What Led To Gilgamesh's Downfall

In Gilgamesh by Herbert Mason, Gilgamesh went on a journey to achieve a supernatural power. He traveled from place to place talking to people about how to achieve the power of immortality. Like a true hero, Gilgamesh went on a journey to achieve something and ended up where he started. However, he failed. Gilgamesh’s chance to gather the power of eternal life had been lost. Gilgamesh returned home to Uruk along with his achievement of grief, sadness, and failure. Gilgamesh came to the realization that life is not what he thought it was. From his journey, Gilgamesh learned that death is inescapable, humankind is limited because there are always problems, and humanity comes with responsibilities such as emotions and the ability to move on,
Gilgamesh learns humans have limits because he noticed how success is not guaranteed. Revealing what happened to Gilgamesh to make him notice that success is not guaranteed the text announces, “The plant was gone” (Mason 87). This shows how success is not guaranteed because Gilgamesh tried but was not able to retrieve the flower. By losing the flower, Gilgamesh learns that humans have limits because he was not able to successfully retrieve the flower that would grant him immortality. Gilgamesh also learns that humans have limits because he now knows that judgement is clouded by personal thoughts. Revealing that Gilgamesh learns that personal thoughts cloud judgement the text expresses, “slip in [t]he water quietly until he [Gilgamesh] was refreshed, [l]eaving the plant unguarded” (Mason 86). This explains how Gilgamesh was distracted by his wanting of relaxation that he did not protect the plant. By Gilgamesh not protecting the plant it exhibits the idea that he was distracted because the plant was particularly important to him. Gilgamesh learned that humankind is limited because he now knows that success is not guaranteed and that emotions cloud