Analysis of the Epic of Gilgamesh Essay

The Epic of Gilgamesh is an ancient artifact from Sumerian literature. There actually was a King in Sumer by the name of Gilgamesh, who lived at about 2700 BC. The Epic casts Gilgamesh as a ruler and great hero and cast as being part man and part god. The story has Gilgamesh set off with a companion in search of cedar wood to bring back to their woodless land. His companion is killed during a violent storm. The Sumerian Epic blames the death upon the storm god, Enlil. Gilgamesh then searches for the plant that restores youth, a recurring theme throughout centuries of literature. The Epic concludes with Gilgamesh dying.

In the period of 2800-2700 B.C.E. Gilgamesh was seen as a god and a warrior to his people, and to them a god is immortal. Little did Gilgamesh know, he wasn’t immortal but the people of Uruk weren’t aware of this they actually believed that Gilgamesh was a divine. I think that Gilgamesh is an important historical hero that influenced the society to have a relationship with gods, view there gods, and on how divinity impacts culture in the Mesopotamian civilization. Throughout this essay I will address the main purposes and analyze the influence of Gilgamesh for his society.

Further analysis of the poem The Epic of Gilgamesh, described the characteristic of king Gilgamesh from the beginning, middle, and end. Throughout the poem, there are immature and petrified moments of Gilgamesh, but more importantly he learned to grow as he explore his journey. Friendship, love, and fear appears to be essential in this poem. Why are those terms relevant ? and how does it connect with the trait of Gilgamesh ?, let’s continue to find out the truth about Gilgamesh.

The Epic of Gilgamesh revolves around a friendship between Gilgamesh and Enkidu and the adventures and hurdles that they face along their journeys. Following Enkidu’s death however, the protagonist, Gilgamesh, horrified and terrified by his companion’s fate goes in searching of immortality. We finally realize that although looking for physical immortality, through his journeys and his reign as king he has achieved spiritual immortality.

Abusch perceives Gilgamesh to be a man, hero, king and god who acts in a manner that accords limits and responsibility imposed upon him by his society. Abusch illustrates that: “Gilgamesh is aggressive and courageous, even impetuous, and he shows little or no concern for his own safety and focuses all of his energy upon battle, obligation, honor, and victory” (3). The author explains that even with the greatest power and achievements there is no humanly possible power that is able to withstand death. Abusch’s analysis talks about Gilgamesh coming to terms with his nature and learns about death. The main conflict in the article is between Gilgamesh being an epic hero and his ability to obtain moral growth. Gilgamesh exists in

Abusch, T. (Oct-Dec 2001). The development and meaning of the Epic of Gilgamesh: An interpretive essay. Journal of the American Oriental Society, 121(4), 614-622.

Gilgamesh existed as one of the oldest known Sumerian rulers of all time and is accredited to many accomplishments. Legend has it that he created the first Sumerian civilization, constructing a city with many elaborate temples and immense walls. However, he has also been characterized as one of the cruelest and most self-centered rulers of all. Throughout the course of Gilgamesh’s life he goes from being a womanizing, slave driving ruler to a negligent and stubborn king, who not even god-sent Enkidu could help transform into a better king.

The epic of Gilgamesh is a tale that displays multiple didactic messages throughout the course of the story. These morally oriented instructions that shape the epic’s characters are very much applicable to our current lives. Messages like: the importance of perseverance, that drive that pushes you to excel, the down side of sexual passion when not tempered, and how we need to keep our pride under control, not letting it cloud our judgement. These principled themes, among others, are clearly visible to the eyes of the audience.

The Epic of Gilgamesh is one of earliest known pieces of literature. Through years of storytelling and translation, The Epic of Gilgamesh became a timeless classic. This story is believed to have originated from Sumerian poems and legends about the king of Uruk, Gilgamesh. Throughout the epic, many themes arose about women, love, and journeys and the one I would like to discuss is the theme of death. Also, I will discuss if Gilgamesh accepts morality at the end of the story and the development of Gilgamesh’s character throughout the story.

This passage from Tablet II takes place shortly after Enkidu and Gilgamesh first meet, and it illustrates Gilgamesh’s blind pride by his shaming of Enkidu for objecting to his proposal to fight Humbaba. This excerpt serves to characterize Gilgamesh as brash and overzealous in his support for a seemingly impossible quest. Gilgamesh eventually coaxes Enkidu to go along with his plan which inadvertently leads to Enkidu’s death through Gilgamesh’s inability to hold his tongue. This later episode further supports the reckless mindset displayed by Gilgamesh in the excerpt at the beginning of this paper. Judging by this excerpt it can be inferred that one’s pride and honor played a very important role in ancient Mesopotamian culture. This is because Gilgamesh attacked Enkidu’s pride and honor in the last six lines of the excerpt to cajole Enkidu to assist him. Gilgamesh also asserted to Enkidu that he was going to fight Humbaba, even at the cost of his own life, regardless of if Enkidu decided to help him.

The story about Gilgamesh is one of the earliest pieces of world literature dating back to the second millennium B.C.E. This story has been evolved gradually over a long span of a millennium, and has been enjoyed by many nations. The Epic of Gilgamesh teaches life lessons that apply to the past and present while revolving around the question of what it means to be human, and to experience the phenomenon of friendship, love, and death.

There once lived a king, the great king of Uruk in Mesopotamia. This great leader was Gilgamesh. His preserved epic is of great significance to modern day culture. Through Gilgamesh, the fate of mankind is revealed, and the inevitable factor of change is expressed. In the Epic of Gilgamesh, it is a great love, followed by a lingering grief that cause a significant change in the character of Gilgamesh.

The Epic is the name of the story and it was written by N.K. Sanders. It was first translated to English by R. Campbell Thompson in 1930. N.K. Sanders did an article of the story. Gilgamesh is about a half god and half human, who is the king of Uruk. He was very arrogant, which causes unhappiness for his people, meeting and befriending Enkidu, and their adventures together. Towards the ending this leads Gilgamesh to seek immortality. Gilgamesh learns that he can’t live forever,it is inevitable and unavoidable. He gradually comes to accept that he will one day die.

The opening lines 1-23 from Tablet 1 of the poem, The Epic of Gilgamesh, introduce us to the ancient Sumerian hero, Gilgamesh. These lines are arresting for their directness and simplicity; they briefly outline the ensuing tales of Gilgamesh’s adventures and achievements and emphasize the hero’s extraordinarily vigorous and powerful nature. The introduction hints at a more personal journey, one in which the hero “came a far road, was weary, found peace” (1,9) suggesting that Gilgamesh discovered a way to understand the tragedy and perplexity of human existence. The narrator calls to the reader’s attention, inviting the reader to “Climb

The great Babylonian tale The Epic of Gilgamesh is about Gilgamesh, the tyrannical king of Uruk, who comes to understand his mortality through a series of trials and tribulations. Though he is well aware of the fact that “only the gods live for ever” (Gilgamesh 71), he stops at nothing to defy his destiny as a mortal being. While the Mesopotamian gods use a system of signs and symbolic patterns to control the happenings in the living world, humans exist only to serve them and carry out their will. The Epic of Gilgamesh proves this to be true. I will argue that in The Epic, Gilgamesh and Enkidu both share a dependency on the divine agencies. As their dreams and journeys are driven by external forces, we see the two heroes struggle to understand and accept the nature of the human condition.