The Inevitability Of Death In The Epic Of Gilgamesh
Death is an inevitable and inescapable fact of life. In Gilgamesh, the characters know of the gods and their immortality and they think it unfair that they must suffer with mortality. They focus on death so much that they forget to live and actually enjoy what life has to offer before they succumb to death. They want to just ignore death and hope it goes away. The characters find out that life is short and that you should enjoy it while you have the opportunity because you never know when death will take you away.
Who, my friend, can ascend to the heavens?
(Only) the gods can dwell forever with Shamash.
As for human beings, their days are numbered, and whatever they keep trying to achieve is but wind!
Now you are afraid of death— what has …show more content…
Enkidu has been trying to get his friend not to go on a quest to fight the monster Humbaba and is terrified that Gilgamesh will be walking straight to his doom. However, Gilgamesh points out that death is pretty much certain, at least for mortals, anyhow. Since we are all going to die sometime anyway, Gilgamesh reasons, the next best thing is to great accomplishments so that your name will live on in the people's memory. I agree with his reasoning because we are all going to die sometime so why not live life to the fullest while we can. At least you will be remembered for all of your accomplishments when you're gone, but the thing with Gilgamesh is that he is seeking immortality through his accomplishments with his people not just for the sake of living. He wants to be remembered like the gods are and never forgotten. I think if he had died in that battle then he would have been just another man who was killed in an epic battle and eventually …show more content…
May the bear, hyena, panther, tiger, water buffalo(?), jackal, lion, wild bull, stag, ibex, all the creatures of the plains mourn you. May the holy River Ulaja, along whose banks we grandly used to stroll, mourn you. May the pure Euphrates, to which we would libate water from our wineskins, mourn you. May the men of Uruk-Haven, whom we saw in our battle when we killed the Bull of Heaven, mourn you. May the farmer …, who extols your name in his sweet work song, mourn you. May the … of the broad city, who … exalted your name, mourn you. … the lamentation priests, may their hair be shorn on your behalf. Enkidu, your mother and father are in the wastelands, I mourn you … (8.14-20, 29-30)
Gilgamesh is mourning Enkidu. The fact that he is calling on the animals and even plants to mourn his friend's death kind of undermines his earlier argument of being remembered for a heroic death will be alright. He's calling out to the entire universe to mourn Enkidu which makes it seem that its not enough for just ordinary people to mourn him. His argument seems to not matter anymore because he feels the death of Enkidu is unfair.
I am going to die!—am I not like
Who, my friend, can ascend to the heavens?
(Only) the gods can dwell forever with Shamash.
As for human beings, their days are numbered, and whatever they keep trying to achieve is but wind!
Now you are afraid of death— what has …show more content…
Enkidu has been trying to get his friend not to go on a quest to fight the monster Humbaba and is terrified that Gilgamesh will be walking straight to his doom. However, Gilgamesh points out that death is pretty much certain, at least for mortals, anyhow. Since we are all going to die sometime anyway, Gilgamesh reasons, the next best thing is to great accomplishments so that your name will live on in the people's memory. I agree with his reasoning because we are all going to die sometime so why not live life to the fullest while we can. At least you will be remembered for all of your accomplishments when you're gone, but the thing with Gilgamesh is that he is seeking immortality through his accomplishments with his people not just for the sake of living. He wants to be remembered like the gods are and never forgotten. I think if he had died in that battle then he would have been just another man who was killed in an epic battle and eventually …show more content…
May the bear, hyena, panther, tiger, water buffalo(?), jackal, lion, wild bull, stag, ibex, all the creatures of the plains mourn you. May the holy River Ulaja, along whose banks we grandly used to stroll, mourn you. May the pure Euphrates, to which we would libate water from our wineskins, mourn you. May the men of Uruk-Haven, whom we saw in our battle when we killed the Bull of Heaven, mourn you. May the farmer …, who extols your name in his sweet work song, mourn you. May the … of the broad city, who … exalted your name, mourn you. … the lamentation priests, may their hair be shorn on your behalf. Enkidu, your mother and father are in the wastelands, I mourn you … (8.14-20, 29-30)
Gilgamesh is mourning Enkidu. The fact that he is calling on the animals and even plants to mourn his friend's death kind of undermines his earlier argument of being remembered for a heroic death will be alright. He's calling out to the entire universe to mourn Enkidu which makes it seem that its not enough for just ordinary people to mourn him. His argument seems to not matter anymore because he feels the death of Enkidu is unfair.
I am going to die!—am I not like