The Role Of Greed In The Iliad

1687 Words4 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: Quarrel between achilles and agamemnon

Τhe Iliad is the oldest epic, alongside Odyssey, written by an Ancient Greek, legendary author, Homer. Iliad’s theme is the terrible wrath, or in Greek mênis, of Achilles, against Agamemnon. From the very beginning of this epic poem, the main motif and the foundation for the composition of the epic are clear. The content of the Iliad is much wider and concerns the warfare between the Greeks and the Trojans around Troy, during the tenth year of the Trojan War, and more specifically the last 51 days of that year. Homer, however, has succeeded in linking Achilles' wrath to the general battle of the Trojan War, as the absence of Achilles forces the audience to turn their eyes to the difficulties that Greeks face in the battlefield and the efforts …show more content…

Agamemnon refused to return the captive Chryseis back to her father, and Apollo's priest, Chryses, who out revenge and anger, asked the god to punish the Achaeans. Apollo responded and send a terrible plague to the Achaean camp. Agamemnon was then forced to return Chryseis and demanded that Achilles' prize, Briseis, be her replacement. Achilles considered this claim to be disrespectful to himself and the heroism he had shown. The lack of honor on the part of the leader in his face who states that he "doesn’t care" whether or not Achilles will leave has provoked the explosion of his wrath. As a result, he quarreled with Agamemnon and finally decided to leave the fight and go to his mother, goddess Thetis, for comfort and guidance. Furthermore, Achilles heroism led him win his arête, but in the Iliad's warfare context, arête becomes more specific. It is a form of superiority and supremacy and is mainly related to the prowess of the warriors and whatever is contained or contributed to the representation of the hero to others. Arête was achieved and shown not only by the accomplishments in the battle field but also by the gifts and prizes one won. Therefore, Achilles' respect and arête was insulted when Agamemnon replaced Chryseis with his spoil,

Show More
Related

  • Examples Of Greed In The Iliad

    724 Words  | 2 Pages

    In the Iliad by Homer human folly is rampant, beginning with Agamemnon the Greek king and commander, who thoughtlessly insults Achilles, fails to apologize and then abruptly decides to test the courage of his army. After announcing the end of the fighting the king is surprised that the troops are eager to flock back to the ships. The muster of the Greek cause seems lost. Until Thersites steps forth. Thersites is a mysterious character that not even Homer knows. Thersites is the single speaker in the Iliad that is not identified by place of origin or rank. He is reputedly the most unattractive man in Troy. Thersites is described by his sheer repulsiveness. So it is doubly shocking when this shunned man publicly

    Read More

  • Greek Values In The Iliad

    809 Words  | 2 Pages

    Iliad is one of the commonly understood pieces as epic that based on the Trojan War in ancient Greek. However, the meaning of the piece goes deeper and reflects more on the ancient Greek. The Iliad is a story about the evolution of Achilles persona and emerges as an epic of the war. Homer puts the elements of anti-war relatively on display portraying the ideal epic world that progresses through elements that defines the coexistence of the society.

    Read More

  • Achilles Rage In The Iliad

    1377 Words  | 3 Pages

    The loss of his prize humiliates and dishonor’s Achilles, and starts his rage towards Agamemnon. In this rage, Achilles turns his back from his fellow warriors and he isolates himself from the war. Hurt over his loss, Achilles cries out for his mother, Thetis, a sea-goddess. Using his rage, he asks her to call in a favor with Zeus, to guarantee that the Greek armies suffer defeat from the Trojan soldiers. Achilles hopes that this will cause dishonor for Agamemnon to make up for the dishonor that was brought upon

    Read More

  • The Interference of Zeus

    1594 Words  | 4 Pages

    The Iliad is an epic poem and is one of the earliest works of ancient Greek literature (Murnaghan 2). According to most scholars, it was written by Homer in ancient Greece (Spievogel 47). The Iliad was considered by the Greeks to be Homer’s major work (Rieu 5). There is some debate as to who Homer really was, or if he was even responsible for The Iliad, but this had no bearing on the fact that The Iliad was important in Greek society (Murnaghan 8). The Iliad was most likely an oral story preserved over time and finally written down at the end of the Dark Ages (Murnaghan 3). It covers only a small portion of the ten year Trojan War. The Trojan War began over Helen, the wife of Gree...

    Read More

  • Causes Of Revenge In The Iliad

    1082 Words  | 3 Pages

    In the Iliad, revenge causes problems where justice is the solution to those problems, as seen through Achilles and Hector. Pride is a person dignity from their own achievements. The Iliad shows pride being used to be the consequence of revenge from Achilles. In book one, Agamemnon and Achilles are seen showing pride and revenge. Agamemnon, an overly powerful king who only thinks about himself and having the biggest army in taking control of others can result in having pride.

    Read More

  • Theme Of Loyalty In The Iliad

    1060 Words  | 3 Pages

    The Iliad by Homer is an epic poem separated in different books or chapters that shows a fictionalized account of the Trojan War. Book 6: Hector Returns to Troy is the specific portion of the poem that is being covered in this essay. Hector from the Iliad shows a very clear aspect of his personality, a strong sense of loyalty and tenderness for his loved ones and also his people by being on the front lines during the war and showing his people he is willing to fight with them and essentially sacrificing himself for his family. Hector even knows his forgiveness towards his brother, Paris even though Paris is the main reason the Trojan War is in existence.

    Read More

  • Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder In Homer's Iliad

    1064 Words  | 3 Pages

    The Greek commander Agamemnon betrays Achilles by insulting him and taking his war prize, the girl Briseis. The Greek army as a whole, betrays him by acting inactively to Agamemnon’s insults and failing to defend him. As seen in Richard Blucher’s article book discussion, “In the Iliad, Achilles has his war prize, the captive woman Briseis, stolen from him by his Commander-in-Chief, King Agamemnon. Shay explains: We must understand the cultural context to see that this episode is more than a personal squabble between two soldiers over a woman [...] The prize of honor was voted by the troops for Achilles’ valor in combat. A modern equivalent might be a commander telling a soldier, ‘I’ll take that Congressional Medal of Honor of yours, because I don’t have one” (Blucher). These betrayals are so traumatic and insulting for Achilles that he withdrew entirely from the war. Also, in Book 21 of The Iliad, Achilles shows another belief that is identified with betrayal. In this book Achilles acts with reckless courage and takes on hundreds of enemy troops without showing any fear or resentment, even when the river god rises to drown him. As he acts so reckless he disregards his own life, and kills all who comes in his path. This is seen through Irwin Kutash’s review of Achilles in Vietnam, as he said, “Achilles is found to have been betrayed by his commander, Agamemnon, who usurps his prize of honor. The betrayal is described

    Read More

  • The Iliad Rhetorical Analysis And Persuasion

    1710 Words  | 4 Pages

    The prize was the daughter of an Apollon priest, Chrysies. The distressed father prays to Apollo who then sets a curse upon the king and townspeople. When Achilles hears that this was the cause of the horrible curse, he demands that Agamemnon return her. Agamemnon declares to Achilles that he must “fetch [him] another prize, and straight off too…” (line 138) to compensate for his loss. This shows how greedy and selfish the king really is and infuriates Achilles. To fetch someone else is a demeaning circumstance. Agamemnon reiterates his problem by griping that his prize is being taken away. By doing this, he tries to persuade and guilt Achilles into feeling bad for him. He wants Achilles to feel remorseful and hand Briseis to him. This conveys that women have no purpose to Agamemnon and are only thought of as objects. Therefore, he should see that the curse was his fault and nobody else’s. Instead, he should put the people before himself. Achilles is the best warrior who was willing to help the king out with his problem. He gestures that “We Achaeans will pay you back, three, four times over” (line 150) illustrating how forgiving Achilles can be in spite of the problem that has approached them. This depicts that he has pride and does not want the people to suffer anymore. He cares about the wellbeing of others. Furthermore,

    Read More

  • Justice and Love in the Iliad

    974 Words  | 2 Pages

    Simone Weil argues that the way Homer presents war and the use of force in the Iliad, in all of its brutality, violence, and bitterness bathes the work in the light of love and justice (pg 25). The point Weil is making is that by depicting the suffering of all of these men regardless of their side, or strength Homer equalizes them in a “condition common to all men”(pg 25). Because Homer equalizes them the reader can feel empathy, or at least compassion for all of the men. However while Weil is correct about how Homer’s descriptions of war and force reveal justice and love, she is wrong in thinking that justice and love are mere “accents” to the Iliad, and progress through the story “without ever becoming noticeable”(pg 25). Homer not only reveals this underlying idea to the reader through his tone and even handedness, but also through Achilles’ journey. By the end of the Iliad Achilles understands justice and love in much the same way that the reader does.

    Read More

  • The Iliad and the Odyssey

    1521 Words  | 4 Pages

    The Iliad is a classic epic poem written by Homer about the Trojan War and the rage of an Achaean warrior, Achilles. The book introduces the reader to the war and the personal battle between Achilles and King Agamemnon; because of this argument between these two major characters, Homer introduces the role of the gods when Achilles asks his mother, Thetis, to go to Zeus and beg for his interference on Achilles’ behalf. The major role the gods play in the Iliad is their interference in the Trojan War as immortal versus immortal and mortal versus immortal.

    Read More

  • Achilles: The Tragic Hero

    936 Words  | 2 Pages

    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...

    Read More

  • Free Essays - Character of Achilles in Homer's Iliad

    649 Words  | 2 Pages

    The Iliad may be seen as an account of the circumstances that irrevocably alter the life of one man: Achilles, one of the greatest warriors. Throughout the course of the poem Achilles goes through many ordeals that change his character immensely. Starting with his quarrel with Agamemnon and withdrawal from battle, to the death of Patroklos, and with the slaying of Hektor.  Achilles emotions and actions decide the fate of many warriors on both sides. Achilles struggles with anger, honor, pride, loyalty and love make the poem more that just a gruesome war story.

    Read More

  • Achilles; the True Hero of the Iliad

    664 Words  | 2 Pages

    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...

    Read More

  • The Iliad's Ending

    908 Words  | 2 Pages

    Homer's Iliad is commonly understood as an epic about the Trojan War, but its meaning goes deeper than that. The Iliad is not only a story of the evolution of Achilleus' persona, but at times it is an anti-war epic as well. The final book proposes many questions to the reader. Why not end with the killing of Hektor? Most stories of war conclude with the triumphant victory of good over evil, but in the Iliad, the final thoughts are inclined to the mourning of the defeated Hektor, which accentuates the fact that good has not triumphed over evil, but simply Achilleus triumphed over Hektor. Ending with the mourning of Hektor also brings to center stage for the first time the human side of war and the harsh aftermath of it. We see that war not only brings great glory, but also much suffering and anguish. Homer puts his anti-war views on display.

    Read More

  • Who was the Real Hero in Homer's The Iliad?

    914 Words  | 2 Pages

    The Iliad is not a story about the Trojan War at all, the war is just to set the stage for Homer to bring together the swift footed Achilles and Hector, the Prince of Troy, so they can be compared. The Iliad starts with how Achilles is dishonored by Agamemnon and withdraws from the war and ends with his return to the fight and eventually falling at the end. Hector is brought into the story and displays through his character what a real hero should be like.

    Read More

More about The Role Of Greed In The Iliad

Open Document