Gilgamesh Reflection Essay - 726 Words

The Epic of Gilgamesh is a story that describes the life of a king named Gilgamesh. Gilgamesh is considered perfect in his beauty, body, strength, and courage. While he might have all these great qualities on the outside, he has terrible qualities on the inside. He is selfish, arrogant, and would rape women whenever he pleased. In addition, he is two/thirds god, which is all the more reason one would think he would be a good, righteous, and helpful leader to his people. Instead, he takes his forceful power and uses it to fulfill his own desires, yet the people still respect his authority. A majority of the time I just assume leaders to be good, but Gilgamesh used his power for bad. In a way, this made the story more interesting and†¦show more content†¦The fight ended when â€Å"Gilgamesh bent his knee with his foot planted on the ground and with a turn Enkidu was thrown. Then immediately his fury died. When Enkidu was thrown he said to Gilgamesh, ‘There is n ot another like you in the world. Ninsun, who is as strong as a wild ox in the byre, she was the mother who bore you, and now you are raised above all men, and Enlil has given you the kingship, for your strength surpasses the strength of men.’ So Enkidu and Gilgamesh embraced and their friendship was sealed† (6). It confused me that Gilgamesh was so open and inviting to friendship with Enkidu after he had won. Most people, especially ones who are cocky to begin with, would have rubbed it in their competitors’ face. The aftermath of this fight was handled so well that it surprised me and threw me off guard. Despite my confusion, I appreciated the way the end of the fight was handled and it was a significant part to the story because it was the beginning of Gilgamesh’s change of heart. While this story was written over thousands of years ago, it can still relate to today’s society. The change that Gilgamesh went through can happen to any person . Friendship is a strong factor in human life and can give someone a new perspective or meaning to his or her life, thus changing the way he/she see things and acts towards others. Just like Gilgamesh, humans make mistakes and grow and learn from them to become better people orShow MoreRelatedMidterm Essay Questions757 Words   |  4 PagesLIT 201 Midterm Examination-Essay Questions . . You are required to answer at least three of the questions listed below. Indicate which questions you are answering. Review the guidelines below for full details. Each essay response should be approximately 500-750 words. Include your full name, course number, and date in the upper right of your document file before uploading it. 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