Line #3 YMMV/TheEpicOfGilgamesh


1	* AlternateAesopInterpretation: Even Kings can have glaring character flaws to be overcome. [[CaptainObviousAesop While this may seem obvious to a modern audience]], Mesopotamian Kings were considered to be favored by the gods (if not outright [[SemiDivine divinely-descended]]) and served as religious leaders, with the common perception (as expressed by various characters in the Epic) being that Kings must therefore be ''inherently'' wise and dignified. Gilgamesh's uncharacteristic childishness and irreverence thus serve as something of a cautionary tale, warning the common people to beware of bad Kings and reminding the ruling class to be humble and respect the Gods.
2	* DesignatedHero: Gilgamesh is a tyrant whose outrages against his people drive them to pray to the gods for aid. Later, he and Enkidu kill the guardian of the gods' sacred forest ''purely to get famous for it'', then anger the gods with their arrogant actions. The poem acknowledges this though, and the main theme is about Gilgamesh gaining humility and wisdom about human mortality and legacy, causing him to become a better king worthy of a great legacy after his death.
3	* EscapistCharacter: A demigod with superhuman strength and endurance, rises to kingship by his own effort, kills a giant monster, gets laid with every girl in his kingdom but snubs the goddess of sex... Gilgamesh is classic wish-fulfilment by modern standards. This may be an UnbuiltTrope since Gilgamesh is a tyrant whom no one likes, killing the monster brings about his best friend's death, and his greatest quest fails.
4	* FridgeBrilliance: Ishtar borrowing the Bull of Heaven to have her revenge on Gilgamesh without caring for the drought makes more sense when one remembers that, as a ''fertility'' goddess, she could negate the drought altogether.
5	* HeartwarmingInHindsight: As the world's oldest-surviving story, the Epic of Gilgamesh essentially allows Gilgamesh to survive in some form even all these millennia later through public awareness of the story. Meaning in fact, Gilgamesh technically achieved the immortality he sought for so long.
6	* HoYay:
7	** Enkidu seems to have been ''made'' to be the perfect partner for Gilgamesh.
8	--->'''Anu''': You made him, O Aruru; now create his equal; let it be as like him as his own reflection, his second self; stormy heart for stormy heart. Let them contend together and leave Uruk in quiet. [[superscript:(N. K. Sanders' translation)]]
9	** GirlOfMyDreams--before they even meet, Gilgamesh dreams of Enkidu. In the dream, he's drawn to Enkidu "as though to a woman." [[superscript:(N. K. Sanders' translation)]]
10	** Gilgamesh's mom comes off as a ShipperOnDeck for the two:
11	--->'''Ninsun''': This star of heaven which descended like a meteor from the sky; which you tried to lift, but found too heavy, when you tried to move it it would not budge, and so you brought it to my feet; I made it for you, a goad and spur, and you were drawn as though to a woman. This is the strong comrade, the one who brings help to his friend in his need. He is the strongest of wild creatures, the stuff of Anu; born in the grass-lands and the wild hills reared him; when you see him you will be glad; you will love him as a woman and he will never forsake you. This is the meaning of the dream. [[superscript:(N. K. Sanders' translation)]]
12	* LGBTFanbase: There are many who like the story for its very intense bromance and how it shows that same-sex couples are as old as writing.
13	* MemeticBadass: Gilgamesh himself is still viewed this way by some.
14	* MemeticMutation: A Japanese metal band named themselves after this story, which then resulted in [[http://i0.kym-cdn.com/photos/images/original/000/210/414/Girugamesh01.png one of their fans being immortalized on the internet]].
15	* MisaimedFandom: The Sumerians of the time actually considered a MortalityPhobia to be a sign of immaturity, thus this story is actually meant to be about what would have been considered a {{Manchild}} at the time who learns to grow up, and possibly also to show that even [[BigGood kings]] can have deep character flaws they need to overcome. Thus all this celebration of Gilgamesh as the first Epic Hero on a Heroic Quest is missing the point.
16	* {{Narm}}: "Enkidu you son of a fish"-- silliest line from a truly historic story ever!
17	* NightmareFuel:
18	** Perhaps the most memorable moment in the story -- what finally leads Gilgamesh to accept that Enkidu is dead -- is when he sees a worm ''crawling out of his nose''... [[PlayedForLaughs although one could easily imagine it being presented in a humorous manner.]]
19	** Gilgamesh decapitates the Bull of Heaven and throws one of its body parts at Ishtar.
20	* PopularityPolynomial: As one might expect from a story that spent much of its history simply ''lost''. In the 1800s, it was rediscovered and transcribed, but even then, it took a while to be completed and even longer to really catch on. By the 1940s, though, it started to officially push its way into the mainstream.
21	* SignatureScene: Enkidu's death.
22	* TearJerker: The death of Enkidu. Doubles as {{Mangst}}. Some translations feature this gutwrenching quote:
23	--> ''What is this sleep which holds you now?''\
24	''You are lost in the dark and cannot hear me.''
25	* ValuesDissonance:
26	** Despite all of his previous outrages, Gilgamesh is accepted back as king of Uruk at the end of the epic, with neither humans nor gods nursing resentment against him. Many 21st century readers would find this unbelievable.
27	** The tendency to paint Shamhat as a harlot and seductress. In that culture, as the priestess of the goddess of sex, having sex with suppliants was an important and respected part of her religious function. In the story, her sexual encounter with Enkidu humanizes him. Her week-long tryst with Enkidu isn't a fall, but the first event that ''raises'' him above the level of an animal.
28	** Despite Ishtar's less-than-flattering portrayal in this story, she was a very important and revered goddess and sex is part of the sacred duties of her priestesses.
29	** While Gilgamesh's habit of raping others is viewed as a bad thing, the folk of ancient Uruk apparently only consider this "immature" as opposed to [[MoralEventHorizon irredeemably]] [[RapeIsASpecialKindOfEvil monstrous]].
30	** A very important aspect of this story is the fact that the Sumerians of the time also considered a MortalityPhobia to be a sign of immaturity.
31	** In-universe example: Uruk has an ancient custom by which [[DroitDuSeigneur the king has the right to sleep with any newly married bride before the groom]], but judging by the reactions of the citizens, either this custom was already considered outdated by the time of writing, or else Gilgamesh is abusing it to excess.
32	* ValuesResonance:
33	** Some depictions of sexuality and gender roles are surprisingly progressive for what is one of the oldest stories of all time. The folk of Urruk seem entirely accepting of same-sex romantic relationships.
34	** ManlyTears was not seen the same way as it is now, as crying itself was already an ''inherently'' masculine thing to them.
35	** The fragmented portions of one version of the poem that discusses Humbaba have a very clear GreenAesop, thousands of years before the Romantic Era.
36	* {{Woolseyism}}:
37	** Since some portions of the story have been lost, some translations feature original material to fill the gaps which occasionally works quite well. Most notably, at least one changes Gilgamesh's motivation from wanting immortality for himself to wanting to bring Enkidu back to life.

Context YMMV / TheEpicOfGilgamesh