Gilgamesh Transformation

The story of Gilgamesh, the King of Uruk who is two thirds god and one third human, is a interesting and intriguing piece of literature. The story tells of Gilgameshs' strength, bravery, intelligence, looks, and loyalty making him a true model hero. It says that Gilgamesh was (pg.13), "given a perfect body and endowed with beauty and courage and his beauty surpassed all others." Throughout the story he is constantly going into battle and going on long adventures to find answers that will better his city. He is also respectful to those he meets along his journeys and asks God for strength during his battles. Gilgamesh is a religious character that posseses super human strength, bravery, selflessness, and intelligence making him a model

Gilgamesh was destined to perfection from birth. He was created as a divine mortal, two thirds divine and one third human (5). He was a man destined to live a lavish life with all the riches a man could ever want. Unfortunately his arrogance and superior strength got in the way (Foster5). Gilgamesh was created by the gods to be perfect in every regard. But what the gods couldn't prepare him for was life and human emotions, instinct etc. Gilgamesh built a wall that protected Uruk, his home (3). He was destined to live a life like a god among his people. Gods played tug a war for the lack of better words with Gilgamesh's life. They controlled every aspect. This is where all Gilgamesh journey's began and where they would all bring him back to

     There are some characteristics that most great kings have. All of the great kings did not have all of these characteristics, but they had some of them. Gilgamesh did not have many of these traits. Although he was a powerful king, he was not a great king. He had some good traits, such as being a leader, and fighting evil powers. He tormented his people, oppressed them them, exhausted them in daily life and in combat, and he gave himself the right to sleep with any unmarried woman.

     At first, Gilgamesh is a controlling and arrogant king, who thinks only of himself. He constantly works the men, building enormous walls surrounding the

At first, Gilgamesh was seen as an oppressor to his people. He was known to be among the best of creation; as stated in the prolouge "When the gods created Gilgamesh they gave him a perfect body...". This emphasizes his signification of his situation and makes him feel better

As the epic starts, Gilgamesh is portrayed as a self-centered, self-admiring leader who believes that he is the only individual that can lead the city of Uruk. Gilgamesh believes that he is a god-like figure and often refers to himself as one. He believes that he is above everyone else in the city of Uruk. For example, in the epic there is a scene where Gilgamesh enters the city of Uruk, the epic describes the scene as; “He entered the city of Uruk-the-Town-Square, and a crowd gathered around. He came to a halt in the street of Uruk-the Town-Square, all gathered about, the people discussed him” (15). This quote is a good example of how Gilgamesh expected those around him to respect and look up to him as a god-like figure. He did not lead the city of Uruk humbly; he wasn’t a leader who strived to feel like a normal citizen of the city. Instead, Gilgamesh felt that he was entitled to more privileges than the average person. Early on in the epic, Gilgamesh is described as a “tall, magnificent and terrible, who opened passes in the mountains, who dug wells on the slopes of the uplands, and crosses the ocean, the wide sea to the sunrise” (2). This demonstrates how selfish Gilgamesh truly was, and how all

Initially, Gilgamesh was known as the tortuous, superb, accomplished, and fierce king of Uruk who drove people out of their sanity and sought trouble. He was an arrogant, overconfident being who loved to prove to himself that he’s undefeatable even though he knew it from the core of his heart. In fact, the whole kingdom of Uruk knew it. He frequently held competitions to determine the mightiest of all in the kingdom which required the presence of every single victim. Unfortunately, no man was spared to be the opponent of the man who had the vitality of a wild bull. It was said that “ He was harrying the young men of Uruk beyond reason, Gilgamesh leaves no son to his father!” (101, line 59-60).The intense thirst for competing that Gilgamesh had, conveys how it’s the human nature to have a big an ego, and prove to themselves that they are the finest of all. Humans have the instinct to be competitive and thrive for victory. There’s always a part

Gilgamesh expresses sorrow to Ur-shanabi over losing the regenerative plant, truly opening up his human self at the end of the journey. Gilgamesh’s loss of his “bounty” to the “Lion of the Earth” brings out the main shift in his identity (XI 313-314). The key to understanding the shift is the symbolism of lions. Prior to this event, Gilgamesh had been dominant over the wild and once killed lions for clothing. Now, Gilgamesh lost his regenerative plant to a snake, the lion of the earth. The contrasting relationships with the wild highlight Gilgamesh’s changing status. His vulnerability to the wild becomes an aspect of himself that he must confront. A human side is breaking out of the prison that was once the godly Gilgamesh and taking over. Human Gilgamesh “ha[s] done a favour” to “the “Lion of the Earth”” which Gilgamesh hates and would take back (XI 314). However, in the end, the benefit may have been to Gilgamesh because he is now on the path to becoming wise by facing his mortality.

There are two different views of Gilgamesh: a hero and a criminal. In the eyes of the citizens of Uruk, Gilgamesh was a criminal. They had a strong antipathy towards their King. Many people wanted to take him to court and have him sentenced to life in prison. Gilgamesh caused lots of trouble, which led to him being taken down from throne shortly after his journey from Mashu.

Gilgamesh was the King of Uruk which is thought to be in modern Iraq around the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers. He built the great City of Uruk complete with fortified walls encompassing the three and a half square miles of city. When he was born, it was known he was two thirds divine and one-third human. Unfortunately, he was known to be quite harsh on the people of Uruk. He “strode back and forth, Lording it

Gilgamesh developed his character from the beginning and the end of the epic which is also portrays a theme of identity. At the beginning, he was known as an evil and selfish king, but as the epic continues to the end he becomes an admired leader. The passage is shown here when Gilgamesh says to Urshanabi the ferryman, " 'Urshanabi, climb up on to the wall of Uruk, inspect its foundation terrace, and examine well the brickwork;, see if it is not of burnt bricks; and did not the seven wise men lay these foundations? One third of the whole is city, one third is garden, and one third is field, with the precinct of the goddess Ishtar. These parts and the precinct are all Uruk '" (Sanders 31). He wants to protect Uruk, his community, and is in the process of reconstructing from the flood 's aftermath. This supports Gilgamesh 's identity theme because he shows his new character as a helpful and kind leader who cares about the people in Uruk. Identity is not as an

Before the coming of Enkidu, Gilgamesh was a man of pure power. A being of which there was no equal match, Gilgamesh boasted upon his overwhelming glory and power. This arrogance was accompanied with an extensive abuse of power, which led the city of Uruk into a state of injustice and rage. "His arrogance has no bounds by day or

One of the things the people of Uruk do not get to see is how Gilgamesh is changing. Gilgamesh, before he left, was an overconfident and arrogant person. He is not an enjoyable person to be around. Although he was Uruk’s hero, people did not see him as one. He is not a likeable figure in their town.

In The Epic of Gilgamesh, Gilgamesh begins as an inconsiderate ruler who does not respect his people or the community. It becomes clear from early on in the novel that Gilgamesh has caused an upset in society, and for the population to function smoothly he has to

Initially, Gilgamesh was known as the tortuous, accomplished, and competitive king of Uruk who drove people out of their sanity and sought trouble. He frequently held competitions to determine the mightiest of all in