Cedar Rapids

ready to defeat the Guardian of the Cedar Forest to better his name, but gets scared along the way. For example, every night of their journey, Gilgamesh has a bad dream and Enkidu must encourage him that the dream actually symbolizes that something good about to happen. Enkidu starts every conversation of encouragement with “Don’t worry, my friend”(Gilgamesh, 108). Another instance where Gilgamesh’s cowardice is exposed is when Gilgamesh and Enkidu reach the Cedar Forest. “He was trembling.…

I will never forget the day that my parents told me we were moving to Colorado. I had a wide range of emotions towards this, I was both nervous and excited. I can explain it best as the moment before the fall on a roller coaster, the butterflies building up in your stomach as the bottom of the hill is not insight but the ride down is sure to be amazing. Much like roller coasters new experiences have no true end in sight but the journey along the way with all the twists and turns are sure to…

Without the creation of Enkidu and the journey to the cedar forest Gilgamesh would have never realized his own mortality. Gilgamesh travels to find the old man Utanapishtim the only human being to be granted immortality by the gods. Gilgamesh finds the old man and asked how he became immortal. Utanapishtim tells him about the great flood and the ark he built. Similar to how Gilgamesh and Enkidu journeyed to the cedar forest to construct a cedar door, Utanapishtim also constructed a great arc…

Gilgamesh a hero? According to Joseph Campbell, “[a hero] must put aside his pride, his virtue, beauty and life and bow or submit to the absolutely intolerable,” as said in his classic book, The Hero With a Thousand Faces. As explained by Campbell, a hero usually begins with an adventure due to someone or something that has been taken from them, or feels that there is something missing in their normal life. Then that person takes off and goes on a journey full of adventures that are beyond the…

a wild man who was tamed by a prostitute, to act as a sort of mentor to Gilgamesh. Gilgamesh and Enkidu become close friends and set out on an adventure together. The first part of the adventure involved Gilgamesh and Enkidu stealing trees from a cedar forest that mortals were forbidden to enter. A demon named Humbaba, a slave to the god of earth, wind, and air, Enlil, guarded this forest. Gilgamesh and Enkidu defeated Humbaba with the help of the…

A Lasting Impression The gates opened as I passed through, allowing me to obtain my first glance at a new world. An endless array of attractions stood before me; roller coasters, log rides, colorful buildings, and more rolled across the horizon in a bright sea of color. The amount of opportunities for fun could last a kid for weeks. As I walked along the paths, I began to take note of the rides around me. “Oh, look at that one!” I exclaimed as I passed a space-ship looking coaster. I continued…

“The Epic of Gilgamesh” is an epic poem written by Morris Jastrow, Jr. that is centered around the character Gilgamesh and his many endeavors. He is best described as a great leader who is powerful, strong, and determined. Although there is something very different about Gilgamesh that we see in no other character throughout our readings, he is two-thirds god and one third man. Gilgamesh is on the edge of being a god, but his lineage causes him to be part human. Therefore, by being human, he is…

Friendship. It’s only a mere word, but it is a complex relationship that continues to develop and grow overtime. Enkidu and Gilgamesh, are two people who you could never picture to be friends, however, their friendship is a very dynamic one. Enkidu becomes Gilgamesh’s compliment; a person to balance him out, and in a way is a realization to Gilgamesh that he is not the only person with extreme power. In the Epic of Gilgamesh, we see Gilgamesh as a person of arrogance, lacking morality…

the community should listen to its people. When Gilgamesh decides to fight with Humbaba, Enkidu and elders of the community all disagree to Gilgamesh’s blunt decision and advise Gilgamesh to not go to the Forest of Cedar. Enkidu says to the elders “Tell him not to go to the Forest of Cedar! --- If you penetrate his forest you are sized by the tremors”. 6 After the strong discouragement from the community elders, Gilgamesh still keeps his decision and defeats Humbaba with Enkidu. The death of…

to the gods. Later on in the story Enkidu and Gilgamesh return to their city after killing, Humbaba, the guardian of the Cedar Forest. When they return, Ishtar pleads for Gilgamesh to be her husband but Gilgamesh refuses. Enkidu then has a dream that states, “[b]ecause they they slew the Bull of Heaven, and slew Humbaba that [guarded] the mountains dense – [wooded] with cedar, … between these two [let one of them die] (Gilgamesh 55). The gods were displeased with Enkidu and Gilgamesh for killing…