The Epic of Gilgamesh Essay | Critical Essay #14

The Epic of Gilgamesh Critical Essay #14

At the same time, Gilgamesh's journey into the supernatural follows a numbing repetition. Each deity wonders how Gilgamesh came this way and into his deteriorated state; Gilgamesh responds each time that he is haggard and drawn because of his grief for his companion Enkidu—with whom he conquered Humbaba and the Bull of Heaven—that he fears death, and that he seeks Utnapishtim. Narratively, these repetitions summarize the action up to this point; psychologically, they recreate the haunting questions that persistently assail someone in grief. In fact, Gilgamesh's description—his "face like the face of one who has made a long journey" (1. 105)—captures the poignant weight of grief and its effects. Thus, we might view Gilgamesh's journey into the supernatural to find Utnapishtim equally as a psychological journey through grief toward understanding of his mortality and a reconciliation with his own limitations.