The Epic of Gilgamesh – Ego & mortality

Welcome to my 2026 book challenge. 52 Books in a Year… and believe it or not I started on the first week of this year. I am playing catch-up, I decided that I want to post a blog with each book on my impulsive thoughts and what it meant to me, and what I saw with my reading. When this was written I was on week 12, but hey ho, life is life. So here is week 1.

Where better to start than the evidence that a love for fantasy has existed in us humans for as long as we can look back? The first ever documented Fantasy story IMO. The Epic of Gilgamesh.

When I first picked up this book, I expected The Epic of Gilgamesh to feel ancient. With modern translations and modern prints, there is a disconnect with its originality. It wasn’t like I was holding some form of ancient parchment or scroll, or the tablets where they were first scribed. I was holding onto most likely a KDP print on demand, Or a dust collecting stock that resides in an amazon warehouse. The trick was to lock myself away and really get into the mindset of that this story came to life 2100-1800 BCE. That this is not just fantasy fiction, this is history. Something distant. Academic. Something to admire rather than just simply enjoy.

What I found, was that it felt uncomfortably modern.

This is not just one of the oldest stories ever written—it is the first recorded creative exploration of a problem we still haven’t solved:

How do you live, knowing you are going to die?

The Epic of Gilgamesh is often considered the foundation of all narrative storytelling. But it wasn’t even found until 1849-1853 and wasn’t deciphered until 1872. An interesting point to note, which means the modernity feeling you get when reading the book, means that we may have evolved with tech and other elements of life, but ego… that ego is still very much here. I debate with people often that ego existed as much in the past as it does now, this to me is evidence of this.

So the story…

There was a king, an enemy turned friend, then the experience of losing that friend, someone perceived immortal, then the looming fear of death sends Gilgamesh on an epic adventure to find eternal life. At its core, it follows Gilgamesh—two-thirds divine, one-third human—who begins as a tyrant and becomes something far more interesting: a man confronted by his own limits.

Pretty cool image of the original tablets. I mean I am impressed by translators such as George Smith to pull it off.

Let’s delve into the thematic core

1. Mortality Is the Beginning of Meaning

What I liked most about Gilgamesh is that he does not become a legend through victory, but through loss. Now, of course, it starts off with him being this great hero, capable of incredible feats. But through loss, he becomes a legend. When Enkidu (His enemy turned friend) dies, the story shifts. What begins as myth becomes an existential crisis. The strongest man in the world realises something no strength can overcome:

He will die. Time gets us all.

Everything that follows—the journey, the trials, the desperation—is not about adventure. It is about denial. A very human trait. And eventually, it comes to a simple understanding of acceptance. Which is where it is poetic. One note here I want to raise… he accepted defeat and on his return journey from the end of the world he hears of another way to gain eternal life and decides to ignore all the wisdom he received from Utnapishtim (Defo like Noah, who granted immortality for surviving a great flood). He goes after it and actually gets it but its stolen from him and once again, left with mortality, but this for me lost part of his honour as his selfish desire overruled the true meaning of life, which is mortality in the first place.

2. Friendship as Transformation

Before Enkidu, Gilgamesh had unchecked power. After Enkidu, he is human. This might be one of the earliest examples of a narrative truth we still rely on: The right companion doesn’t support you—they change you. Enkidu is not just a friend. He is a mirror. A counterweight. A necessary force that turns a ruler into a man worth remembering. Let’s not forget how the beef from Giglamesh and Ekidu started before they were friends. I will let you read and decide your opinion on this yourself, but there are some questionable methods, through sexual objectification and class system optics that seem quite controversial.

3. The Futility of Immortality

Gilgamesh’s quest is simple: Do not die.

What he learns is equally simple: You cannot win that fight.

But the story does not end in despair. It reframes the question.

Not: How do I live forever?

But: What do I leave behind?

Love this piece of art. It is Gilgamesh casually inventing free diving.

A Line That Stayed With Me

“When the gods created mankind, death they dispensed to mankind, life they kept for themselves.”

There is no comfort in this line. That is why it works.

It simply draws the boundary. We are not Gods, we are human. The quicker we accept that, appreciate that, the more value in life we will find. A profound experience I had whilst reading this book.

Where do people keep finding these, I want one. Incredible to never know who made this but know it was inspired off storytelling.

Legacy & Influence

As mentioned before it wasn’t even translated until the 19th century, so I have broken down where I think the legacy and influence could apply below…

Its influence works in two key ways:

1. It Established the Earliest Narrative DNA

Gilgamesh is not the “first fantasy story” in genre terms—but it is one of the earliest surviving examples of structured heroic narrative.

You can see the foundations of:

• The tyrant-king turned reflective ruler

• The transformative companion (Enkidu)

• The journey beyond civilisation into the unknown

• The failed quest for immortality

• The return with knowledge instead of victory

These elements later reappear in:

• Greek epic (The Iliad, The Odyssey)

• Roman epic (The Aeneid)

• Norse myth cycles

• Anglo-Saxon works like Beowulf

Not because those writers read Gilgamesh, but because they inherited similar mythic structures from the ancient world.

This is parallel evolution, not direct copying.

2. It Contains the Earliest Recorded Versions of Core Mythic Motifs

Several narrative elements in Gilgamesh echo across later traditions:

• The Flood Narrative

• Utnapishtim’s story closely parallels later accounts in:

  • The Hebrew Bible (Noah)

  • Greek myth (Deucalion)

• The Wild Man Civilised

• Enkidu’s transition from nature to culture appears in later archetypes:

  • Medieval “green man” figures

  • Characters caught between civilisation and wilderness

• The Quest for Eternal Life

• A recurring mythic pattern seen in:

  • Alchemical traditions

  • Arthurian legend (Grail as spiritual immortality)

  • Modern fantasy’s obsession with immortality (rings, elixirs, gods)

I could delve into each segment of this, but will take me 100,000 words and have 52 books to get through. But happy to discuss this further if you wish in the comments.

3. Its Modern Influence Is Indirect—but Real

Gilgamesh began influencing modern writers, scholars, and myth theorists, thereby shaping contemporary storytelling.

• Scholars like Joseph Campbell helped frame universal story structures (Hero’s Journey), where Gilgamesh is often cited as an early example.

• Writers and creators began consciously engaging with ancient myth as a foundation for fantasy worlds.

You can feel its thematic DNA—not as a direct source, but as a shared origin point—in:

• The Lord of the Rings – mortality vs immortality, legacy, fading civilisations

• Game of Thrones – power without moral restraint leading to ruin

• The Northman – mythic masculinity, fate, and vengeance

• Gladiator – what it means to be remembered after death, Shadows and dust.

4. What I think Gilgamesh Actually Gave Us

To be completely honest, there is a case for all of the above to be true, but what I am getting from this is that humans inherit that fear of impending doom naturally, through loss and grief of loved ones. Then reflection on ones self. I think The Epic of Gilgamesh is someone taking that feeling/philosophy and bundling it into an epic and creative story to hopefully influence others to learn and handle that experience that we all feel. Tolkien probably had the same experience, I couldn’t really say “oh, he read Gilgamesh and that’s why he touched on mortality and fading civilisations…”.seems inappropriate and unfair on our souls as humans to do so.

What It Does Better Than Modern Fantasy?

Hmmmm… not sure there is much. As I feel Modern Fantasy has come a long way in recent years. Perhaps it is more direct and honest and avoids the unveiling of truth, and comes right out and POW, in your face, your’e on an adventure to find immortality.

That clarity is rare.

Final Verdict

★★★★☆ (4/5)

This is purely because of the history. I actually disagree with some elements of the book and it is not an easy read, and at times fragmented—but undeniably powerful.

If you want to understand fantasy—not just as entertainment, but as a reflection of what it means to be human—

This is where you start.

Next Up: The Iliad – Rage, Honour, and the Cost of Glory