True Heroes

True Heroes

Imagine that you are the strongest man in the world. You have such great power and strength that you can do anything you want just like a 'hero'. As a 'hero', you may be arrogant and not take others' advice, but that's not a hero. That's an anti-hero. To be a true hero, you should be dedicated and care about others. Even though you might begin as an anti-hero, as long as you transform and get rewards physically  or mentally, you can be a hero. The Epic of Gilgamesh, translated by Stephen Mitchell presents the first Hero Epic in the world. It shows us two individual heroes that both of them are heroic and antiheroic. Therefore, although, Gilgamesh and Enkidu are in some ways anti-heroes, they are transformed into true heroes at the end of their journey. They fulfill the hero journey by learning to embrace their own life.

Enkidu is innocent and kind but fierce, and in the end he becomes a true hero by accepting his fate. His experiences fit into the hero journey. He has an unusual birth which is made by the god and born in the wildness. He crosses the threshold between the wildness and civilization and makes friends with Gilgamesh and other human-beings. Ninsun adopted him in order to let him go with Gilgamesh to kill Humbaba. He refuses it at first and wants to stop Gilgamesh, but at last he goes with Gilgamesh. They cross the cedar forest and encourage each other. They kill Humbaba and return to the city of Uruk. They also kill the Bull of Heaven, but after that Enkidu falls ill and he curses everyone who civilized him, because he thinks that if they didn’t civilize him, he would be innocent and he wouldn’t die. Thus Enkidu acts in an antiheroic way. He cursed Shamhat,”May your man prefer younger and prettier girls. May he beat you as a housewife beats a rug.”(Book 7)That shows Enkidu is selfish and short-sighted when he suffers the pain. Finally, by talking with the god Shamash, he knows that because he is civilized he lives a better life and has real friendship with humans. In the end, he changes his mind and blesses everyone who civilized him including Shamhat. Enkidu said,”May you be adored by princes. May your lover tremble with excitement when you are a mile away.”(Book 7) That shows Enkidu transformed into a full human in the end. Thus, Enkidu fits the hero journey. Although during the hero journey he acts like an anti-hero in some ways, he transforms into a whole human in the end.

Gilgamesh is more complex than Enkidu, but he also acts like an anti-hero because he is arrogant.  He thinks that Humbaba is evil and wants to kill him, but actually Humbaba was created by the god, Enlil and was put in the cedar forest to protect the cedar forest.  Humbaba is not guilty and he is not as evil as Gilgamesh thinks, but Gilgamesh kills him just because he wants to be famous. He said to Enkidu,”I will kill Humbaba. I will be famous. People will know my name forever.”(Book 3)Gilgamesh refuses the love from the god, Ishtar, in a rude way. He said to Ishtar,”Which of your husband did you love forever? Which could satisfy your endless desire. Let me remind you of how they suffered. Let me remind you of how each one came to a bitter end.”(Book 6)That shows Gilgamesh is disrespect to the gods and arrogant. Because of his character and careless words, his people have to suffer the attack of the Bull of Heaven; because of his character and careless words, hundreds of soldiers die and people have to endure the disaster; because of his character and careless words, he loses his best friend, Enkidu. After Enkidu dies, Gilgamesh’s heart is filled with the fear of death. Because of his fear, he goes on a journey to find eternity, instead of staying in his city and protecting his people who have just suffered the disasters because of him. That shows his supreme selfishness.

            Gilgamesh was selfish for most of his life. However, by losing hope and face his own failure, he is transformed in the end. He was created by the god as the strongest man in the world. He faces the fear of death and goes on journey to find eternal life. He goes through a lot of thresholds such as, he runs through the tunnel of darkness, he sails across the vast ocean and survives after he crosses the water of death.  He finally meets Utnapishtim and he is tested by Utnapishtim, but he fails the test and he doesn’t get the eternal life. During the journey, he is advised by several mentors, such as Shiduri and Utnapishtim. Gilgamesh as a human who has a lot of gifts from the gods, he should embrace his life and his fate cannot be changed by himself. Utnapishtim tells him,” The gods have given you many gifts. They gave you a throne when you were born.”(Book 10)However, he still wants the eternal life and he still fears the death. He is not ready to accept the facts and the advice. He should enjoy his life and be responsible for his people instead of leaving and search for the honor and glory which can last forever; he should pay more attention to the things now, instead of what he is going to do in the future. After he returns to the city of Uruk. He shows Urshanabi the walls, temples, shops, gardens and palm trees in the city of Uruk. He said to Urshanabi,” This is the wall of Uruk. No other city on earth can equal Uruk. See how the wall shines like copper in the sun.”(Book 11)That shows his love of his city. It shows that he is starting to embrace his life. He transforms into a whole person at last, and that means he is a true hero in the end.

            In conclusion, Gilgamesh and Enkidu are true heroes in the end. The Epic of Gilgamesh shows us the life and the culture in Ancient Mesopotamia. It also tells us what a true hero is in Ancient Mesopotamia. First of all, a hero must fit the hero journey. Second, he can be imperfect. Third, he must have some rewards in the end. The reward is really important. It may not only be something in physically, but also something in mentally. As long as they transform into good ways at last, they are true heroes.