Struggles Represented In Gilgamesh And How They Connect To The Reader

Emotional Struggles Represented in Gilgamesh and How They Connect to the Reader Within the great epic of Gilgamesh, there are many emotional and psychological struggles that are represented or alluded to. Fear of death, fear of failure, and general anxiety are some. The sort of struggles talked about in this story help connect this ancient epic to the modern reader through the experiences lived by the reader. To begin, a fear of death is something a lot of people encounter. The idea of what comes next can be incredibly overwhelming. When reading the ancient epic, we see both Gilgamesh and Enkidu grapple with this fear. “Suddenly it was Gilgamesh who was afraid.” This line from the epic shows Gilgamesh being scared of what might happen if he loses his battle with Humbaba. “Forget your fear of death. I will go before you And protect you.” In this line, Gilgamesh comforts Enkidu who had just had his hand paralyzed by touching the gate to the cedar forest and is now incredibly scared of the battle to come. Fear of death being a topic that is talked about in such an ancient story helps to connect it to the modern reader because it is something that they can often relate to feeling.

The night before their battle with Humbaba, Gilgamesh has 2 dreams that scare him into thinking he will not be victorious in the battle the next morning. He has to look to Enkidu for reassurance, “What does this mean, Enkidu?” Fear of failure is common in today's society. Especially when there is a looming pressure to always be perfect, get straight A’s, have the newest phone, newest shoes, and so on. When such a big hero such as Gilgamesh is shown to have the same fear of failure as the modern reader, it gives the reader something they can relate to and helps them to connect to the