While dignity, pride, honor, glory, fame, and revenge are still important in today’s society, these conditions are not nearly as important as they once were. People of modern times still seek fame to the same degree that the characters in The Iliad once did, but our means of receiving it have changed. In the times of The Iliad, lasting fame was more valuable to a person because they considered their name all that was left behind of them when they journeyed to the underworld. Today, we have more means of being remembered once we pass, such as pictures and even school records. In Homer’s era, warriors dreamed of eternal fame through rhapsodes’ retelling of their splendor on the battlefield. Instead of gaining fame through battle, people of today would attempt to become famous through a talent like singing or athleticism. We do not seek fame for our name to be carried once we die, but most of us would rather enjoy the fame we gather within our lifetimes. The characters in The Iliad are proof to this idea of legacy through fame. Hector speaks not of his fame, but his son’s fame when he says, “Then one day may someone say of him as he returns from war ‘He is better far off than his father’!” (137). I think our definition of fame has shifted since the years of Homer, and so has our techniques to obtain it. Today’s definition of fame is more superficial. According to Debra Shigley, J.D., there is a formula to achieve fame (Shigley, 2011). First, one must package his or her expertise with personal branding. Then, he or she uses publicity to become visible. Last, it is necessary to sell the original expertise at a significant price. While people of early times were concerned with fame that made them immortal, modern people are more concer... ... middle of paper ... ...n-beneficial. When one seeks revenge, it rarely leaves the aspirant unharmed. In hopes of acquiring revenge, it is thought that being mature and “turning the other cheek” is the most fulfilling course (Clay, 2013). If revenge must be achieved, “don’t get mad, get even” a valid choice ((user), 2014). To get even, pranks are usually administered. For instance, Felix Clay of the Cracked blogging site advises the readers to secretly give their victims unwanted magazine subscriptions (Clay, 2013). This seems very childish, but I would prefer it over the ancient Greeks’ inclination for murder and war. Dignity is a timeless desire and will always be chased by the human race. Compared to fame and revenge, dignity is a healthier ambition. Aristotle once said, “Dignity does not consist in possessing honors, but in deserving them” (How to regain your dignity, 2013).
While revenge may feel sweet at times, in most cases it is destructive to yourself and those around you. The article “Revenge:Will You Feel Better?” makes one contemplate this, and draws the question “is revenge really worth it?” Well, in the article, Karyn Hall suggests that “Revenge can be a strong urge, but you may not feel better if you act on it.” In fact, in a study performed by Kevin Carlsmith showed that “...the students that got revenge reported feeling worse than those who didn't…” With this, one may see that revenge is pointless, and in most cases leaves you feeling worse than the people you performed it
Many people percieve revenge to be something that falls under justice, as they are driven by emotions, while others consider getting the police involved as serving justice. Moreover, some people find revenge to be pleasing and satisfying, but to argue the point that just because something is more satisfying does not mean it is
Human Dignity: We are all created in the image of God and therefore should be treated as humans with dignity and respect. The value or worth of human life.
celebrity may be found in the words of one of America’s Founding Fathers, John Adams, who wrote, ‘‘The rewards . . . in this life are steem and admiration of others—the punishments are neglect and contempt. The desire of the esteem of others is as real a want of nature as hunger—and the neglect and contempt of the world as severe as a pain.” (Price, 463). The author suggests that fame is not at all w...
than the times of today. Back then, the most important aspect of life for a
The notion of honor is prevalent throughout the Iliad and Antigone. Both texts demonstrate that honor is essential to Greek heroes because honor is the foundation of the society and family. Homer and Sophocles clearly show that honor guides people’s actions and responses and decides the fate of themselves and others. Both authors also place emphasis on the importance of proper burial because it is a strong indication of honor to the deceased and the deceased’s family. As can be seen in the Iliad and Antigone, the aim of every Greek hero is to gain everlasting honor because it ensures his place in the social memory of his society resounding even after death.
The world that Homer shows in the Iliad is a violent one, where war is not only a means of gaining wealth, but also the arena in which a man demonstrates his worth. The Greek army gathered in front of the walls of Troy exhibits the weaknesses and strengths of the Homeric world. Greece is not one nation, and the army of Greeks mirrors this. It is a collection of small city-states with a common culture and a common language, capable of coming together for a great enterprise, but also capable of being driven apart by petty squabbling. The common culture is based on acceptance of characteristics seen as virtuous: xeineia, or hospitality; agathos, the successful warrior; oikos, which means from noble birth; keleos, glory; pine, honor, which is a central motif throughout the Iliad; and finally, the ultimate virtue of arête, which stands for goodness or excellence and encompasses the other virtues. For Homer, a good man must be of noble family, strong, brave in battle, and wealthy. Earthly possessions show that a man has initiative and has the esteem of others. But the most important qualification to be considered a good man is honor, because honor is gained, not born into.
Dignity is to do with how people feel, think and behave in relation to the worth or value of themselves and others. To treat someone with dignity is to treat them as being of worth, in a way that is respectful of them as valued individuals. (RCN 2008). It is important to respect patients and individuals because every patient is different and will have different needs and wants. So it is important for nurses to pay attention to these needs and wants, as it will help them to respect each patient’s dignity correctly. Nurses must respect and defend the dignity of each stage of the human life and they are also to respect their own dignity. When treating a person with dignity, it is important to treat them with respect and the sort of respect they would like.
Norms of Revenge. 4. Blackwell Publisher, 1990. 862. eBook. . Bar-elli, G. and Heyd, D. (1986), Can revenge be just or otherwise justified?.
According to the Oxford Dictionary, dignity is “The state or quality of being worthy of honour or respect.” (Oxford Dictionary, 2017). Living a life of dignity is individual to each person, but regardless of who they are, or what illness they may be suffering from, they deserve dignity and respect in the way that they are cared for. The cornerstone of nursing care is providing dignity to our patients. The issue can arise when a patient chooses to end their life versus letting the disease or aging process take its natural course, and the individual beliefs that nurses feel about this very difficult topic.
Throughout the Iliad, heroic characters make decisions based on a specific set of principles, which are referred to as the “code of honor.” The heroic code that Homer presents to readers is easy to recognize because the heroic code is the cause for many of the events that take place, but many of the characters have different perceptions of how highly the code should be regarded. Hector, the greatest of the Trojan warriors, begins the poem as a model for a hero. His dedication and firm belief in the code of honor is described many times throughout the course of the Iliad. As a reward for heroic traits in battle, prizes were sometimes awarded to victors of war. In Book 1 Achilles receives Chryseis as a prize and a symbol of honor. Heroism had its rewards and its setbacks which ultimately was the backbone of the Illiad in the case of Achilles prize. Hector, arguably the greatest Trojan warrior or even the bravest of the Homeric heroes is very fierce and fights for what he believes is his destiny. In book VI Hector expresses his bravery when Andromache pleads with Hector not to fight when Hector says, “But I would die of shame to face the men of Troy and the Trojan woman trailing their long robes if I would shrink from battle now, a coward. Nor does the sprit urge me on that way. I’ve learned it all too well. To stand up bravely, always to fight in the front ranks of Trojan soldiers, winning my father great glory, glory for myself” (VI, 387).
The relationships between parents and their sons in the Iliad are not relationships we expect to see in today’s society. The Iliad portrays the relationships between fathers and sons as something more than just physical and emotional. It is based on pride and respect for one another. The expectations of their son are more so to pass on their fathers reputable name and to follow in their father’s footsteps of being noble warriors. These relationships are the driving forces in the Iliad, making each son in the Iliad identifiable first by their father’s name. An outcome of the father–son relationships is ancestral loyalty among the characters which play a prominent role in war. Therefore, not only does the Iliad share a major war story, but the strong relationships among fathers and sons, ancestral loyalty among characters, and relationships between mothers and sons.
Revenge is medicine to most people or it is an ongoing circle. When a person is betrayed or inflicted pain it is a natural reaction to think of a way to cause the same pain back. Revenge is part of everyday life and many find pleasure through it. Although it may be the natural reaction and could be someone’s gut feeling that is telling him or her to do it is almost never right and does not pay off in the end. Revenge is a ongoing circle due to the fact that when someone does something wrong to a person that person will want to do it right back and keep going back and forth until justice intervenes or someone realizes it is morally wrong. Just like the saying “an eye for an eye will make the whole world blind” is the
Throughout history, revenge, or vengeance, has been altered by several cultures and even the American culture. This is shown throughout many ancient greek epics. Throughout these two epics, what is just revenge and what the action of revenge is are much different than what Revenge is seen through today’s society. Revenge is the main theme in The Iliad, with Achilles’ revenge on Agamemnon and Hector, and in The Odyssey, with Poseidon’s revenge on Odysseus and Odysseus’s revenge on the Suitors, and these epics define how revenge was seen in the ancient Greek world.
In Homer's Iliad, Greek heroes gain their glory and honor by winning favor from the gods and respect from their fellow citizens through their glorious deeds on the battlefield. While heroes are depicted as valiant figures, their weaknesses are also exposed in their mistakes and imperfections. However, despite their shortcomings, heroes are deeply beloved and valued by their countrymen. The humanity and flaws of the heroes prompts the questions: what makes one a Homeric hero and why does Homer bring out their weaknesses? By exploring the character and motives of two renowned heroes Achilles and Hektor, the poem's definition and ideas of a hero become clear. Unlike the way the Greeks and Trojans idolize their heroes, the Iliad views heroes as