Immaturity in The Epic of Gilgamesh: A Critique of the Protagonist Anonymous College

The most dreaded lesson in the eyes of a child is the concept of “no.” While most children eventually realize that not everything in the world is available for their taking, the select few who neglect to recognize their limitations inevitably grow up to be self-indulgent, immature adults and burdens to those around them. In the case of The Epic of Gilgamesh, the spoiled child is the King of Uruk, Gilgamesh, and it is his subjects who must bear the burden and suffer painfully under their king’s tyranny. While Gilgamesh is a glorified and accomplished figure in Uruk, his achievements are undeserved, and his defining feature is not his physical might but instead his egregious ignorance. This is perhaps most evident in the king’s perilous quest to defeat Humbaba. Contrary to the text’s implication, Gilgamesh’s invasion of the Forest of Cedar is not a powerful display of ambition or a right of passage that illustrates his maturation; despite the king’s apparent reformation, Gilgamesh remains an arrogant and entitled leader whose successes are merely a result of his privileged birth and upbringing replete with praise and devoid of constraints.

The Epic of Gilgamesh portrays the king as a mighty and heroic leader, and while it...