Gilgamesh

• I. “The Epic”
  • A. Emphasize that the six epic characteristics tend to be broad and generalized, giving rise to the popular usage of the word epic.
  • B. The eight epic conventions are used to measure a traditional literary epic according to Greek (Aristotelian) standards.
  • C. Gilgamesh exhibits only conventions 4, 6, 7 & 8 clearly.
  • D. Gilgamesh is a folk epic (possibly dating far beyond 3000 BC).
  • E. Use the questions at the end of the handout.
• II. Background on Gilgamesh
  • A. The history of the epic
    • 1. Gilgamesh is the first tragic hero
    • 2. It poses, perhaps, the most ancient human questions.
      • a. Must we die? Why?
      • b. What are the limitations of human beings?
    • 3. The Epic of Gilgamesh is the oldest piece of extant literature.
      • a. Probable oral beginnings – c. 3000 – 2700 BC
      • b. First written (in cuneiform) – c. 1200 BC
      • c. Collected by Assurbanipal in library at Nineveh – c. 650 BC.
  • B. The discovery of the tablets
    • 1. Austen Henry Layard (1839) excavated Nineveh.
    • 2. Henry Rawlinson (1855) deciphered cuneiform
    • 3. Rassam (1853) excavated the actual Gilgamesh tablets
    • 4. George Smith (1872) went to Nineveh to find the missing lines of the flood story
    • 5. John Punnet Peters (1890) excavated oldest versions of the epic in the Sumerian language
  • C. The historical background
    • 1. Only Assurbanipal’s recension survives extant
    • 2. Sumerians were the first literate inhabitants of Mesopotamia
    • 3. There probably was an historical Gilgamesh sometime in the fourth or even the fifth millennium BC.
    • 4. Their conquerors absorbed the Sumerians’ culture (as Eurasian invaders absorbed Latin culture).
    • 5. They built ziggurats as their temples in imitation of mountains.
  • D. The hero of the epic
    • 1. He is two parts god, one part man
      • a. Mother – Ninsun
        • 1) Goddess/priestess
        • 2) Gave him beauty, strength, restlessness.
      • b. Father: Lugulbanda
        • 1) May be only spiritual father
        • 2) Gave him mortality.
    • 2. His story reflects the profoundly pessimistic attitude toward life held by Sumerians (a view borne of the prevalence of both natural and human perils).
  • E. The story

    • 1. Characters (See objectives)

    • 2. Plot – characterized by quests

      • a. For adventure
      • b. For building materials
      • c. For fame
      • d. For knowledge
      • e. For immortality

    • 3. Setting

      • a. Height of Sumerian civilization
      • b. Mesopotamia – Uruk

    • 4. Themes

      • a. Timor mortis conturbat me. (“The fear of death disquiets me.”)

      • b. Friendship

• III. The Epic of Gilgamesh
  • A. Emphasize identification of all characters – mortal and divine.
  • B. Focus on the process by which Enkidu is civilized.
  • C. Discuss the development, rationale, and value of Gilgamesh and Enkidu’s friendship.
  • D. Explore means by which humans may achieve immortality.
  • E. Identify pessimistic elements in the philosophy underlying the epic.
  • F. Evaluate Gilgamesh’s values and growth.
  • G. Bring out the idea of our roots extending back to Sumer. How has humanity stayed the same?