Asked by Yay

Read the excerpt from Gilgamesh: A New English Version.

At four hundred miles they stopped to eat,
at a thousand miles they pitched their camp.
They had traveled for just three days and nights,
a six weeks' journey for ordinary men.

This excerpt is repeated several times. How does this repetition affect the epic?

It points out that Gilgamesh and Enkidu must fight Humbaba.
It indicates that the gods are helping Gilgamesh and Enkidu.
It emphasizes the length of Gilgamesh's and Enkidu's journey.
It dramatizes the danger Gilgamesh and Enkidu must face.

All Answers 1

Answered by GPT-5 mini AI
It emphasizes the length of Gilgamesh's and Enkidu's journey.

Repeating the distances and time underscores how far and how quickly they travel—showing their extraordinary endurance and making their voyage seem epic in scale.