Quote 4
"Come now, Harlot, I am going to decree your fate,
a fate that will never come to an end for eternity!
I will curse you with a Great Curse,
may my curses overwhelm you suddenly, in an instant!" (7.88-93)
Here Enkidu thinks that, if he hadn't been brought into the human world, he wouldn't have gone through the chain of events that led to him being struck down with disease by the gods. What do you think of Enkidu's line of reasoning here? How safe is life in the wilderness anyway? Is there any guarantee that he would have been better off there?
"Who, my friend, can ascend to the heavens
(Only) the gods can dwell forever with Shamash.
As for human beings, their days are numbered,
and whatever they keep trying to achieve is but wind!
Now you are afraid of death—
what has become of your bold strength?
I will go in front of you,
and your mouth can cry out: "Go on closer, do not be afraid!"
Should I fall, I will have established my fame.
(They will say:) "It was Gilgamesh who locked in battle with Humbaba the Terrible!" (2.228-237)
But Gilgamesh seems like too much of a meathead to take Enkidu's advice. In fact, by a sort of reverse-psychology, Enkidu talking about how fearsome Humbaba seems to make Gilgamesh even more eager to fight him, just to prove that he's not afraid. Do Gilgamesh's words here show true courage, or is there some fear underlying them?
Enkidu spoke to the harlot:
"Come, Shamhat, take me away with you
to the sacred Holy Temple, the residence of Anu and Ishtar,
the place of Gilgamesh, who is wise to perfection,
but who struts his power over the people like a wild bull.
I will challenge him …
Let me shout out in Uruk: 'I am the mighty one!'
Lead me in and I will change the order of things;
he whose strength is mightiest is the one born in the wilderness!" (1.196-204)
Gilgamesh and Enkidu sure seem to think the same way. The only problem is their shared interests—extreme pride and love of power—set them on a course to do battle with each other before they can become friends. Does this mean that Enkidu must swallow his pride after Gilgamesh beats him? Or is knowing that Gilgamesh is extremely powerful (as Enkidu shows he does, in these lines) just the thing that lets Enkidu make friends?