Epic+of+Gilgamesh

=The Epic of Gilgamesh=

The Epic of Gilgamesh is considered one of the oldest written stories although the date is not exactly known. Best estimates are that it was written around 600 BCE. The story revolves around the live of the historical King of Uruk. The story is written in cuneiform on twelve clay tablets.

People started worshiping Gilgamesh after his death and is remembered for being a great warrior, thinker, and leader.The story of Gilgamesh was lost to history until the 19th century when Austen Henry Layard excavated some 25,000 broken clay tablets from the ruins of Nineveh. After much time, the Epic of Gilgamesh was translated to English with the help of Henry Rawlison, an expert on Assyria.

The Epic of Gilgamesh examines the relationships of family, the price people pay to be civilized, and the roles of kings in society. Most of all, "//Gilgamesh// describes the existential struggles of a superlatively strong man who must reconcile himself to his mortality and find meaning in his life despite the inevitability of death." To this day Gilgamesh is still studied as a great piece of literature.

The Story
Gilgamesh was the perfect man, good looking, wise, and strong although he was very cruel. The Epic starts with an uncivilized Enkidu. Enkidu lives in the wild with all of the animals but a hunter sends a prostitute to him to tame him. The prostitute teahces Enkidu about living in society and also tells him about Gilgamesh's outlandish behavior. Enkidu goes to Gilgamesh just as he is about to rape a woman. They become friends and look for an adventure. They decide to steal trees from a distant forest but first have to fight a monster. After stealing the largest tree, they make a raft and float back to Uruk. Upon their return, Ishtar, the goddess of love, falls in love with Gilgamesh but Gilgamesh does not share the same feelings for Ishtar. In an act of anger, Ishtar asks Anu to send the Bull of Heaven to punsih Gilgamesh. WIth the help of Enkidu, Gilgamesh kiils the Bull. The other gods decide to punish one of the two friends. It ends up being Enkidu, who they kill.



To honor his friend, Gilgamesh decides to become live in the wilderness. He wants to find Utnapishtim, who has eternal life, to learn how he too can avoid death. He travels to the mountain that Utnapishtim lives beyond but it is guarded by two scorpion monsters. After a short debate, Gilgamesh is let into the mountain. After a journey through total darkness, a beautiful garden, and the Water of Death, Gilgamesh finds Utnapishtim. He tells Gilgamesh of the story of the flood. After requesting eternall life, Utnapishtim decides to test Gilgamesh. He thinks that if Gilgamesh can stay alive for eternity, he can easily stay awake for a week. Gilgamesh fails immediately and is sent home by Utnapishtim. Before he can leave, Utnapishtim's wife tells Gilgamesh of a plant that restores youth but a snake steals the plant before Gilgamesh can get to it. Gilgamesh returns to Uruk without anything special. During his time away, Uruk became a magnificent city and Gilgamesh determines that this is the closest to immortality that a mortal can get.

Joey Hockin

http://www.piney-2.com/gilgamesh.jpg http://www.sparknotes.com/lit/gilgamesh/context.html []