Our very thoughts of eternal life has projected back in the times before Christ. It’s a power that people want to posses, and there are a lot of great debates upon the topic of achieving immortality. One of the first literary works, the Epic of Gilgamesh, even regards the significance of immortality in where Gilgamesh fears death. With this, he seeks an everlasting life to deny his fate towards the inescapable oblivion. However, throughout McKibben’s article “Passing On,” Bill McKibben argues that immortality is something that ruins life’s purpose. McKibben’s concept of being mortal is to enjoy one’s life to the fullest before our time alive runs out. Perpetuity will ruin our will to fulfill life’s purpose to enjoy it and be happy.
Just recently,…show more content… During Enkidu’s and Gilgamesh’s journey to the Cedar Forest, Enkidu explicits about the possibilities of death. Gilgamesh then laughs as if Enkidu was joking and tells his friend that everyone dies eventually. However, after the departure of his dear friend Enkidu, Gilgamesh starts to fear his death. His will to be immortal is became much stronger and he goes on a long journey to find it. For this, Gilgamesh goes to Utnapishtim; the man who has escaped mortality. Utnapishtim tells him that immortality is useless, and Gilgamesh goes home learning that life isn’t about his fame, how long he’s lived, or his king position. He learns that life isn’t a time to worry about what happens after you die. Life is about treasuring the nature of our time alive. When you live, make new friends, and grow, you learn to use and love what you have right now.You also learn how to love and value the time with your friends and family. Gilgamesh’s newfound friendship with Enkidu and the battles he goes through seem to give awareness of how great life is. The purpose of life is to search for it and live through it to the end. With immortality, the appreciation of our time period alive becomes