Quote
“Then if I fall, I leave behind me a name that endures; men will say of me, “Gilgamesh has fallen in fight with ferocious Humbaba.”
Context & Explanation
This quote comes from the section of the text titled “The Forest Journey.” Having befriended Enkidu, Gilgamesh is left wondering about where he should direct his unrivaled energy next. Enkidu is also longing for action, saying that the idleness of the city life oppresses him, and his mighty body loses its strength due to the want of a real challenge. Because of that, Gilgamesh decides to build a marvelous monument to the gods. This is the task worthy of a hero because, in order to acquire the previous cedar logs for the monument, the characters would have to travel to the faraway forest guarded by the dreaded giant Humbaba. Enkidu is not ecstatic about the prospect of meeting such a creature and relays to Gilgamesh what he had heard about Humbaba from his animal friends before becoming civilized. According to him, the giant is not only mighty but also has supernaturally keen senses, and no sane person would willingly risk an encounter with such a terrible foe. This is the point when Gilgamesh says the line quoted at the beginning of the paper.
The particular passage provided above means that Gilgamesh is willing to take risks and face dangers, even as dreadful as the ferocious giant from a faraway land, if it means living a lasting legacy. While he is not oblivious to the possibility of being killed in his intended fight against Humbaba, it does not undermine his decision to embark on the journey in the slightest. Death is certainly undesirable but ultimately inescapable because only gods can live forever. As far as Gilgamesh is concerned, the real question is not whether but how one dies, and dying without being remembered is the fate he would do anything to avoid. Whatever happens, the proud warrior-king of Uruk wants his name to live forever in the annals of history, and his travel to the cedar forest is not a goal in itself but a means to this end. This is what Gilgamesh means by explaining his choice to frightened Enkidu: trading one’s life for eternal glory and remembrance is a deal he would take any day over the prospect of living a long yet unremarkable life.
This quote summarizes the primary claim of “The Forest Journey” section because it essentially explains and encapsulates Gilgamesh’s motivation at this stage of the epic. The moving force of the plot that leads to the conflict with Humbaba is Gilgamesh’s determination to earn fame and glory. At this point in the epic, he is not yet at odds with the idea of death itself and accepts his mortality but is already determined to live a noteworthy and heroic life whatever the cost. This is the message that he delivers to Enkidu to raise his friend’s spirit and invoke the same feeling of heroic derring-do within him. There is no use running from death because it comes for every living creature with only gods being exempt, but a heroic deed or an equally heroic death may ensure that one’s memory, if not body, lives on. Hence, this single sentence summarizes Gilgamesh’s motivation and perspective on life at this particular stage of the plot while relating to the larger theme of mortality that runs through the entire epic.