Gilgamesh And Enkidu Character Analysis

From the prologue in the Stephen Mitchell translation of Gilgamesh, it is declared that the mighty king Gilgamesh “suffered all and accomplished all” (Mitchell, 70). In order to accomplish all, he must suffer all -- not simply through physical hardships of journey but also through his ultimate poverty of spirit: the loss of Enkidu. Enkidu was formed out of clay for the sole purpose of being Gilgamesh’s “second self” whom would balance him “perfectly, so that Uruk has peace” (Mitchell, 74) from the rapes of their king: the abuse of women’s bodies and the thievery of the lives of other men. Conducting as a complement of Gilgamesh, Enkidu directly fulfills his sacred purpose of balancing Gilgamesh. Furthermore, Enkidu is able to bring

Gilgamesh and Enkidu are harmonizing opposites: Enkidu “guarded the flocks” (Mitchell, 86), while Gilgamesh chose to “savage his own flock” (Mitchell, 73). Enkidu’s “life-force was spent” (Mitchell, 79), while Gilgamesh was “so full of life-force that he needs no sleep” (Mitchell, 82). The two men were inverses and faithful companions that pushed each other to be courageous. When one faltered, the other provided reassurance and a reminded the other to not be a “coward” (Mitchell, 93) since “’two boats lashed together will never sink’” (Mitchell, 122). When they are together, they are invincible – two parts of one whole. As Enkidu inhaled his last breaths, Gilgamesh moaned: "'Beloved, wait, don't leave me. Dearest of men, don't die, don't let them take you from me'" (150). This cry of agony resonates the cry of someone losing not their

In Enkidu’s dream, Gilgamesh did not save him from the creature that “capsized [him] like a raft” and “like a bull… trampled [his] bones” (Mitchell, 143). Enkidu was capsized since they were no longer two boats lashed together. This imagery embodies the past Gilgamesh who was “trampling its citizens like a wild bull” (Mitchell, 72). Together, they had “slaughtered the Bull of Heaven” (Mitchell, 152) – Humbaba – and consequently the bull of Uruk lost his godliness and adopted his humanity. Enkidu’s death broke Gilgamesh since he realized that he could not get everything he wanted; he was naïve to think: “’If my grief is violent enough, perhaps he will come back to life again’” (Mitchell, 167). Gilgamesh seeks immortality since he realizes his own mortality. After wandering the wilderness dirty and unhinged, he becomes Enkidu. Shiduri said he “’seemed so wild that I locked my door’” (Mitchell, 166). When he was with Enkidu, his journeys seemed short but without him they became long and tiresome. Enkidu was the cleansing flood in Gilgamesh’s life that brought him to Utnapishtim, who taught him that life is about living as if it will last forever but accepting that it is short. In the beginning, Gilgamesh never slept since he was so full of life-force. At the end, he slept for days when he was supposed to be awake, gaining his immortality. This is because