Enkidu in The Epic of Gilgamesh Essay

In the Epic of Gilgamesh, Enkidu was sent down from the gods to change Gilgamesh. He was sent to teach him to be a better person and change Gilgameshs view on things. Enkidu fulfilled his original purpose because he made Gilgamesh learn to help others, learn how it feels to have a friend and loose one, and he makes him realize how much his people suffer for him.

Gilgamesh learns to help others in life instead of having everyone follow after him. For example, when Gilgamesh and Enkidu decided they want to kill Humbaba, Enkidu gets really scared, so Gilgamesh said that Enkidu can walk behind him and he would protect him. Enkidu changes him because he makes him be able to be willing to protect Gilgamesh. Gilgamesh would have never done that before Enkidu became friends with him. Also, he made him be able to step forward and be able to have the courage and be a leader. Gilgamesh has changed because he took the courage to lead the way when his friend was not so comfortable. He did something hed never done before and that changed him greatly.

Gilgamesh didnt just learn how to help others, but he learned how it feels to have a good friend and loose him. Enkidu and Gilgamesh were very close, but then Enkidu died, and Gilgamesh has the experience of loosing someone, and got to know how depressing it really is, especially since Enkidu was his only friend. Since Enkidu died, Gilgamesh really felt pain, instead of just loneliness. Before Enkidu came, Gilgamesh never really knew the real feeling of happiness and the comfort of having a real,

supportive friend, but he also didnt know how much pain it is to loose a loved one. He got the real experience of joy and devastation instead of just seeing it behind the protection of his castle walls.

Lastly, Gilgamesh learned how much his people worked and had to suffer because of him. At the end of the book, he looks at the wall his people have built for him and sees how much effort is really put into everything that seemed so small and easy to him before. The elders also supported him, gave him good advice and moral support. Gilgamesh never thought about how hard his people had it, and he would have continued to think that they had it easier than they really did. He would have never figured it out unless he had the experience, which he did thanks to Enkidu.

In the end, Enkidu really changed Gilgameshs perspective on the world and they way things are when youre not being waited on all the time. Enkidu made Gilgamesh realize that he had to help others out and cant just be helped. He made him know what it was like to have a loving friend, and the devastation of loosing one. Lastly, he made him realize how hard his people worked for him and how much effort was put into his demands. Gilgamesh became a better person in the end. Enkidu fulfilled his original purpose and was extremely successful.