Summary

Tablet 1

Gilgamesh is the son of a goddess and a mortal king, Ninsun and Lugalbanda. For this reason, Gilgamesh is a strong man. Gilgamesh is the king of Uruk, a country which he created. Gilgamesh likes to show off and is often challenging the men of Uruk, embarrassing them and making it difficult for the women of Gilgamesh to find suitable husbands. The people of Uruk pray to the gods to make another man who could challenge Gilgamesh. The gods create a man named Enkidu. He is placed in the forest where he annoys a trapper by taking the animals from his traps. The trapper asks his father for advice. In turn, the father sends him to Gilgamesh. Gilgamesh recommends taking a woman, Shamhat, to the wild man and have them engage in intercourse. The trapper does this. After a marathon sexual encounter...