Early Greece, a period that began 1000 B.C.E was a transition into one of the most successful periods in human civilization. The Greeks transformed art, sculptures, theater and wars. They established the stepping-stones for the future civilizations of the world. The first known “writer” for the Greeks introduced the Heroic Age with the “Iliad and the Odyssey”. During this time period Homer displayed the great tragic flaw in heroes, which was hubris. Hubris is defined during the time period as excessive pride toward or defiance of the gods, leading to nemesis (Collins). In most Greek tragedies hubris causes the disastrous ending for many of the main characters. During the birth of early Greece each city-state had a distinctive style a rather religious, social, and political viewpoint. Homer is considered the earliest example of a writer, whether or not he composed the Iliad and the Odyssey, as a whole remains a question to many scholars. Honor and glory remained as the most prevalent ideas during the time period. It was a moment in history in which honor defined a man and glory allowed for success. A glorious man was one like “Hector” heir to throne of the city of Troy. He was a man that fought his opponent with every inch of strength and willingness to protect his city. Hector is a true hero, and when he dies fighting for his city against the mighty Achilles; he sets the standards of what defines a hero. It was of extreme importance to a man during this time period to die in war and leave a memorable name in society. In the Spartan society even a mother was accustomed to the idea that her son had to die to be a “hero” or perhaps be remembered as one. In the Iliad and the Odyssey, Achilles mother... ... middle of paper ... ..."About.com." Ancient/Classical History. McDowell Intermediate, 2011. Web. 18 Oct 2011. . Kerrigan, Sean P. "The Pick." In the Pursuit of Perception: The Epic Education of Achilles. Dr.Mary Sue Ply, 2011. Web. 18 Oct 2011. . Book S. Cunningham, Lawrence, and John J. Reich. Culture & Values: A survey of Humanities. Sixth Edition. Alternate Volume. Belmont, California: Thomson Wadsworth, 2006. 34-47. Print.
While Phoenix and Meleager seemed to have issues with their respective parents, Achilles has none of the same issues. Achilles has a loving mother as well as a father and Phoenix, a father figure. Achilles and Phoenix are so close that Phoenix claims, “I made you what you are, my godlike Achilles, And loved you from my heart” (Homer’s Iliad 9.498-499). In contrast, the relationships depicted through Phoenix’s story are filled with rage and promises of death. The importance of structuring symmetrical relationships when invoking an emotional argument is imperative, and this paradigm fails to pick appropriate examples. Though Achilles may feel pity, he isn’t able to wholeheartedly empathize with the narrative laid before him. Without empathy, there can be no universal bonds in which others can be held accountable for each other. The dearth of empathetic material in Phoenix’s speech is largely proportional to Achilles’ acute refusal as well as a broader representation of the tragedy of the Trojan war on the
Of the many conflicting philosophies, morality, when referring to one's sense of ethics, is the greatest and most intriguing disparity between the Ancient Greek ideologies of heroism and the contemporary views of today. By the standards of the Greeks, Achilles was a Hero. He was the embodiment of the individual, a man of unwavering principle, not only unwilling but incapable of allowing his values to become compromised. His credo and the actions determined though it, while certainly irreconcilable with present ethical standards, are strongly rooted in his own idea of justice. Jason, the archetype of the tragic hero, used Medea for personal gain, and then discarded her, but in so doing, avenged his family and freed a kingdom from a tyrant. Heracles, despite having killed his children and wives, rose above the confines of mortality through heroic deeds, and excruciating pain, both physical and emotional, to transform into an immortal god. The Ancient Greeks did not differentiate between the Hero and the Anti-Hero, judging them not by their methods but by their justness.
Schein, Seth L. The Mortal Hero: An Introduction to Homer's Iliad. Berkeley: University of California Press, 1984.
To the ancient Greeks the definition of “hero” is very different than it is today. In The Odyssey, an epic poem written by the ancient Greek poet known as Homer, the story of Odysseus, king of Ithaca and the conqueror of Troy, journey home. This journey takes ten years and in those years Odysseus has many more adventures and mishaps. Throughout these happenings, Odysseus is called a hero, a title that he does not deserve. Odysseus shows qualities such as abysmal leadership abilities, courage to the point of hubris and loyalty to his home, but not to his family.
Homer’s moral exemplars in the heroic tragedy, The Iliad, can be analyzed to further understand warrior ethics. Agamemnon, a powerful warrior king, was proud and arrogant. These qualities made him an excellent warrior and the Greeks respected him. However, Agamemnon demonstrated excess pride and arrogance, as well as stubbornness. The Greeks believed that people must face their destiny with pride and nobility.
Cunningham, Lawrence S., and John J. Reich. Cultural And Values. 7th ed. Vol. 2. Boston: Wadsworth, 2010. Print.
Achilles is a tragic hero because he displays ignorance towards his surroundings in The Iliad. At the beginning of the epic, “Achilles is presented with not one but two fates: to die gloriously at Troy or to live anonymously at home” (Harris, 262). With this decision Achilles decides to join the Greek forces and go to war against Troy. This, of course, guarantees his pre-mature death and proves how illogical and unstable his mind was during this time, for h...
Homer's two central heroes, Odysseus and Achilles, are in many ways differing manifestations of the same themes. While Achilles' character is almost utterly consistent in his rage, pride, and near divinity, Odysseus' character is difficult to pin down to a single moral; though perhaps more human than Achilles, he remains more difficult to understand. Nevertheless, both heroes are defined not by their appearances, nor by the impressions they leave upon the minds of those around them, nor even so much by the words they speak, but almost entirely by their actions. Action is what drives the plot of both the Iliad and the Odyssey, and action is what holds the characters together. In this respect, the theme of humanity is revealed in both Odysseus and Achilles: man is a combination of his will, his actions, and his relationship to the divine. This blend allows Homer to divulge all that is human in his characters, and all that is a vehicle for the idyllic aspects of ancient Greek society. Accordingly, the apparent inconsistencies in the characterization of Odysseus can be accounted for by his spiritual distance from the god-like Achilles; Achilles is more coherent because he is the son of a god. This is not to say that Achilles is not at times petty or unimaginative, but that his standards of action are merely more continuous through time. Nevertheless, both of Homer's heroes embody important and admirable facets of ancient Greek culture, though they fracture in the ways they are represented.
When Homer lived, the stature of a hero was measured by the yardstick of fighting ability. In Homer's Iliad, the character of Achilles represents the epitome of the Greek 'heroic code'. Only Achilles fights for pure heroics, while the characters of Diomedes and Hector provide good contrasts.
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).
In ancient Greece and Rome, heroes were seen as a godlike, supernatural race of humans. A good hero is known by its influence, commands, and strong will. Heroic qualities such as, strength, determination and achievements, the heroes outweigh common people. In Greek Mythology, Greeks believed that everything happened for a reason and that divine intervention was what led heroes to their fate. In the epics, Oedipus the King by Sophocles and The Iliad by Homer, epic heroes such as Achilles and Oedipus share related heroic qualities that Greek and Roman cultures valued, however, they are also drastically different. In Homer and Sophocles’ pieces of literature, Oedipus the King and The Odyssey, the audience experiences how heroism changes over
Much of what we know today of Greek culture was passed on through history via The Iliad by Homer. The Greeks, one of the earliest recorded civilizations that our species is aware of, had a large influence on the Roman Empire and by extension most of the civilizations of our known history. Through history and different cultures, there are various stories of heroes and heroism, and it seems that the definition of heroism has changed frequently since classical antiquity. “Goddess, sing the rage of Peleus’s son Achilles, murderous, doomed, that cost the Achaeans countless losses.”(The Iliad I.1-2) So opens The Iliad, a story of the Trojan War and the flawed hero, Achilles. Achilles, an example of the Greeks ideal hero, is not without his flaws. His anger while understandable during the earlier parts of the poem begins to appear irrational during book IX. The Greeks, who aspired to embody the qualities they valued in their heroes, treated the story of The Iliad with great reverence.
Hector is the true hero of Homer's Iliad. Although Achilles and Hector are both leaders of men, Hector leads with a mature sense that gives his men reason to respect him. In turn, Hector respects his men which gives fulfillment to both parties. Hector is not a man to sit around and mull over strategies and ideas - Hector is a man of action. His men are inspired to fight because they see their captain fighting as well.
Throughout history, humanity has always been fascinated with the idea of a hero. Examples include wild west rangers capturing bandits, superheroes defeating villains, and parents saving their children from nightmares. Today, common people who accomplish a great feat are often elevated to the status of a hero. They are worshiped and praised beyond the point most mortal human being experience. The Iliad is the archetype for this theme. It tells stories of Achilles, the Greek hero from the 7-8th century BCE and his heroism in the Trojan War. These stories caught particular interest from the Greek society and have dramatically influenced cultures and societies in art, music, and literature for thousands of years. The Iliad is the stigma for the
In Homer’s The Iliad he tells of the battles and events during the time of a quarrel between King Agamemnon and the warrior Achilles. This was just a small portion of the Trojan War that had lasted ten years. The Iliad shares the ideas of the glory of war, military values over family life, and the impermanence of human life and its creation. One thing that Homer does is characterize the two different warriors Achilles and Hector. These two great warriors both show different kinds of traits that shape the character they become throughout the The Iliad. Achilles is the main hero in The Iliad, but Homer subliminally tries to persuade the reader that Hector is the true hero in this story.