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War in iliad essay
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Achilles' Moral Dilemma in Homer's Iliad The question "was Achilles' anger justified" brings up issues that seem to have little or no relevance to the war. In time of war I would expect the leaders to prioritize the groups interest for the sake of unity and cooperation rather than being entrenched in achieving their own personal goals. But my expectations are those of a modern day literature student, I'm inclined to think that the Greeks who first read this epic valued different things than myself. Another relevant question might be "were Achilles' actions justified". Anger can be easily justified, but the actions that anger might lead you to take are not as easily justified. Again I am not an ancient Greek and my opinions are …show more content…
First off Agamemnon had distributed the booty fairly and all the more powerful Achaeans had gotten a concubine, Agamemnon just happened to choose the daughter of one of Apollo's priest. When Apollo sends a plague to the Achaean camp Achilles' concern for his comrades leads him to call an assembly with the purpose of interpreting the plague and taking necessary action. Agamemnon reluctantly agrees to return his concubine to her father if he is repaid another concubine by one of the other powerful Achaeans. At this Achilles stands up for himself and the other Achaeans, he insults Agamemnon by saying that Agamemnon claims his greatness. When Agamemnon takes Achilles' concubine, Achilles probably expected the other Achaeans to stand up for him as he had done for them earlier. But he is left alone. His honor insulted by a man that he had served loyally. Humiliated, by a group of people to whom he owed nothing. A great sense of betrayal overcame Achilles. All these events lead Achilles to withdraw his forces from the Achaean army, when he does this Agamemnon, convinced that he is the greatest of the Achaeans, professes that Zeus will support his cause. This further angers Achilles who decides to plead his mother, Thetis, to influence Zeus to make the Trojans
hroughout the Iliad Achilles shows how the ego of a Kardashian is being portrayed and the emotional maturity of an eight-year-old because of the certain adult qualities he lacks, for example: he does not work well with others, he lacks the concept of forgiveness, he is selfish, thinks highly of his self without regard to others, being rude and unkind, aggressiveness when talking to others, and having too much pride and not thinking about the consequences of his actions and how it can affect not only him but others as well. Achilles does not like to work with others he prefers to be the one in charge of everybody and he likes for everyone to do as he says. In the Iliad Agamemnon says, "This man wants to be ahead of everyone else he wants to rule everyone and give orders to everyone" (1.302-303). Achilles and Agamemnon are having an argument amongst one another because no one wants to give Achilles the honor he feels that he deserves for being the best fighter in the war and for all the blood sweat and tears he shed while defeating the Trojans "he is a mighty bulwark in this evil war" as Nestor says.
The epic The Iliad by Homer argues Achilles has a reaction of rage in numerous situations. Achilles’s choice to respond in such a way that it is of great significance. This incredible emotion influenced his day-to-day life. Many literary critics have started discussion as to whether Achilles’s rage exists as a virtue or a vice in this epic. Other characters throughout The Iliad have commented on his rage, such as Athena, who says, “I came to see if I could check this temper of yours,” (Homer, 235) in a discussion she has with Achilles pertaining to his quarrel with Agamemnon. Athena’s comment suggests that it requires a great deal of effort to put Achilles’s rage in check. Achilles seemingly uncontrollable rage creates a man throughout The
Firstly, to assist these claims, Achilles became alienated from the society he was accustomed to. Adding to that, Achilles was overwhelmed with rage towards all Greeks, making him channel his aggression towards the Trojans. Furthermore, the rage of Achilles was said to be extraordinary, and therefore we can understand how this makes him unlike the rest of humanity. Through lots of suffering, pain, and heartbreak in the Iliad, Achilles still stood vengeful and full of hatred. On the other hand, Achilles was faced with loses, one being his best friend Patroclus. Obviously this took a toll on Achilles, and he retaliated by killing Hector, Priam’s son. Given this point, it brings me to say, this contributed to Achilles anger and aggression, and made him seek revenge.
Achilles anger was a predominant theme in the Iliad. It led to Patrokolos, death, Hektor’s death and a great many other Trojan deaths. Achilles was a very powerful Greek warrior, he had many faults but one of his most prominent was his uncontrollable anger. Multiple times throughout the Iliad his anger had for reaching effects on the war and people around him. These effects were not usually favorable to anyone. There are three main occurrences that led Achilles’ anger down devastating paths. The first was when Agamemnon took Achilles’ girlfriend. When this happened, Achilles felt robbed because Brisies, his girlfriend, represented his might and the glory of his conquests. In the Greek culture, glory and honor were highly esteemed. This is why
In Homer’s Iliad, an extremely courageous and noble character is Hector, Prince of Troy. Hector does not want war, so his decision to lead the assault on the Achaean forces may seem strange. However, if there were a noble way out of the war, Hector might have taken it. “Without a noble escape, Hector is forced to fight”(Willcock 62).
In the introduction of the Essential Illiad given by Sheila Murnaghan, Achilles is labeled as “the greatest of the Greek heroes”. In classic mythology a hero is a person of great strength and courage celebrated for bold exploits and is often the offspring of a mortal and a god. Achilles was the greatest fighter among the Greeks or Trojans and feared no man in battle. He was also the offspring of a mortal and a god so by classic mythology definition, Achilles was indeed a hero. A hero is defined by the present day Websters Dictionary as: “one who inspires through manners and actions; an individual who leads through personal example and accomplishments requiring bravery, skill, determination, and other admirable qualities.” Achilles, in no manner, fits this definition. By contemporary standards, he is instead a pathetic villain. Aside from being a kidnapper, rapist and murderer, Achilles proves to be emotionally weak, selfish, and malicious. Many times throughout the Illiad, Achilles is also referred to as “godlike”. The gods of Greek mythology were subject to the same emotions and character flaws as humans, and though privileged to some foresight, the gods had similar mental capacities as humans. What really set the gods apart were their powers (controlling the elements, changing their appearance, etc.), great strength, and immortality. Because of his great strength and apparent invincibility, it is easy to see why Achilles would...
Thy head is as fun of quarrels as an egg is full of meat, and yet thy
was the accepted way of life in the Bronze Age, which is when Achilles lived.
Achilles' anger at Agamemnon is obvious in his response. "Now I am returning to Phthia, since it is much better/ to go home again with my curved ships, and I am minded no longer/ to stay here dishonored and pile up your wealth and your luxury." (I,l.169-171). Achilles, so upset with the dishonor Agamemnon placed on him, withdraws from fighting. Now, both Achilles and Agamemnon have suffered great losses.
The anger of Achilles is seen from the very beginning. We learn that Achilles is angry and seeking revenge against King Agamemnon for taking his precious war prize Brisëis. I believe that Achilles had every right to be angry with Agamemnon, but the actions that followed their encounter went way too far. Being the specific subject of the Iliad, Achilles anger formed from the selfishness that Agamemnon had from the very beginning of the poem to the very end. Agamemnon angered Achilles enough to make him refuse to fight in the war. When Agamemnon became desperate for Achilles help, he sent an embassy to try to persuade Achilles to fight for him once again. The embassy offers Achilles seven women from Lesbos, the daughter of Brisëis back, Agamemnon
The first requirement of Aristotle's tragic hero is that they are more admirable than the average character. Achilles meets this requirement because of his ability on the battlefield. In The Iliad, the background to the story is the war between the Greeks and the Trojans. This background is not only the basis for the story overall, but is also the basis for Achilles' own story. This begins when Achilles refuses to join the battle because he is insulted by Agamemnon. This decision results in the action that drives the remainder of the story. Later in the story when Achilles becomes angered and goes to the other extreme, launching into battle and killing ferociously. The significance of this is that it places battle as central to both Achilles' story and to what is important in the setting of the story. Importantly, the aspect that makes Achilles greater than most is his ability o...
Achilles is introduced into The Iliad getting into a debacle with the leader of the Greek army, Agamemnon, during the last year of the Trojan War. Achilles starts a quarrel with Agamemnon because he has demanded possession of Achilles’ woman, Briseis, in consolation for having to give up his woman, Chryseis, so that the gods will end their plague upon the Greek soldiers. Achilles does all he can to get his loved one back, but he knows that nothing will waver Agamemnon’s decision. This is when Achil...
A large source of Achilles anger started with his fight with Agamemnon. Apollo put a plague on the Achaean soldiers that was killing them off. The only way to stop this from killing them all was to give back a priest’s daughter who had been captured. This girl “belonged” to Agamemnon and he didn’t want to give her up unless he got Achilles girl in return. This would disgrace Achilles honor but he could not let any more soldiers be killed so, he reluctantly let her go. But in return for giving up his girl he withdrew from the battle. Much of Achilles anger is a result of this occasion but the death of Patroklos later overrode his previous anger to Agamemnon.
The first reason Achilles is an epic hero is because he embodied the characteristics of the ideal Greek citizen at the time Homer wrote; he is in a position of power and regards honor highly. “O my mother! I was born to die young, it is true, but honour I was to have from Zeus, Olympian, thunderer on high! And now he has not given me one little bit! Yes, my lord king Agamemnon has insulted me! He has taken my prize and keeps it, he has robbed me myself” (page 17), Achilles cried to his mother. Agamemnon stole Achilles’ prize, Briseis, so Achilles is begging his mother, the sea nymph Thetis, to help him regain his honor. In Greece, honor was crucial and by taking Achilles’ prize, Agamemnon has stripped him not only of his hard-won prize but of his honor as well. Such a double loss would have been catastrophic for a Greek citizen. Classicist Ian Johnston highlights the significance of his loss, suggesting that “the greatest harm that can occur to a particular warrior is shame, the community’s public recognition that he has let the group down or failed to live up to its shared rules.”Being shamed, in this case, by Agamemnon, would cause the Achaeans to lose respect for Achilles, and as one of their leaders, this would be a tragedy for him. Achilles’ desire to regain his honor sho...
Homer makes it clear that Achilles is a man mainly driven by his hunger for glory. Achilles has all the traits of a superhuman from his strength to his incredible ability to fight on the battlefield. Even with these great abilities, it is hard for many readers to perceive him as a hero because of the way he acts. Homer takes this brief time period out of this whole ten-year war just to demonstrate how Achilles cannot control himself when he goes into a rage. In todays world Achilles would not last long as a soldier in any army because he would be court marshaled for insubordination. Achilles ye...