Standards Correlations

R.1, R.2, R.3, R.4, R.7, W.1, SL.1, SL.2, L.4, L.6

Learning Objective

Students will make inferences about events and characters in a play.

Key Skills

inference, text features, vocabulary, theme, character, critical thinking, argument writing

Complexity Factors

Levels of Meaning: On its surface, the play tells the story of one man’s quest for immortality. On a deeper level, the text raises questions about how we measure the value of a life.  

 

Structure: The play is chronological and has a prologue and seven scenes.  

 

Language: The language is mainly conversational but includes some archaic constructions. 

 

Knowledge Demands: No prior knowledge is needed.

Levels

Guided Reading Level: S 

DRA Level: 40

SEL Connection

This story and lesson plan promote self-awareness and social awareness. 

Lesson Plan: The Doomed Quest

Essential Questions:

  • Should humans live forever? 
  • What responsibilities do leaders have? 

Literature Connections:

  • Novel: City of the Plague God: The Adventures of Sik Aziz, Book 1 by Sarwat Chadda
  • Novel: Tuck Everlasting by Natalie Babbitt

1. Preparing to Read 

Do Now: Discuss Immortality (10 minutes)

Let students know that to be immortal is to live forever. Ask them whether they would want to be immortal. Discuss possible pros and cons of immortality.

Preview Text Features (10 minutes)

Have students open their magazines to page 14. Guide them to preview the text features by asking the following questions:

  • Read the play’s title and subtitle. Make a prediction: Based on these text features, do you think the king in the play finds a way to live forever? Why or why not? Sample answer: No, I don’t think the king succeeds. The play’s title calls the quest “doomed,” and the subtitle says the quest might kill the king. 
  • Read the image caption “The World of Gilgamesh.” What does it tell you about the play? The caption tells you that the play is based on a story that was written 4,000 years ago; that it is set in what is now Iraq; and that the main character, King Gilgamesh, is probably based on a real king. 

Preview Vocabulary (10 minutes)

  • Point out the vocabulary box. Read the terms (elders, overcome, immortal, propel, abandoned, vulnerable) aloud and discuss their definitions.
  • Play the Vocabulary Slideshow

Make a Plan for Reading

Before students start to read, walk them through a reading plan:

  • Before students read the play, set a purpose for reading by telling them that they will make inferences about “The Doomed Quest.” Explain that making an inference means using clues from the text to figure out something that isn’t directly stated. (You may also consider showing our “Skills in Action: What Is an Inference?” video.)

 2. Reading and Unpacking the Text

  • Assign parts to students and read the play aloud as a class. Stop after each scene and ask students to summarize what happened.
  • After reading, discuss the following close-reading and critical-thinking questions.

Close-Reading Questions (15 minutes)

  • King Gilgamesh is introduced in Scene 1. What can you tell about his personality from this first scene? (character) You can tell that Gilgamesh is both kind and impatient. He’s impatient with the Elders, demanding that they save Enkidu’s life even though they cannot. But he shows kindness when he gives money to Anisa and Amar, and he cares deeply about Enkidu. He is neither all good nor all bad.
  • How does Gilgamesh seem different in Scene 2 than in Scene 1? What has caused the change? (character) In Scene 2, Gilgamesh is in great pain. He storms through the forest screaming. He no longer seems to care about his people and thinks only about becoming immortal. This change is caused by the death of his close friend Enkidu. 
  • What does the Distant One think of Gilgamesh’s quest? (inference) The Distant One thinks Gilgamesh’s quest is a bad idea. He calls the quest “foolish” and seems displeased that Gilgamesh has abandoned Uruk to try to become immortal. 
  • When Gilgamesh returns to Uruk, why don’t people recognize him at first? (inference) Gilgamesh is tired and dirty when he returns. You can infer that he was always clean and well-dressed when he sat on the throne. By this point in the story, the people of Uruk also may not be expecting Gilgamesh to return.

Critical-Thinking Questions (10 minutes)

  • When Gilgamesh returns to Uruk, the people are glad to see him. Should they also feel angry that he left them? Answers may vary. Some students might say that the people should be angry because Gilgamesh walked away from his responsibilities to them. Others might say that they should be understanding because he was going through a tough time and thankful that he returned. 
  • In Scene 3, Enkidu says to Gilgamesh, “Perhaps years are not the best measure of a life.” What does he mean? By the end of the play, what does Gilgamesh realize about how he should measure his life? Enkidu means that what you do with the time you have is more important than how long you live. By the end of the play, Gilgamesh realizes that his life will mean more if he spends it creating things and helping others than if he spends it trying to live longer. 

3. Skill Building and Writing

  • Have students work in pairs to complete the Spotlight Skill Workout: Inference activity at the end of the play.
  • Assign students to work independently on our Theme Skill Builder. (Click here to see all your Skill Builders for this feature.)
  • Writing prompt: In Scene 6, a snake steals the plant that is supposed to make Gilgamesh young again. Think about the question in the image caption “A Sneaky Steal”: Did the snake hurt Gilgamesh—or help him? Write a paragraph stating and supporting your opinion. 

Go-Further Activity

An enrichment activity to extend the learning journey

Project the task below on your whiteboard or share it with students in your LMS.

Compare Two Stories About Immortality

After reading the play, read the story “Facing Forever” from the December 2023/January 2024 issue of Action. Once you’ve read both stories, use our Compare and Contrast graphic organizer to compare Gilgamesh with Nate, the main character from “Facing Forever.” Think about:

  • where the characters live
  • when the characters live
  • why each character becomes focused on the idea of immortality
  • who gives the characters advice
  • what big decision each character has to make
  • what each character decides about immortality
  • how each character feels at the end of the story

Language-Acquisition Springboard

Practice reading end punctuation to improve fluency.

Pair students up and have them take turns saying these lines to each other: “I can’t believe it!” and “What? What happened?” Discuss the natural way to speak a line that ends with an exclamation point (loudly, with feeling) and the natural way to speak a line that ends with a question mark (voice goes up in pitch at the end). Next, have students practice saying these lines from the play:

  • “Thank you, kind king!”
  • “No, Enkidu, no!”
  • “What are you doing here?”
  • “I know how we can cross safely!”
  • “My king, did you find what you were looking for?”

Looking for more ELL support? Download our full lesson plan and scroll to p. 5 to find questions that will help your ELLs respond to the text at the level that’s right for them.

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