Gilgamesh’s Absent Character Development in The Epic of Gilgamesh Essay Sample

Gilgamesh faced many challenges and predicaments throughout The Epic of Gilgamesh, but he remained the same terrible monstrosity he was at the beginning of his story.  The Epic of Gilgamesh starts with the people of Uruk lamenting to the gods about their terrible, son stealing, and virgin raping king.  “Gilgamesh sounds the tocsin for his amusement, his arrogance has no bounds by day or night.  No son is left with his father, for Gilgamesh takes them all, even the children; yet the king should be a shepherd to his people.  His lust leaves no virgin to her lover, neither the warrior’s daughter nor the wife of the noble; (Gilgamesh 62).  The gods heard their lament and Aruru, the goddess of creation, made Gilgamesh’s equal, Enkidu, in an attempt to stand up to Gilgamesh’s tyranny.  Sadly, this attempt was unsuccessful.

Enkidu, Gilgamesh’s equal and a beast who lived in the wild with the animals, was sent to help Uruk and to finally put Gilgamesh in check.  After seven nights with a harlot, eating bread, and drinking wine, Enkidu became wise and went off to fight Gilgamesh after hearing Gilgamesh’s actions.   Even though Gilgamesh and Enkidu are supposed equals, Enkidu is beaten in their fight and, Gilgamesh and Enkidu become friends.  Throughout Gilgamesh and Enkidu’s friendship, Enkidu acts more like an obedient lapdog and makes no effort to change Gilgamesh or challenge his actions and choices without easily succumbing to Gilgamesh in particular when Enkidu tried to stop Gilgamesh from entering Humbaba’s gate and backs down to Gilgamesh, even though Enkidu knows it is dangerous.  “Then Enkidu called out to Gilgamesh, do not go down into the forest; when I opened the gate my hand lost its strength” (Gilgamesh 76).  The only time Enkidu stood his ground on a disagreement with Gilgamesh was when Enkidu felt jealousy at the thought of Humbaba becoming Gilgamesh’s servant, which would result in Humbaba being held to a higher status than Enkidu.  This fact was even acknowledged by Humbaba right before his murder, “Enkidu, what evil: you, a hireling, dependent for your bread! In envy and for fear of a rival you have spoken evil words” (Gilgamesh 83).  Examples like the one just mentioned show how Enkidu appears to promote and fuel Gilgamesh’s poor behavior instead of doing what he was created to do and help make Gilgamesh’s manners more acceptable.

Throughout the whole story, Enkidu is always aided in his journeys and challenges and only has to do the bare minimum in fights and travel by his own feet frequently.  All Gilgamesh does to ensure victory is making an offering to a god or gods.  He calls up to Shamash, the sun god, multiple times throughout the book like before his journey to slay Humbaba for fame and recognition.

Alas, it is a long journey that I must make to the Land of Humbaba.  If this enterprise is not to be accomplished, why did you move me, Shamash, with the restless desire to perform it?  How can I succeed if you will not succour me? If I die in that country I will die without rancour, but if I return will make a glorious offering of gifts and of praise to Shamash (Gilgamesh 72).  

Another example is how his mother, Ninsun, prays for him to Shamash multiple times too and how in his journey to Utnapishtim, Gilgamesh was guided by the scorpion-man, Siduri, Shamash, and Urshanabi and he simply had to cut poles for Urshanabi and go on an extensive walk.

Enkidu’s death reminded Gilgamesh that Gilgamesh too would eventually die.  The greed Gilgamesh had for sex, power, and fame was turned into his newfound greed for everlasting life.  Gilgamesh went off on his journey to find Utnapishtim in search of everlasting life.  Throughout Gilgamesh’s journey, Gilgamesh is guided by deities and creatures to Utnapishtim like a duck following the bread crust trail set in front of it.  After his pole-cutting quest from Urshanabi, Urshanabi takes him to see Utnapishtim.

Utnapishtim tells him the story of how he received ever-lasting life and gives Gilgamesh the simple task of staying awake for six days and six nights like how Utnapishtim did in the flood, but almost immediately Gilgamesh falls asleep. Utnapishtim’s wife baked loaves of bread to keep count of his days of sleep.  One loaf was made for each day.  On the seventh day of Gilgamesh’s slumber, Utnapishtim finally woke up Gilgamesh before the seventh loaf could be removed from the embers.  Urshanabi cleans up Gilgamesh for his departure because of Utnapishtim’s orders.  They are about to set off to take Gilgamesh back to his city, but before they leave Utnapishtim’s wife stops them and tells Gilgamesh of a plant that restores a man’s youth. 

Again, Gilgamesh is being handed something he didn’t deserve. Gilgamesh did not pass Utnapishtim’s test but was still told how to restore his youth by Utnapishtim’s wife.  Even after achieving the flower, Gilgamesh was reckless with said flower and the flower was snatched by a snake while Gilgamesh bathed.  He ruined his only chance of restoring his youth by being reckless with the flower even after the instructions on how to restore his youth were spoon-fed to him regardless of him passing Utnapishtim’s test or not.

Enkidu and the gods failed at changing Gilgamesh and he stayed the same monstrosity he always was until his last breath.  He did not gain any good attributes or lose any of his faulty attributes, and Enkidu’s impact did nothing except awaken Gilgamesh’s greed for ever-lasting life and encouraging Gilgamesh’s poor behavior.  Gilgamesh was constantly given help from gods and others, only really having to do traveling and minuscule combat by himself, so he didn’t learn how to do things on his own either.  Overall Gilgamesh was constantly handed things instead of learning how to work for them, and his behavior with little wonder never changed.