Epic of Gilgamesh

Gilgamesh

While composed nearly five thousand years ago (2500-1500 BCE), Gilgamesh seems very as contemporary in its thematic concerns as it is alien in many of its cultural practices. Many of these themes emerge from a lost mythological tradition and a culture that is equally non-extant, the bonds of friendship, fear of death, and the quest for worldly renown still strike chords with us even in the twenty-first century.

Historical Context

Gilgamesh is a primary epic, composed over a thousand years by cultural stories of the legendary king, Gilgamesh, who is thought to have historically ruled Uruk circa 2700 BCE. The oral stories were probably assembled by a poet and cast into the narrative form of the epic between 2000 and 1600 BCE and finally written on clay tablets in cuneiform during the reign of Assurbanipol in 668-627 BCE.

Gilgamesh as Epic

Can Gilgamesh be called an Epic? Yes and No. No, because the term epic is usually applied to exceptionally long poems that are narrated by someone else. Gilgamesh has three entries that one may consider to be poems. On page 34 Gilgamesh cries out to the counsellors of Uruk in what I would call a short prayer. On page 43 Ea speaks to Enlil about his misdeeds, the words that are indented have the characteristics of an epic poem. Ea words center on Enlil whose deeds can control the fate of human mankind.

Then again yes, Gilgamesh could be called a Primary Epic. The story of Gilgamesh has several episodes that are legendary. The first sentence of the story states, "Gilgamesh is a poem of unparalleled antiquity, the first great heroic narrative of world literature."(The Norton Anthology) On Lit muse you will find that Primary Epic means, "The work focuses on the personal concept of heroism, and the self-fulfillment and identity of the individual hero." Gilgamesh was definitely out for self-fulfillment.

The Role of Enkidu

In my eyes Enkidu is the real hero of the epic.On most of the sites I visited for research, I've found that majority of the people tend to downplay Enkidus role.Some call him a wild man made noble by the "great" Gilgamesh and others say he forced Gilgamesh into his adventures or misadventures. Even the gods looked at him as a sidekick and never equal to Gilgamesh, when deciding that he must die for the killing of the Bull of Heaven, and not Gilgamesh. The reason the Bull was killed was because Gilgamesh was mouthing off to Ishtar and like a true solider Enkidu had to step in a save Gilgamesh. On all the adventures and in all the battles Enkidu was all was the stronger warrior, but Gilgamesh would always receive the praise.Enkidu was brought in as a counterweight to Gilgamesh and ended up being his saviour.Enkidu saves the life of Gilgamesh many times and ends up giving his life for him.

Thematic Concerns

The epic takes as its primary concern Gilgamesh’s wisdom that he acquires during his journeys and the monuments that he constructs upon his return. Like the Homeric epics, Gilgamesh begins in medias res during the rule of a wild king, two-thirds god and one-third man. While Gilgamesh is strong and an obvious stud — at least in his own mind, his is cruel and naive, needing to discover what it means to be human if he is to become a good ruler and father.

Bonds of Friendship

His first lesson is one of friendship through the wild man Enkidu, more of an animal than man. Like all good, lasting friendships (at least those that I have had), Gilgamesh and Enkidu first attempt to kill each other when the latter comes to Uruk. Fortunately, they do not, yet Gilgamesh does get the slight upper-hand, and they become great friends. Indeed, while there is an implicit suggestion of Gilgamesh’s superiority over Enkidu, something akin most friendships, there is one who is dominant, choosing adventures, making decisions, and directing the ultimate course of the friendship. Gilgamesh, since he is the epic hero, seems to take this role, perhaps also suggesting the superiority of the cultured and civilized to the animal, or natural. This motif becomes even more apparent in their first adventure.

Quest for Worldly Renown

Now that we are friends, we have to party. Enkidu soon gets bored in Uruk — “I am oppressed by idleness” (23) — and Gilgamesh suggests they go get medieval of some evil: Humbaba. This feat will also prove Gilgamesh a real hero by allowing stories to be told about his great feats of manhood:

I will set up my name in the place where the names of famous men are written, and where no man’s name is written yet I will raise a monument to the gods.

Humbaba

While Humbaba lives in the Country of the Living, seemingly quite far from Uruk, and is apparently not an immediate threat to Gilgamesh’s people, this endeavor might seem a bit dubious. Perhaps this is a commentary on what men will do when they are bored: let’s go kill something. When we are at peace, we long for war? Humbaba might also represent a “holdfast,” something that while alive or existing — whether an idea or an actual threat — restricts a culture from developing beyond a certain point. Many such holdfasts pop up in western literature, cf. the dragon in Beowulf for one.

While Gilgamesh and Enkidu are successful in killing Humbaba — through episodes of fainting and friendly gibes — its death suggests more of an ambiguity in their success, as if something precious has been slain all for the pride of man (and I do mean man, here). Notice that when Humbaba is killed, the heroes begin cutting down trees: “They attacked the cedars . . . [and] cleared their roots as far as the banks of the Euphrates” (30). Like Enkidu’s education through the wiles of the harlot, this victory suggests that while the heroes accomplished their great victory, something is irrevocably lost because of their endeavor. Through the harlot, Enkidu forever loses his innocence, but what is lost in the killing of Humbaba is a bit more ambiguous. Perhaps this is an ecological statement about clearing rain forests millennia before we knew what effect that practice would have.

The ambiguity continues in the gods’ reaction to the death of Humbaba and the felling of the cedars: Enkidu must die. OK, maybe it has more to do with Gilgamesh’s arrogant dismissal of Ishtar, but regardless, the Bull of Heaven is sent to punish the heroes and Uruk. Even though the bull is defeated, Enkidu must die which precipitates Gilgamesh’s search for immortality — an escape from death. Notice that while Enkidu lays dying that he curses the city (civilization), the harlot (women that led to the destruction of his innocence), and the trapper (who precipitated the education of Enkidu). Enkidu’s curses further call into question the necessity of civilization and heroic quests: perhaps fame is not worth death.

Escape from Death

After Enkidu’s death, Gilgamesh rips his clothes from his body and dons animal skins, symbolic of his repudiation of civilization and renown — that which caused the death of his friend. Gilgamesh’s subsequent journey is a psychological descent into his own psyche to discover his own meaning in a life that must end in death. His epic journey is pretty pathetic as far as epic journeys go: full of tantrums and failed tasks, Gilgamesh seems to return to Uruk empty-handed. Yet, he brings the story of his travel and carves it on the bricks that make up the foundation of Uruk, suggesting that civilization is ultimately built on stories: the written text is the key to progress, friendship, and immortality. Gilgamesh, then, becomes a scapegoat: he journeyed to meet Utnapishtim so his people did not have to. Though his journeys proved ostensibly unsuccessful, he returned humanized, ready to accept his place in the world and finally death when it would come.

Gilgamesh leaves us with its moral: Do not abuse power, “deal justly with your servants in the palace, deal justly before the face of the Sun” (46). Gilgamesh is both “the darkness and the light of mankind” in that he brought suffering, but ultimately brought life to his people in the form of the story. What directions for life are contained within the epic? How many of these myths do we still live with today? These stories represent the good and the bad of humanity. What do we ultimately think of the stories, myths, codes for life that Gilgamesh ultimately passes on?

Attitudes Toward Women

Gilgamesh view of women is that of a male chauvinists (according to today’s standards). Not only is he a male chauvinists, but he, "is the epitome of a bad ruler: arrogant, oppressive, and brutal." (The Norton Anthology, 17)"His lust leaves no virgin to her lover, neither the warrior's daughter nor the wife of the noble; yet this is the shepherd of the city, wise, comely, and resolute." (The Norton Anthology, 19) The men of Uruk were not happy with his behavior. Even noble Enkidu is upset at the news that Gilgamesh was to take a bride’s virginity before her marriage to her groom.

When Ishtar see Gilgamesh great beauty she exclaims in glory, "Come to me Gilgamesh, and be my bridegroom; grant me seed of you body, let me be your bride and you shall be my husband."(The Norton Anthology, 30) Gilgamesh turns her down flat. He remindes her of all of her pass lovers and all of the misfortunes they endured due to her temper. Here he is smart and wise not to take on Ishtar as his bride, for surely he would be in constant battle.

Gilgamesh Variations

There are many different Gilgamesh interpretations. Some representations of the story have Gilgamesh as an old man. This is incorrect, the reason behind that is whoever wrote that interpretation did not read the original. This is unfortunate because if Gilgamesh was read in the wrong interpretation; a novice reader would not understand one of the major themes of humility throughout Gilgamesh.

External Links

• The Taming of Nature in Gilgamesh
• Ecological Themes in Gilgamesh
• Friendship and Two Epics
• Gilgamesh Study Guide