"Engraved on a stone the whole story"

[stormy44]

The last sentence from the Epic of Gilgamesh says, "he went a long journey, was weary, worn out with labor, and returning engraved on a stone the whole story."
At this time, Sumerians passed down stories orally. The book says through oral tradition of storytelling, Gilgamesh developed over time into a figure of legendary proportions.

Why do you think Gilgamesh wanted his journey engraved on a stone?
And why do you think Sumerians developed this story all along?

[kevin]

I think he wanted to share the lesson or morale that he learned throughout his journey with others. he also wanted to be simply remembered among people about his EPIC so he became the legend heeh The sumerians passed this story down to commemorate about their king and their history/culture.

[ginayang]

I think Gilgamesh wanted his journey engraved on a stone because he wanted the people to know his greatness for generations to come. Also, since he was a king, he had to seem superior compared to some average person. And I think the Sumerians developed this story all along because they wanted to teach their citizens that Gilgamesh was a good king and to not be afraid of death. In the story, Gilgamesh tries to attain immortality but doesn't succeed. In reality, death is inevitable for humans.

[hannahs]

I think Gilgamesh wanted his journey engraved on a stone because like others said he wanted to be remembered for his greatness. Also, the engravings on the stone is another form of immortality that Gilgamesh was able to gain. He will never truly die because he will always be known by other people. I'm not sure why Sumerians developed this story but maybe it was just a fun story passed down in their society. I mean we have all these stories that are known from culture to culture but they don't all serve specific purposes except for to be an entertainment.

[sang]

My answer for the first question is same with the others; he wished to be revered for his mighty journey that he undertook. He is obviously very self proud, to the extent that he is arrogant. So it makes perfect sense. For the second question, I think the Sumerians distorted the epic into a heroic tale to promote ethnocentrism amongst the nation. By exaggeratig an epic, it makes the empire look more mighty and tough in a way. So, that could be a reason that they turned Gilgamesh into such a character.

[sujeonggg]

I think this shows how Gilgamesh finally admits the reality that he cannot obtain immortality; because he knows that he will not live forever to tell his weary journey to his descendants, he decides to leave it on stone so that they can learn what their ancestor did. And I think Gilgamesh is just one type of legendary/heroic epic that Sumerians created to pass from generation to generations.

[joon]

Gilgamesh probably wanted his name to be remembered. I think he also wanted his legendary tale to be remembered as well. It was pretty epic, walking through complete darkness and meeting weird creatures. By being remembered on a solid piece of stone, his name and his story will live on forever and he will gain immortality in some way. I think the Sumerians decided to developed this tale for the same reasons that other cultures have tales. By having an epic tale, they can pass down their culture from generation to generation and teach adults many moral lessons and cultural teachings.

[juliekim]

Even if he couldn't literally live forever, he could still remain immortal in history. The only way he could stay immortal throughout history would be through literature. The Sumerians knew the value of keeping records and how that was the only way to remember what happened in the past. I think Gilgamesh finally understood that the way to stay immortal was not through a special potion or secret but through literature, through stories. Sumerians wanted to keep this story because they knew it was part of their long-continued history. It's always interesting to hear about what your old ancestors did in the past.

[michellelee]

I think Gilgamesh wanted his journey to be engraved on a stone because he wanted it to be long remembered. Therefore, he thought writing on a stone would be a good idea so that people after him can read about his experience and it could be passed down. And I think Sumerians kept passing this story down in order to teach others about their history and culture.

[sageda]

I think heroes just want their stories to be told. They're gonna be told either way so why not have it engraved so it's accurate? That way nobody would alter it. Also by telling his story, he can exert his superiority over the people of the land as the guy who brought them life and whatnot.

[joannekim]

I think Gilgamesh engraved his story on a stone so that his citizens can see how great he is and what changes did he go through. Through his epic, the readers can see Gilgamesh's supernatural strengths and lessons he had that led him to be a better king. If the epic is written on the stone, then everyone can read it and know the king. Sumerians kept this story all along because King Gilgamesh is important part of their religion and culture. To truly immortalize and remember Gilgamesh, people developed his story.

[davidh]

I think Gilgamesh wanted his name to be engraved because her learn that life is meaningless without death and since he will eventually die, I would feel good if his name to be famous after he dies.
I guess serving god was like the greatest thing during that time and since gods have the power... Superpower, people wouldn't like to be come like the gods.

[anica]

I believe that Gilgamesh wanted his story engraved on a stone because he wanted to be able to portray his life lessons so that everyone could see.