Gilgamesh and what it means to be Human

Gilgamesh and what it means to be Human

Andrew George, one of the world’s leading Assyriologists and translators of The Epic of Gilgamesh, stated that the epic is fundamentally about human mortality, wisdom, and civilization. He emphasizes that Gilgamesh’s journey is not a failed search for literal immortality but a spiritual education, the realization that humans achieve immortality through culture, legacy, and memory. In George’s words, Gilgamesh “learns that life’s meaning lies not in eternal existence but in the civilization one helps to build.” George contrasts the hero’s early arrogance with his final humility as he points to the enduring walls of Uruk, a symbol of human achievement and continuity. Makes one wonder what we are building as a species today.

George Orwell summarized his position in one of his own recurring themes:

“The Epic of Gilgamesh is not a story of gods and monsters, but of a man who sought to understand what it means to be human.”

For Andrew George, the epic endures because it articulates universal truths about friendship, mortality, and the quest for meaning - in some of the world’s oldest and most beautiful poetry.

How do we compare the search for truth and meaning in both The Epic of Gilgamesh and Orwell's 1984?

In the Epic of Gilgamesh the hero’s journey is driven by a search for immortality and understanding, after losing his friend Enkidu, Gilgamesh seeks meaning in the face of death. He learns that mortality defines human life, and wisdom comes from accepting it.

In Orwell's 1984, the main character, Winston Smith struggles with his search for truth in a world built on lies. Orwell's Party manipulates history and language to erase objective reality. Winston’s rebellion, like Gilgamesh’s quest, is a search for meaning in an oppressive universe.

The parallel is that both protagonists struggle against forces that deny or distort human truth, death in the Epic of Gilgamesh, and totalitarian control in 1984. Both ultimately fail to overcome those forces, but gain a tragic kind of wisdom.

wisdom

I can’t stop getting old

nor can I stop becoming wiser

wisdom has taken control of my better judgement

arguing has become futile

intuition acts as wisdom’s impregnable shield

it is normal to question everything

defiance can no longer hide in the closet

yet it attracts much adversity

so too the evil hand of fraternity

wisdom, one finds, is never in vogue

it is always challenged by repetition

it finds a place in a place that no longer exists

wisdom is sustenance for the ages

not nourishment for the times

thank you,

joseph pede