The Epic of Gilgamesh Flashcards
(11 cards)
What happens in Tablet 1 of The Epic of Gilgamesh?
Plot: Gilgamesh is introduced as a powerful but tyrannical king of Uruk who oppresses his people. The gods create Enkidu, a wild man, to challenge Gilgamesh. Enkidu lives with animals until a temple prostitute civilizes him and brings him to the city.
Topics: Power, civilization vs. nature, friendship, leadership
Literary Elements: Characterization (Gilgamesh as tyrant), contrast (wild Enkidu vs. civilized world), symbolism (Enkidu’s transformation)
What happens in Tablet 2 of The Epic of Gilgamesh?
Plot: Gilgamesh dreams of Enkidu’s arrival. Enkidu and Gilgamesh meet and fight fiercely, but neither can defeat the other. They become best friends and decide to seek glory by killing the monster Humbaba in the Cedar Forest.
Topics: Friendship, ambition, heroism, violence
Literary Elements: Symbolism (the wrestling match), foreshadowing (dreams), characterization (both men’s transformation)
What happens in Tablet 3 of The Epic of Gilgamesh?
Plot: Gilgamesh and Enkidu prepare for their journey to the Cedar Forest. The elders of Uruk warn them of Humbaba’s power. Gilgamesh’s mother, Ninsun, prays to the sun god Shamash for protection and adopts Enkidu as her son.
Topics: Family, preparation, divine intervention, wisdom vs. youth
Literary Elements: Characterization (elders’ wisdom), symbolism (adoption ritual), foreshadowing (warnings about Humbaba)
What happens in Tablet 4 of The Epic of Gilgamesh?
Plot: Gilgamesh and Enkidu journey toward the Cedar Forest, stopping to make offerings and have prophetic dreams. Each dream is interpreted by Enkidu as favorable, though they seem ominous. They continue despite growing fear.
Topics: Journey, fear, divine signs, friendship
Literary Elements: Symbolism (dreams), foreshadowing (ominous imagery), characterization (mutual support)
What happens in Tablet 5 of The Epic of Gilgamesh?
Plot: Gilgamesh and Enkidu reach the Cedar Forest and encounter Humbaba. With help from Shamash (who sends winds), they defeat and kill the monster despite his pleas for mercy. They cut down sacred cedar trees.
Topics: Heroism, mercy, divine intervention, nature
Literary Elements: Conflict (man vs. monster), symbolism (cedar trees), irony (mercy rejected)
What happens in Tablet 6 of The Epic of Gilgamesh?
Plot: Ishtar, goddess of love, propositions Gilgamesh, but he rejects her by listing her past lovers whom she destroyed. Furious, Ishtar sends the Bull of Heaven to destroy Uruk. Gilgamesh and Enkidu kill the bull, and Enkidu insults Ishtar.
Topics: Love, rejection, divine power, consequences
Literary Elements: Characterization (Ishtar’s vindictiveness), symbolism (Bull of Heaven), dramatic irony (audience knows consequences)
What happens in Tablet 7 of The Epic of Gilgamesh?
Plot: The gods decide that either Gilgamesh or Enkidu must die for killing Humbaba and the Bull of Heaven. Enkidu falls ill and, knowing he will die, curses the temple prostitute and trapper who civilized him, then blesses them after Shamash intervenes.
Topics: Death, justice, civilization, regret
Literary Elements: Foreshadowing (divine decree), characterization (Enkidu’s changing emotions), symbolism (illness as divine punishment)
What happens in Tablet 8 of The Epic of Gilgamesh?
Plot: Enkidu dies, and Gilgamesh mourns intensely for his friend. He refuses to bury Enkidu until a worm falls from the corpse, forcing him to accept the reality of death. Gilgamesh vows to honor Enkidu and begins to fear his own mortality.
Topics: Death, grief, friendship, mortality
Literary Elements: Symbolism (the worm), characterization (Gilgamesh’s transformation from hero to mourner), imagery (decay)
What happens in Tablet 9 of The Epic of Gilgamesh?
Plot: Terrified of death, Gilgamesh begins a quest to find Utnapishtim (the flood survivor) who achieved immortality. He travels through darkness and reaches the garden of the gods, where he meets Siduri, a divine barmaid who advises him to enjoy life rather than seek immortality.
Topics: Mortality, journey, wisdom, pleasure
Literary Elements: Symbolism (journey through darkness), characterization (Siduri as wise counselor), setting (divine garden)
What happens in Tablet 10 of The Epic of Gilgamesh?
Plot: Siduri directs Gilgamesh to Urshanabi the ferryman, who takes him across the waters of death to reach Utnapishtim. Utnapishtim tells Gilgamesh the story of the great flood and explains that immortality was granted only to him as a unique exception.
Topics: Mortality, divine favor, uniqueness, stories
Literary Elements: Structure (story within story), symbolism (waters of death), characterization (Utnapishtim as wise survivor)
What happens in Tablet 11 of The Epic of Gilgamesh?
Plot: Utnapishtim challenges Gilgamesh to stay awake for seven days to prove he deserves immortality, but Gilgamesh falls asleep immediately. As a parting gift, Utnapishtim tells him about a plant that restores youth. Gilgamesh retrieves it but loses it to a serpent while bathing. He returns to Uruk, accepting his mortality.
Topics: Mortality, failure, acceptance, leadership
Literary Elements: Symbolism (the plant, the serpent), irony (losing immortality while bathing), circular structure (return to Uruk)
