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The Epic of Gilgamesh Summary
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The Epic of Gilgamesh Summary

Prologue

The Prologue establishes Gilgamesh's stature as the special creation of the gods: he is the son of a goddess and a human and thus partly divine. The strongest and wisest of all humans, he is also the renowned builder and king of the great city of Uruk. The Prologue sets the story in the distant past, in "the days before the flood" (1.61), when Gilgamesh himself etched the whole story in stone,

1. The Coming of Enkidu

Gilgamesh, king of Uruk, is the strongest of all men, but he is a harsh and unkind ruler. The people of Uruk describe his abuses to Anu, god of Uruk, who asks Aruru, goddess of creation, to create an equal or "second self (1.62) to oppose Gilgamesh and leave them at peace. Arum creates Enkidu out of the raw stuff of nature, Enkidu is a fearfully strong, uncultured "wild man" with long hair and coarse features who... View more of the The Epic of Gilgamesh Summary

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Criticism

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Encyclopedia Articles (2)

Gilgamesh

2,985 words, approx. 10 pages

Gilgamesh GILGAMESH, a Sumerian hero, god, and ruler of the city-state Uruk, is the subject of a classic epic poem that Mesopotamian tradition attributes to the priest-exorcist and scribe Sin-leqi-unn... Read more

The Epic of Gilgamesh

6,103 words, approx. 21 pages

The Epic of Gilgamesh Generally held to be the earliest recorded epic poem in the world, The Epic of Gilgamesh is based on stories that first appeared around 4,000 years ago in the Near East, where t... Read more

Essays & Analysis (33)

Critical Essay by S. N. Kramer

14,776 words, approx. 50 pages

In the following essay, Kramer discusses the textual and narrative elements of the Sumerian poem about Gilgamesh that are incorporated into the Babylonian Epic of Gilgamesh. From the point of view of ... Read more

Critical Essay by Benjamin R. Foster

5,011 words, approx. 17 pages

In the following excerpt, Foster provides an overview of the Epic of Gilgamesh and offers suggestions on how to read the work. This four-thousand-year-old tale of love, death, and adventure is the wor... Read more

Critical Essay by John A. Bailey

6,851 words, approx. 23 pages

In the following essay, Bailey asserts that Genesis 2-3 diverges from the Epic of Gilgamesh in setting forth a non-sexual presentation of initiation. The most obvious contact between the Gilgamesh epi... Read more

Critical Essay by John Maier

4,379 words, approx. 15 pages

In the following essay, Maier describes some of the difficulties of translating the Epic of Gilgamesh, many of which stem from its not being a product of the Judeo-Christian tradition. When the late J... Read more

Critical Essay by Maureen Gallery Kovacs

6,113 words, approx. 21 pages

In the following excerpt, Kovacs discusses different versions of the Gilgamesh story and why it had relatively little influence on Mesopotamian culture. The Epic of Gilgamesh recounts the deeds of a f... Read more

Critical Essay by Rivkah Schärf Kluger

8,561 words, approx. 29 pages

In the following excerpt, Kluger analyzes the dreams described in the Epic of Gilgamesh. 1. on Ancient Terms and Ancient Dreams I would like to return briefly to the question of the translation of the... Read more

Critical Essay by Nicola Vulpe

5,311 words, approx. 18 pages

In the following essay, Vulpe argues that the twelfth tablet story of Gilgamesh's descent into the netherworld is essential to the Epic of Gilgamesh. E. A. Speiser ends his translation of Gilga... Read more

Critical Essay by Benjamin Caleb Ray

10,714 words, approx. 36 pages

In the following essay, Ray discusses what the Epic of Gilgamesh conveys about the meaning of life and death. The Gilgamesh Epic has attracted scholarly interest since 1872 when parts of the Flood acc... Read more

Critical Essay by James G. Keenan

3,816 words, approx. 13 pages

In the following essay, Keenan discusses how the Epic of Gilgamesh overcomes certain literary weaknesses by its presentation of major themes. Gilgamesh is often considered an epic, but if so, it fails... Read more

Critical Essay by Tzvi Abusch

6,719 words, approx. 23 pages

In the following essay, Abusch notes that the chief focus changes from one version of the Epic of Gilgamesh to another. This essay will be appearing in Abusch's upcoming book on Gilgamesh to be... Read more

Life and Death: A comparison of the Epic of Gilgamesh and the Homeric Hymn to Demeter

1,922 words, approx. 7 pages

Studies have shown that throughout the world, different cultures have similar and dissimilar views concerning a variety of topics. Of the most widely discussed topics, life and death are by far two of... Read more

The Role of Dreams in Gilgamesh

765 words, approx. 3 pages

Dreams play a role in Gilgamesh's motivation when he fights Huwawa and the Bull of Heaven. Gilgamesh's dreams make him supremely confident during his attempts to overcome an obstacle like Huwawa or t... Read more

The Eternal Values of Brotherhood

1,744 words, approx. 6 pages

"`How can I rest, how can I be at peace? Despair is in my heart. What my brother is now, that shall I be when I am dead. Because I am afraid of death, I will go as best I can to find Utnapishtim wh... Read more

The Historical Impact of "Gilgamesh"

1,334 words, approx. 5 pages

Gilagamesh, the oldest known manuscript, tells the story of Gilgamesh, an ancient Sumerian king who unwittingly embarks on a quest for self-discovery. Through a narrative that describes the trials of ... Read more

An Epic Epic

1,847 words, approx. 7 pages

AP Literature and Composition 27 October 2004 An Epic Epic Most likely, The Epic of Gilgamesh is the first epic ever written. Composed between 2700 B.C. and 600 B.C. on clay tablets, the epic poem... Read more

Gilgamesh and Modern Society

531 words, approx. 2 pages

Throughout time, people of all cultures have told stories of heroes and kings. The most ancient story we have on record is the tale of King Gilgamesh. This story is an account of the King's jou... Read more

"Beowulf" and "Gilgamesh" Comparison

1,084 words, approx. 4 pages

Gilgamesh was set in ancient Mesopotamia which is where many books of the Bible took place. Beowulf took place in a Germanic society during the era of the Vikings and codes of honor. A warrior cult... Read more

Flood Comparison Essay

683 words, approx. 3 pages

In both the Epic of Gilgamesh and the book of Genesis from the Bible there are flood stories that are much alike. Many aspects are similar in the two stories, however the three primary similarities ar... Read more

Gilgamesh: Mesopotamian Versus American Culture

704 words, approx. 3 pages

On the surface, Gilgamesh is a myth that follows a king on his quest for immortality. On a deeper level, it is the story of an entire culture. From Gilgamesh, one can determine many things about th... Read more

Women Set the Boundaries

1,106 words, approx. 4 pages

The Epic of Gilgamesh was written in Mesopotamia in 2700 B.C.E. (Droge). During that time, women were thought of as equal partners in life and enjoyed privileges such as owning property and doing b... Read more

Gilgamesh a Sumerian King

920 words, approx. 4 pages

Many hundreds of years ago, before Homer wrote the famous Iliad and Odyssey and before the Old Testament was written, scribes in ancient Mesopotamia, now modern Iraq, composed the first epic ever writ... Read more

The Role of Sex in "The Epic of Gilgamesh"

811 words, approx. 3 pages

In "The Epic of Gilgamesh" it seem like the women have all the power. The women have great influences on the men. In "Gilgamesh" sex plays an important role, and it also seems that sex has a hold on G... Read more

The Story of Gilgamesh

356 words, approx. 2 pages

Reading Gilgamesh story introduced me to many new ideas and thoughts I didn't know before. I knew the true meaning of friendship, sacrifice, strength and to where greedy can lead. Gilgamesh and Enki... Read more

Gilgamesh

445 words, approx. 2 pages

Being the king of somewhere or half-god, does not give you the right to take other people's rights away. It doesn't make it okay to violate people against their will. In The Epic of Gilgamesh, Gilg... Read more

The Role of Women in the Epic of Gilgamesh

624 words, approx. 3 pages

The Role of the Women in the Epic of Gilgamesh Stories reflect and mirror culture. Some writers write about how things currently are in their own society and the position that certain people h... Read more

Gilgamesh's Heroism

1,549 words, approx. 6 pages

A hero is someone who tries the best to help everyone and will do everything in his or her power to help out another person. The term hero means different things to different people. Today many peop... Read more

Two Great Floods

755 words, approx. 3 pages

Two Great Floods In both the Bible and the Epic of Gilgamesh the God or Gods create a flood to destroy mankind. In Gilgamesh,the Gods decide something needs to be done because the humans are being ... Read more

Fighting for Friendship in the Epic "Gilgamesh"

668 words, approx. 3 pages

The epic of Gilgamesh opens with the people of Uruk unhappy about Gilgamesh's behavior. He sends all boys off to war and no virgin is left to her groom because Gilgamesh must have them first. The peop... Read more

The Legned of Gilgamesh

1,864 words, approx. 7 pages

The story of Gilgamesh, and the time he ruled over Uruk, is based on tablets from ancient Babylonia where the Gilgamesh epic occurred thousands of years ago. The tablets were found in the 19th century... Read more

The Role of Women in the Epic of Gilgamesh

947 words, approx. 4 pages

In The Epic of Gilgamesh, the majority of the characters are male, who take the roles of the most important characters. Only by looking into the parts of the lesser characters, which are women, can on... Read more

Epic Heroes: Gilgamesh and Achilles

1,087 words, approx. 4 pages

From the days of ancient Greece and before, epic heroes have had their lives chronicled and their stories passed on from generation to generation all the way to present day. Two of the greatest heroe... Read more

Gender Roles in the Epic of Gilgamesh

931 words, approx. 4 pages

Gender Roles in the Epic of Gilgamesh In the Epic of Gilgamesh, gender plays a very significant role. While women were not the most powerful gods nor the strongest or wisest of humans, they still h... Read more

Gilgamesh's and Scrooge's Character Changes

622 words, approx. 3 pages

Gilgamesh's' and Scrooges' Character Changes The character Gilgamesh from Epic of Gilgamesh and the character Scrooge from Charles Dickens' A Christmas Carol grow during their respective storylines... Read more

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