What Is The Hero's Journey In The Epic Of Gilgamesh

Heroes are people who conquer all evil, do the impossible, and help everyone but oneself. Throughout time what one considered a hero has changed, the modern definition of a hero is a typically a man, who is admired as a result of his/her courage, achievements, or braveness. However, back when The Epic of Gilgamesh was written, a hero was someone godlike with courage, and ability to do selfless acts. Based on this definition, it is clear that Gilgamesh strives to be a hero. Not only does he conquer evil and battle monsters, he also does the impossible and obtains new knowledge of death.

The Epic of Gilgamesh was written as a reminder to the people that the mortality of man should never change, because it is what defines humanity. However, in the world of The Epic of Gilgamesh, this does not seem to deter any who wish to break the cycle of life. Gilgamesh, distraught by the death of his companion, Enkidu, is overcome with the obsession of obtaining immortality, and goes along a journey to attain it. While on the journey of obtaining immortality, he faces many difficulties and warnings that should deter him away from doing so. Yet, Gilgamesh does not heed to the warnings. Readers tend to focus only on Gilgamesh’s quest in gaining immortality, but forget about the warnings that were given by the people he encountered throughout the journey.

He had many extraordinary qualities, and heroic characteristics. The most obvious being that he is a king, a man of highest level in society. He was also known and appreciated for building many walls and temples around his city, which no man who followed ever matched. However, after the presence of Enkidu was made, Gilgamesh started to become the more noble and favored ruler of Uruk. Since he finally knew what it was like to have a companion and someone of his level of greatness, he no longer terrorized his city as he did before, and is still aware that death is inevitable. Yet, after Enkidu passed away, Gilgamesh becomes so distraught, he becomes obsessed and fearful of death, and seeks the secret to immortality from there on. It is only after he learns the story of the flood from Utnapishtim, the epiphany that he becomes his most noble and wise self. Finally, he accepts his mortality on his way back to Uruk with the boatman alongside him: “O Ur-shanabi, climb Uruk’s wall and walk back and forth! Survey its foundations, examine the brickwork... A square mile is city, a square mile date-grove, a square mile is clay-pit, half a square mile the temple of Ishtar: three square miles and a half is Uruk’s expanse.” (George, 99). This demonstrates Gilgamesh’s newfound appreciation for his city and life, and provides the audience with closure of his

In this essay I will discuss about the main changes of Gilgamesh throughout the epic, especially after the death of his closest friend Enkidu. Does Gilgamesh change after Enkidu's death? My answer is yes because in the beginning of the epic the main hero Gilgamesh was very confident and superior among citizens of Uruk but after Enkidu’s death he started to fear. He understood that death can reach him. Moreover, he decided to go on a far journey to find immortality.

Gilgamesh was in search for the secret of eternal life in which he believed Utnapishtim held. To reach Utnapishtim, he had to cross dangerous waters and a dark mountain. Along his journey he had to face many dangers

Gilgamesh uses warrior values to motivate himself and those around him. The Sumerians, which were Gilgamesh’s people, were located in Mesopotamia. The Sumerians expanded and developed the city of Uruk. The Sumerians survived due to their expansion of wheat and irrigation system. They prayed to their gods and went to the temple to bring upon blessings. Though we see priestly values in The Epic of Gilgamesh, warrior values hold more power in Gilgamesh’s life through out the story.

Gilgamesh is an epic hero in the story Gilgamesh: A New English Version because he endured a long journey. A common trait that all epic heroes share is their long journey that they must travel in search of triumph, treasure etc. Some evidence for this is "At four hundred miles they stopped to eat, at a thousand miles they pitched their camp. They had traveled for just three days and nights, a six weeks’ journey for ordinary men." Ordinary people could never have traveled this length hence why they're epic.

Surprisingly, Gilgamesh is scared, and almost reluctant to fight when he first sees Humbaba. Humbaba “nodded his head and shook it, menacing Gilgamesh; and on him he fastened his eye, the eye of death. Then Gilgamesh called to Shamash and his tears were flowing” (20). Gilgamesh needs help to defeat Humbaba, but his arrogance keeps him from becoming self-aware of his weakness. Gilgamesh and Enkidu ruthlessly triumph over Humbaba and in their celebration. They viciously murder Humbaba even after he pleads for mercy. To add to their treachery, they mock the gods by laying Humbaba’s head before Enlil, the god who created Humbaba. Here is another sign that physical feats, especially the savagery of the deed, will not define Gilgamesh as a hero. In fact, he appears more as a murderer than a great leader. The two are scolded by Enlil, who is mortified that Humbaba has been killed and in the manner that it happened. “Enlil raged at them. Why did you do this thing? From henceforth may the fire be on your faces” (22). Regardless, the two continue to celebrate, immaturely throwing their braggadocio in the gods’ faces. “O Gilgamesh, king and conqueror of the dreadful blaze… glory to him and from the brave the greater glory is Enki’s” (22)! Gilgamesh’s behavior is not one of a

Always encountering success, Gilgamesh was once a tyrant to his people. Reflecting on his rule, he recalls that, “He demanded from an old birthright/the privilege of sleeping with their brides” (15). His triumphs fostered arrogance. To him, everyone else paled in comparison. When he experiences defeat, however, Gilgamesh grows as a leader, seeing the similarities between him and his subjects, their common humanity. After losing the plant of eternal life, Gilgamesh returns to his kingdom of Uruk. There, Gilgamesh looks over his empire, and is astonished at what he sees. He, “looked at the walls, awed at the heights his people had achieved” (92). Gilgamesh, once believing he was almighty, becomes a greater man and leader through

Gilgamesh was a legendary King from the distant pass. He was looked as a hero because of his travels with Enkidu to the cedar forest to kill its guard, Humbaba. He was famed for his great deeds as a king. He was a anti-hero and a hero in the Mesopotamians eyes. I think that Gilgamesh was a hero because it he has done many epic and risky travels.

Throughout the Epic of Gilgamesh, Gilgamesh struggles to come to terms with death. He goes through many stages of denial before finally realizing that he needs fulfill his life through epic journeys and quests for happiness despite his inevitable death. First, Gilgamesh does not fully understand just how final death is until he witnesses Enkidu's death. Next, he decides that he will just have to find eternal life so that he will never be punished by death. And lastly, Gilgamesh realizes that he will definitely die; he just needs to accept it and create happiness for himself while he has the time.

In the first form of the epic, Gilgamesh was just portrayed as a great King that had done many good deeds, this form of the story provided the reader with a much less vivid picture of the character of Gilgamesh. Even in this early form Gilagemesh was a hero for the Mesopotamians. In the eighteenth century a new form of the epic had risen, in this form Gilgamesh was known as for "surpassing all other kings" (Marc Van De Mieroop). In this form the great adventures of Gilgamesh began to appear. The one he was most famous for in this version was his journey into the mountains where he cut down trees and killed the monster, Huwawa, the guardian of the Forrest. In this version it is also presented that he was accompanied by Enkidu a good friend of Gilgamesh. As the epic continues on it seems that Enkidu dies but the reason is unknown. Scholars believe the death of Emkidu seemed to deeply affect Gilgamesh and possibly made him rethink some of his decisions. Finally, in the article The Changing Image of Gilgamesh, the author explains the most popular version of the epic. This adaptation was written in the seventeenth century. As stated in the article, "He is still a great adventurer but his true greatness lies elsewhere" (Marc Van De Mieroop). Gilgamesh has found

In the beginning Gilgamesh was oppressing his people and did not fit the profile of a noble ruler because he was cruel and abused his strength. His people even claimed, “His arrogance has no bounds by day or night” (Gilgamesh). Gilgamesh did not handle the tragic event of his friend’s death as well as Rama handled his banishment, but what makes Gilgamesh an epic hero is that he grew stronger and wiser from his journey. At the beginning of the journey, Gilgamesh was scared of many things being alone, losing his power, and ultimately of death because he did not think he could fulfill his life with restricted time. After his long journey and his encounter with Utnapishtum, Gilgamesh learned that all he can do is to live life to the fullest and not fear death, but instead he must embrace it as a reason to enjoy the present. By the end of the voyage, he returned to Uruk a wiser leader and in the end changed his cruel ways. He was cherished by his people for the rest of his life and even beyond it because of his change. His people even claimed after his death that there would never be anyone equal to him by saying, “the king, peerless, without an equal among men.” His change and journey is why he is a hero to the Mesopotamian culture. His story provides an example of how people should act, treat each other, and ultimately what their focus should be about. Gilgamesh does not start off with the heroic moral status, but his journey to get there is what makes him influential to his

Gilgamesh, just like any other heroes, receives a vision from the gods pertaining to his fate, “The father of the gods has given you kingship, such is your destiny, everlasting life is not your destiny.” It makes no sense at first but as the story progress, we found out that Gilgamesh was never meant to live eternal life.

“I shall die…Sorrow has entered my heart! I am afraid of death, so I wander the wild, to find Uta-napishti” (Tablet 9.3-5). In the poem, The Epic of Gilgamesh, the king of Uruk, Gilgamesh, suffers the tragic loss of his dearest friend, Enkidu which results in Gilgamesh wandering the wild in search of the one who can teach him of the secrets to unlock immortality, Uta-napishti. Gilgamesh must travel an immense distance to reach Uta-napishti and sail across a vast ocean using punting poles. The demi-god escapes death and barely reaches Uta-napishti who informs him that he must complete several trials in order to have his wish of immortality granted. Gilgamesh fails to complete the tasks required of him by the immortal Uta-napishti but realizes