Paper Example

The Gilgamesh was an ancient Mesopotamian epic, which gave the reader an idea of the political

structures of the first Western Civilizations. The Mesopotamian political system was a primitive form of democracy,

where politics and religion intermingled.

The epic described Gilgamesh as "king of Uruk", but also called him a "god and man" (Gilgamesh 15). This

indicated that Mesopotamians viewed their kings as very outstanding human beings closely related to the

omnipresent gods. The fact that a king was the ruler in Mesopotamian society suggested that it was a

monarchy; however, the king was not all powerful. Before leaving to kill Humbaba, Gilgamesh consulted the

council of elders, seeking their advice: "Thus Gilgamesh and Enkidu went Together to the marketplace To

notify the Elders of Uruk Who were meeting in their senate" (30). Gilgamesh addressed the elders, trying to

convince them of the necessity of killing Humbaba: "I want to prove Him not the awesome thing we think he is

[. . .] I will defeat him In his cedar forest" (30). The elders approved of Gilgamesh's planned expedition: "The

old men leaned a little forward Remembering old wars. A flush burned on Their cheeks" (30). Obviously

Gilgamesh was not supposed to take action without the approval of the elders. This indicated that the

Mesopotamian society was a "primitive democracy" (Perry et al. 15). However, political decisions not only

depended on the consent of the elders, but it was also necessary to ask the gods for advice. In Gilgamesh's

case, he asked his mother, Ninsun, a minor goddess of wisdom, to give him advise on the forthcoming

expedition to kill Humbaba (Gilgamesh 31).

The Gilgamesh was a good description of Mesopotamian society and its political structures. Although the

book's main content concentrated on entirely different matters, it showed that religion and politics were

closely related and that Mesopotamian society was a primitive democracy.

Works Cited

Gilgamesh . Trans. Herbert Mason. Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 1972.

Perry, Marvin, et al. Western Civilization: Ideas, Politics & Society. Volume 1: To 1789. 6^th ed. Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 1999.