The Epic of Gilgamesh: Fear of the Known and the Unknown

Fear is a feeling of anxiety. It expresses concern and sadness at the possibility of something dangerous happening. Gilgamesh is a folk hero that everyone who has a fear or encouragement will embrace and appreciate. That’s the epic of Gilgamesh and his fear of the known and the unknown.

In the epic, characters are tested by this feeling in three main events:

1. When The Trapper Saw Enkidu

The first begins with a trapper spotting Enkidu who is created by the gods as a contrast to Gilgamesh. The trapper doesn’t know who the person he sees in his field, so he can’t even get close to him and find out who this strange person is. Here, an emphasis is placed on anxiety towards “the unknown thing or person”. 

2. Brothers Try to Defeat Humbaba

The opposite of this situation demonstrates by the internal judgment of the two brothers who try to catch the forest monster Humbaba. Gilgamesh is impatient and eager to kill creatures he had never known or seen before, as he emerges as the symbolization of courage. On the other hand, his brother Enkidu is afraid because he has seen the violence of the beast before. Gilgamesh’s courage and desire to kill the creature are associated with his unawareness about the creature.

Gilgamesh and Enkidu try to defeat Humbaba

3. The Death of Enkidu, The Pain of Gilgamesh

In the third incident, Gilgamesh watches his death next to his dying brother Enkidu. After mourning for days, he throws himself into the deserts and can’t recover for a long time. Finally no matter how strong, brave and fearless he may be, he becomes aware that one day he will die as he carries human blood. This consciousness creates great fear in him and he goes into various troubles to find immortality. But like his brother once said: “Even the strongest of men, foolishly, can’t escape from being a slave for destiny.” Gilgamesh shares a similar fate, too. Because his destiny provided him to be a human, not immortal.

Gilgamesh cries for his dead brother, Enkidu

Analysis of  Gilgamesh: Beyond the Death and the Life

The fear of the known and the unknown appears in every context and allows us to compare. Although the fear arises where there is uncertainty, it also shows its most severe form when something is known. This is the motivation in Gilgamesh’s quest for immortality. 

While the fear of death motivates him, the uncertainty about whether he can find immortality motivates him logically to research and learn.

However, the concepts of death and birth are a general law that applies to entire nature. It is the common destiny of every human being. As Utnapishtim who was rewarded with immortality by the gods, said there is no continuity in human life like many other things.

There is an end. Death confronts Gilgamesh too as in every human being, and visits many people he knew or did not know, but Gilgamesh did not fear death unless he faced death and knew what it was like.

The symbolic elements and plot used in the epic encourage us to feel awareness through the main character; it also makes us think about didactic advice over the fear, and behaviors that we are aware of our existence and that we will perish. Although the society of that period encourages discover the uncertainty, there is also an awareness of the fact that death is to be experienced. Death is somewhere between the unknown and the known and it will happen certainly. Even the Great Gilgamesh experienced that destiny.

Sumerians: First Step for the Civilization

This epic was created by Sumerians and the Sumerian civilization, as an initiator of writing for the first time in history, illuminated many societies. This means that the emphasis on fear and courage is not accidental. The main concepts are knowing and not knowing, death and life, fear and encouragement. These concepts give us an idea about the wisdom and entrepreneurship of this society.

Famous ziggurats of Sumerians

As a result, the epic of Gilgamesh and his fear of the known and the unknown have existed as the motivation to “overcome the fear” of a whole civilization.

REFERENCES

Anon. The epic of Gilgamesh: Mortality and Meaning. https://www.litcharts.com/lit/the-epic-of-gilgamesh/themes/mortality-and-meaning

Spar, I. (2009) Gilgamesh. https://www.metmuseum.org/toah/hd/gilg/hd_gilg.html