Wild Assisting Domestic and Vice Versa

Going way back to the beginning of the semester, I’m finally posting about a topic I wanted to explore in Gilgamesh.  In the epic, Enkidu dwells with gazelles—entirely wild, just as the animals he associates with.  Meanwhile, Gilgamesh is compared to a wild ox and, although the ox is “wild,” oxen are frequently domestic creatures.  When a friendship is engendered between Enkidu and Gilgamesh, the codependence of wilderness and domesticity becomes clear as the two men assist one another.  Gilgamesh’s victory over Enkidu tames the wild man in a way, but this fight does not domesticate Enkidu entirely.  He is able to better fit into everyday Mesopotamian society, but he still has close ties to wilderness which assist Gilgamesh.  The two very different characteristics demonstrated by these men ultimately complement one another and they are able to temper the other’s actions.  This interdependence of wild and domestic is particularly shown during the struggle with Huwawa.  After Huwawa has been defeated, the Enlil-appointed monster attempts to appeal to both Gilgamesh and Enkidu.  Huwawa manages to appeal to Gilgamesh and gain the king’s pity, but when he attempts to appeal to Enkidu, the wild man is not moved.  Perhaps Enkidu was wary of Huwawa’s sudden realignment of his loyalty when the monster attempted to appeal to Gilgamesh, as Enkidu continued to tell Gilgamesh to end the monster.  Because Enkidu is more in touch with nature, he may have been able to pick up on Huwawa’s potential deceit, which therefore saves Gilgamesh, but dooms Enkidu with a curse.