Gilgamesh Was a True Hero
Humanities Midterm Paper
Gilgamesh Was a True Hero
The epic of Gilgamesh is a wonderful piece of literature portraying the main character, Gilgamesh, as a strong powerful leader who is two-thirds God and stronger than any other King alive. He was truly a hero showing skill, intelligence, valor, reverence, and a respect for death. He goes fearlessly into battle to rid the world of harmful beasts and travels to distant lands to find answers that will help the people of his city. He looks to God for his strength during battle and shows respect for everyone he meets along his journeys. Gilgamesh’s friendship with Enkidu shows his loyalty to people who show respect for his city and for himself. The following illustrations will prove that Gilgamesh was truly a hero.
Throughout the entire epic Gilgamesh shows outrageous skill as a warrior and leader. In Tablet I it is said that, “Gilgamesh is strong to perfection.” Also, “He is an awesome beast with unmatched strength and a chant that fosters armies. (Pg. 3)” He leads his tribe into battle fearlessly and defeats everyone they come into battle with, it is said that, “Gilgamesh’s tribe is invincible, and aroused by small insults. (Pg. 3)” This shows his awesome leadership ability, in that his tribe is eager to fight knowing that their King will not let them down. He shows his great strength by fighting the mighty beast Humbaba. To prove that fighting Humbaba was not a simple task I would like to point out that, “The awful monsters reputation made Urok’s gentle people fear for their great king. (Pg. 24)” The elders of the town even spoke to Gilgamesh and warned him to be careful in battle and to let Enkidu lead the way through the forest. Even the great King Gilgamesh was nervous about fighting Humbaba as it says in Column VI of Tablet III. Even such an enemy was still no match for Gilgamesh’s extreme skill. He was able to slay the beast and return home safely. Again he shows his fighting skills when he makes Ishtar mad at him and she tells Anu to release the might bull to go and trample Gilgamesh. Again Gilgamesh was triumphant in battle and in an attempt to rid his city of the harmful
bull he, “plunged his sword into the throat held fast...