Question

gilgamesh was the king of uruk, a powerful city - state in mesopotamia. though he was a great builder of ramparts, he was a harsh ruler. the gods heard the cries of the people and created enkidu, a man of the wild, to challenge the king. instead of remaining enemies, gilgamesh and enkidu became brothers in arms. they traveled to the forbidden cedar forest to face the giant humbaba. when they returned as heroes, their fame reached the heavens. however, when enkidu later died of a mysterious illness, gilgamesh was devastated. he set off on a dangerous journey to find the secret of immortality from a man named utnapishtim. in the end, gilgamesh returned to uruk without the secret to eternal life, but with the wisdom that his city and his deeds would be his true lasting legacy. section 3: comprehension questions 1. context clues: based on the text, what is a \city - state\? 2. character growth: how did gilgamesh change from the beginning of the story to the end?

Explanation:

Question 1

To determine the meaning of "city - state" from the text, we look at the context. The text says Gilgamesh was the King of Uruk, a powerful city - state in Mesopotamia. Uruk is described as a place with a king (Gilgamesh) and ramparts (which are defensive walls, suggesting a city - like settlement), and it functions as a state with its own ruler. So a city - state is a city (like Uruk) that has its own government (ruled by Gilgamesh) and functions as an independent state, likely with its own territory and people.

At the beginning of the story, Gilgamesh is a harsh ruler. As the story progresses, he forms a bond with Enkidu (becoming brothers in arms), goes on adventures (like facing Humbaba), and after Enkidu's death, he seeks immortality. By the end, he returns to Uruk without the secret of eternal life but with the wisdom that his city and deeds are his true legacy. So his change is from a harsh ruler to someone who values relationships (with Enkidu) and realizes that his city and actions are more important than immortality.

Answer:

A city - state is a city (such as Uruk) that has its own government (ruled by a king like Gilgamesh) and functions as an independent state, with its own territory, people, and governance (evidenced by Uruk being powerful and having Gilgamesh as its ruler who built ramparts and governed the people).

Question 2