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Character traits
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Every living thing on Earth has characteristics. Characteristics are what make humans unique. Whether someone is tall, short, intelligent, or athletic, character traits make all things on Earth unique. One of the greatest examples of characteristics is the main character of the epic Gilgamesh, Gilgamesh. Gilgamesh’s three main characteristics are bravery, strength, and arrogance.
Gilgamesh’s most prominent characteristic is his bravery. This is exhibited when Gilgamesh and Enkidu decide to fight Humbaba in the Cedar Forest, one of the most feared beings in the world. “Enkidu said, ‘But how can any man/ dare to enter the Cedar Forest?” (pg. 92). Since Humbaba is so feared, no one dared to fight him. Gilgamesh also went on a quest to find immortality. After his beloved friend Enkidu dies, Gilgamesh decides to try and bring him back by finding immortality. This is an epic journey that humans could never accomplish. “This one who approaches--he must be a god.” (pg. 160). Though Gilgamesh is two-thirds divine, finding immortality is still an incredible feat, regardless of whether he became immortal or not. Not only did this journey require bravery, but it also
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Gilgamesh was created with the intent of being stronger and more resistant than any human. “At four hundred miles they stopped to eat,/ at a thousand miles they pitched their camp.” (pg. 111). No human would ever be able to walk that amount at once, let alone in the small amount of time the journey is accomplished in. Gilgamesh was also created by the gods, which makes him extremely strong. In fact, he got so powerful that the gods had to create his equal, Enkidu, to calm Gilgamesh. “Two-thirds divine and one-third human,/ son of King Lugalbanda, who became/ a god, and of the goddess Ninsun.” (pg. 71) Gilgamesh was created for the sole purpose of being strong and persistent. Sometimes, though, his strength goes to his head, leading to
Gilgamesh was tall, beautiful, imposing and performed great deeds and was one who looked into the great deep. “He opened passes in mountains, dug wall on the edges of well sailed the Great ocean sailed explored the end of the earth” suggests that he was very adventurous and was eager to gain knowledge .He suppressed all other kings and towered above ordinary people. “His force could smash through walls” suggests that he was brave and fearsome like a wild bull; he led troops and defended the rears and was one who his soldier could always count on. He built many holy places that the flood had destroyed and restored the rituals for the benefit of the people. Gilgamesh always had his “head held high” this suggests that he had no equal strength and wore out his companions. “He leaves no young man to his father and no bride to her bridegroom” this suggests that he oppressed the people of Uruk.
The main character in the book The Epic of Gilgamesh, is Gilgamesh himself. In the beginning of the book one realizes that Gilgamesh is an arrogant person. Gilgamesh is full of himself and abuses his rights as king. He has sexual intercourse with the virgins of his town and acts as though he is a god. Throughout the story, many things cause Gilgamesh to change. He gains a friend, he makes a name for himself by killing Humbaba, and he tries to become immortal because of the death of Enkidu. Through these main actions his personality changes and he becomes a better person.
While Gilgamesh was a hero thought to be more beautiful, more courageous, more terrifying than all of the people of Uruk. Even though his desires, attributes, and accomplishments were just as there’s, he was still mortal.
In many literary works we see significant transitions in the hero's character as the story is developed. This is also true in the Epic of Gilgamesh with its hero, Gilgamesh. In this narrative poem, we get glimpses of who Gilgamesh is and what his purposes and goals are. We see Gilgamesh act in many different ways -- as an overbearing ruler resented by his people, a courageous and strong fighter, a deflated, depressed man, and finally as a man who seems content with what he's accomplished. Through all of these transitions, we see Gilgamesh's attitude toward life change. The goals he has for his own life alter dramatically, and it is in these goals that we see Gilgamesh's transition from being a shallow, ruthless ruler to being an introspective, content man.
In the The Epic of Gilgamesh, Gilgamesh sets on a journey to uncover his individuality and transforms from a brutal leader to a mature and astute king. The quasi-divine Gilgamesh debilitates his people by battle, forced labor, and his abuse of power. Gilgamesh is considered to be the greatest of all men until Enkidu is sent and counterweights Gilgamesh’s virtues and flaws. When Gilgamesh becomes fearful for his own death, because of the loss of his partner, he seeks eternal life. He unfortunately does not obtain eternal life, but instead he obtains the wisdom he needs to rule as a better king. This journey is what proves to make Gilgamesh an epic hero. Although, Gilgamesh is considered to be truly an epic hero in the end, there are some aspects
In The Epic of Gilgamesh, the characters and their lesson arise as the most memorable
In the epic of Gilgamesh, there are many complex characters. Every character involved in the story has their own personality and traits.
Gilgamesh, feeling the fear of his own mortality, sets out on a journey to search for a way to preserve himself. Although the journey that he endures is much larger than life, Gilgamesh comes to realize that he can never achieve immortality. Before the creation of Enkidu, Gilgamesh is a man without an equal match. He is an individual with overwhelming power, and it is because of this that makes Gilgamesh a very arrogant person.
Gilgamesh’s first trek into humanity can be traced back to the one point that suggests him as someone who is much less the master of his fate than he presumes to be. He has not much control over his destiny despite being the King of Uruk and seemingly able to work his desires at the expense of his own subjects. Being two third divine and one third huma...
In the Epic of Gilgamesh, the main character, Gilgamesh is first introduced as a glorious king of Uruk who is one-third human and two-thirds god. The idea that Gilgamesh is one third human and two thirds god is impossible because this would imply that Gilgamesh has three biological parents, in which two of them are gods and the other, a human. Indeed this notion is hard to believe but by closely investigating the way that the gods treat Gilgamesh, it becomes clear that this idea was not a mistake. While it may seem as if Gilgamesh is part god, a closer examination reveals that that detail about him being two thirds god only serves as a reminder that he is a superior human being, and because of this, Gilgamesh
Some of Gilgamesh’s qualities are that he had a “beauty… surpassing all others” and was “two thirds… god and one third man” (13). Before Enkidu, Gilgamesh acted horribly. He was a terrible ruler and a terrible man. Gilgamesh was not all good, for example, “his lust leaves no virgin to her lover, neither the warrior’s daughter nor the wife of the noble…” (13). He was a terrible ruler. Gilgamesh was arrogant, but very powerful in his country. His people had no choice but to listen to him. They were forced to go along with his unlawfulness and stubbornness.
Everyone has qualities that are heroic and noble, and everyone has their flaws. No matter who they are, or how perfect others think they are, people still have some negative qualities that can hurt their heroic ones. In the book, The Epic of Gilgamesh, by Benjamin Foster, both Gilgamesh and Enkidu had positive and negative characteristics that affected the outcome of their journey and their adventures they experienced throughout their lives.
The Epic of Gilgamesh is a moving tale of the friendship between Gilgamesh, the demigod king of Uruk, and the wild man Enkidu. Accepting ones own mortality is the overarching theme of the epic as Gilgamesh and Enkidu find their highest purpose in the pursuit of eternal life.
Life is a continuous journey whether it is moving from one state to another or it is one going through emotional change. The Epic of Gilgamesh an epic poem about Gilgamesh who was king of Uruk. Throughout the poem Gilgamesh develops as a character. He takes a journey from being a terrible king to being a great king. He matures from the start to the end of the text. He went from being a boy to a man. He went from thinking about himself to thinking about the people of Uruk. In the beginning of The Epic of Gilgamesh, Gilgamesh is described as: “Gilgamesh the tall, magnificent, and terrible.” He was tall, splendid, and dreadful. Gilgamesh was selfish and he did whatever he desired. He fought men of Uruk and raped the nobles’ wives. He had
Many themes are incorporated into the story line of Gilgamesh. These include three very important concepts: death is inevitable, immortality is unachievable, and friendship is a necessity.