. 7 Jun. 2001. “The Tablets Telling The Epic of Gilgamesh.” mythome. Untangle Incorporated. Web. 29 Dec. 2001.
SparkNotes Editors. SparkNote on The Epic of Gilgamesh. SparkNotes LLC. Web. 2004
The Epic of Gilgamesh opens with a prologue that sets off the story of Gilgamesh’s life. The narrator does not have a name, but he states, “I will proclaim to the world the deeds of Gilgamesh” (Ferry, pg. 61). Gilgamesh is a tyrant and exploits his rights as king. He is also arrogant, spiteful, restless, powerful, impulsive, and does whatever he wants to whomever. For example, “There was no withstanding the aura or power of the Wild Ox Gilgamesh. Neither the father’s son nor the wife of the noble; neither the mother’s daughter nor …show more content…
the warrior’s bride was safe” (Ferry, pg.4). Gilgamesh is two thirds god and one third man, and he has beauty, strength, and is fearless. Because of these things, he lords it over the people. Some readers may say that Gilgamesh does not change throughout the story, but he does (Celi, pg.2). In the story Gilgamesh gains a friend, Enkidnu, and he makes a name for himself by killing Humbaba with the help of his mother also.
Once Gilgamesh defeated Humbaba, the goddess of love and beauty, takes notice of his beauty of offers to become his wife. He refuses with insults by listing all of her mortal lovers and how they died after meeting her. Ishtar becomes enraged and cries out to her father to release the Bull of Heaven so she could get revenge. Her father says yes and he sends the bull to terrorize the people of Uruk. Gilgamesh and Enkidnu team up to slay the beast.
The death of Humbaba angered Gilgamesh’s protector, Enlil, the victim of the god’s rage falls upon his friend Enkidnu. After the death of the Bull of Heaven, Enkidnu suffers for twelve long days. Finally Enkidnu dies. The one thing he is really known for is the quest to become immortal because of the death of his friend. Through all of these actions Gilgamesh’s personality changes and that makes him a better person. Once the god kills his friend, Gilgamesh becomes very frightened. He suddenly realizes that he is not immortal. His quest of immortality consists of crossing the ocean. As he tries to find a good enough of reason of why he has to find everlasting life, he sounds pathetic. Many people feared Gilgamesh. They would consider him, just like Humbaba, evil (ancienttexts).
Enkidnu is made to make Gilgamesh more human. In the very first tablet of the great epic, the gods are angry with Gilgamesh and they send down an equal of him. The equal that they send down is Enkidnu. The gods send down this creation because the people of Uruk called out to them. At the beginning of the epic all Gilgamesh was doing was terrorizing the people. Part of the reason he changes is because he has an equal. Gilgamesh and Enkidnu become close as if they were brothers.
Some may question the fact of whether they were lovers or not. One may say yes. They go to sleep holding hands. Gilgamesh loves Enkidnu as if he were a woman. Once he loses his friend, Gilgamesh almost goes insane (ancienttexts). He appears to regress into a state of wilderness, which is described as wandering through the woods like a savage beast. The very friendly friendship that appeared between Gilgamesh and Enkidnu is part of the reason he changed. Basically, Gilgamesh changes because of Enkidnu.
Love motivated change in Gilgamesh. Enkidnu changes from a wild man into a noble one because of Gilgamesh. Gilgamesh changes from a bully and a tyrant into an exemplary king and hero. Enkidnu puts a check on Gilgamesh’s restless powerful energies, and Gilgamesh pulls Enkidnu out of his self-centeredness. They both learn that the gods are too dangerous even for mortals (ancienttexts).
Gods tend to live by their own laws and frequently behave as emotionally and irrationally as children. They expect obedience and flattery whenever possible. They are sometimes helpful, but angering them is pure madness. A character’s reverence for the gods is no guarantee of safety. Thus, the world of The Epic of Gilgamesh differs markedly from that of the Juedo-Christian tradition, in which God is both a partner in a covenant and a stern but loving parent to his people. (SparkNotes Editors, 2004)
Gilgamesh is rich in religious symbolism. The religious rituals in Mesopotamia involved sacrifices, festivals, sex, dream interpretation, and shamanic magic. All of these appear throughout the epic. Enkidnu’s shagginess symbolizes the natural, uncivilized state. The walls of Uruk symbolize the great accomplishments of which mortals are capable. In the context of the ancient king who built them, they represent the immortality he achieved through his acts.
The tale ends with Gilgamesh, at the end of his journey standing before the gates of Uruk inviting Urhsanabi to look around and view the greatness of this city. The city contained high walls, mason work, and a stone of lapis lazuli on which is carved Gilgamesh’s account of his exploits (McCaughrean, pg.92).
As the poem comes to an end, calmness sets in. The exploits and travels reflect on the undeniable soul of a man who set out to achieve everything. The 5900 year old tale is as accessible and captivating as could be. Its heroes are guided by enchanting dream passages, which deeply illustrate the complexity and creativity of humanity. The reader sees one vision, the heroes hear another, or pretend to, and the inevitably tragedy touches the most human of feelings. The vanity of youth, the weakness of the old, instability, morality, incomprehensibility, love, loyalty and the lust for life.
Although Gilgamesh insisted to Utnapishtism that he wanted to live forever, he gives him a test.
He says that if Gilgamesh thinks he can stay awake for a week then surely he can for an eternity. Gilgamesh fails immediately. So he is ordered to put back on his royal garments again, and return to Uruk where he belongs. Just as he is departing, however, the wife of Utnapishtism convinces him to tell Gilgamesh about a miraculous plant that restores youth. Gilgamesh finds the plant and takes it with him with the intentions of sharing it with the elders of Uruk. But a snake steals the plant one night while camping.
When he returns to Uruk, Gilgamesh is empty-handed but reconciled at last to his mortality. He knows that he cannot live forever, but that humankind will. Gilgamesh now sees that the city he had rejected in his grief and terror is a magnificent, enduring achievement. He sees it as the closes thing to immortality which a mortal can
aspire.
Works Cited
Ferry, David. Gilgamesh. New York: Farrar, Straus, and Giroux, 1992. Print
McCaughrean, Geraldine. Gilgamesh: The Hero. Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co., 2003. Print.
Davis, Kenneth C. Don’t Know Much About Mythology: Everything You Need To Know About The Greatest Stories in Human History But Never Learned. New York: Harper-Collins Publishers, 2005. Print.
“The Epic of Gilgamesh.” ancienttexts. n.p. Web. 7 Jun. 2001. “The Tablets Telling The Epic of Gilgamesh.” mythome. Untangle Incorporated. Web. 29 Dec. 2001.
SparkNotes Editors. SparkNote on The Epic of Gilgamesh. SparkNotes LLC. Web. 2004