T. S. Eliot once said: “We shall not cease from exploration, and the end of all our exploring will be to arrive where we started and know the place for the first time.” And indeed, throughout the history of mankind we can find many brave individuals who travel the world in search of undiscovered and unexplored places.
The theme of traveling and exploration is reflected almost in every part of the Epic of Gilgamesh. In this work, Gilgamesh and his friend Enkidu go on various journeys: Enkidu’s journey to Uruk from the wilderness, Gilgamesh and Enkidu’s journey to Cedar Forest to kill the great Humbaba, and finally Gilgamesh’s journey to find the immortal Utanapishtim in the Faraway. In his travels, Gilgamesh “[roams] long roads through the wilderness” (Damrosch, p. 85), “crosses through mountains, for twelve leagues it is darkness throughout” (Damrosch, p. 85), sails the Waters of Death using a boat which he builds from 120 trees.
Even with the lapse of time, we still realize that this notion of traveling and exploration remains intrinsic and essential to our modern values. William J. Broad in his article “China Explores a Frontier 2 Miles Deep” describes how “Chinese scientists plunged to the bottom of the South China Sea in a tiny submarine … exploring remote and inaccessible parts of the ocean floor.” This achievement allows going deeper than any other technology in the world despite the darkness and pressure.
These two examples illustrate the constant humans’ desire for exploring places. However, Gilgamesh and the Chinese scientists don’t travel just for the sake of traveling; their journeys have particular purposes, they are meant for someone’s benefit. Gilgamesh, who is oppressed and fears death, overcomes the obstacles on his way to Utanapishtim in order to find the secret of immortality. On the other hand, the Chinese scientists travel to the bottom of the ocean floor mainly because it is “rich in oil, minerals and other resources.” So, it’s obvious that in both cases a favorable outcome of the journey will place the explorer above the rest of world.
William J. Broad “China Explores a Frontier 2 Miles Deep”
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/09/12/science/12deepsea.html?src=twr
Your citation of T.S. Eliot is beautifully appropriate to your point about Gilgamesh as an explorer. And your comparison to the Chinese scientists exploring the South China Sea is valid. However, I see one significant difference. You say “He undertakes all these obstacles just to reach farther than any other human before him.” But there is a human before him who has gone that far, Utnapishtim. And Gilgamesh is not simply seeking knowledge for its own sake: there is a very specific purpose to his journey.
Thank You, Professor Allen, for your comment. Indeed, there is a human who has gone that far before Gilgamesh. In this case, I should discuss (as you suggested) the purposes of the journeys they make, because Gilgamesh and the Chinese scientists don’t travel just for the sake of traveling itself. Their journeys have particular purposes, they are meant for someone’s benefit.