Pride in The Iliad
The period in which the events in The Iliad took place were different
than the times of today. Back then, the most important aspect of life for a
person was to be a hero and to be remembered. One's pride would come
before everything else. In the present day, this concept would be thought
of as illogical or foolish. This is certainly true. But, that is how life
was in that time- peoples' beliefs were to be the death of them. Pride was
the downfall of all characters in Homer's epic poem, The Iliad.
Hectors fatal mistake was that he chose pride over his own well being
in the battle with Achilles. He could have taken safety within the walls of
Troy, or disappeared into a mass of his comrades, but Hector chose to stand
his ground and confront Achilles. "Ah for a young man all looks fine and
noble if he goes down in war...he lies there dead...but whatever death lays
bare, all wounds are marks of glory." If Hector had salvaged his pride
and retreated to safety, he would have lived to defend Troy. Therefore, the
possibility arises that he could have stopped the onslaught of the Acheans
altogether, and won the war for the Trojans. The result of Hectors pride
was his death and the betrayment of his fellow warriors and friends.
Another person within the Iliad whose pride was the downfall of his
character, was Patrocleus. Patrocleus was a great warrior, friend, and
asset to the Achiens. But, he made foolish choices on account of his pride.
For instance he chose to wear Achille's armor into battle when Achilles
refused to fight. This was only for his self-glorification. "...Once you have
beaten off the lethal fire, quick, come back to the ships-you must not
battle Hector!" After going into battle brandishing the armor, Patrocleus
becomes overzealous and places himself at the enemy's disposal. If
Patrocleus would have thought logically, and not acted on pride, he would
of remained alive.
In addition to Hector and Patrocleus, the main character in The Iliad
- Achilles, was also brought to ruin by his pride. For example, he was too
proud to fight in the war when Agamemnon took his woman.
Achilles, and he would cry. His tears were so heavy and his cries so loud that his mother
The notion of personal honor is prevalent throughout the Iliad. The honor of every person in Homeric culture was important, but to the hero, his honor was paramount. He could not endure insults, and he felt that he had to protect his reputation — even unto death. The hero 's duty was to fight, and the only way he had of gaining glory and immortality was through heroic action on the battlefield; thus, he continually prepared his life for the life-and-death risks of battle. The Homeric hero believed that men had to stand together in battle; men had to respect each other; and they had to refrain from excessive cruelty. This last condition was critically important for the Homeric hero. He loathed deliberate acts of cruelty and injustice. If he were ready to kill a victim, he believed that he should do it quickly; he was not to mutilate him, as Achilles does with Hektor 's body. By following this code, a hero gained a sense of dignity and a reputation for honor that would ensure his place in the social memory of his community.
The Greeks placed great importance on personal honor. Why is this? Is it because to them man I nothing without honor. Or is it that the honor is more important than the man? "Honor to the Greeks is something that is won by a man's prowess, his ability to fight and be victorious on the battle field"(Schein 62). This is just one example of how honor is obtained. A second method of gaining honor is to be a great orator, one must posses the ability to speak in the assembly and express his ideas eloquently, and persuasively to the gathered body. A third way of achieving personal honor is to demonstrate athletic ability.
Hoevel, A. (2005, July 15). Luxury camping: roughing it the easy way. CNN News. Retrieved
The Iliad is a story about the war between the Trojans and the Greeks. They believe that if you fight in a war, this is how you prove ones honor and integrity, but to not fight would show cowardice or fear. During this time, the males were trained from a young age to assume a major role in the war efforts (Rosenberg, 1999, p. 119).
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.
The themes: the power of a name, guest-friendship, glory, and honor appear in books six through eight of The Iliad. These themes are important to consider in relation to each other. Glory elevates honor, meaning that same actions that help one obtain glory can also yield honor to the person, or the person’s family. A name carries the glory and honor of the bearer in a record that extends beyond the life of the individual. In the next generation, the name reminds the community of the legacy left by previous generations. In this way, the level of glory and honor obtained by one family member can apply to the entire family. Therefore pursuing glory and honor is not solely a selfish pursuit,
“Then the screaming and shouts of triumph rose up together, of men killing and men killed, and the ground ran blood.” From first examination the Iliad seems to be an epic founded on an idealized form of glory, the kind that young boys think about when they want to join the army. A place full of heroism and manliness where glory can be achieved with a few strokes of a sword and then you go home and everything is just lovely. Many people view the Iliad this way, based on it’s many vivid battle descriptions and apparent lack of remorse for the deaths that occur. This, however, is not how war is presented in the Iliad. Homer presents a very practical outlook on war countering the attainment of the glory with the reality of its price and the destruction it causes. He successfully does this by showing the value of the lives of each person that dies and, in a sense, mourning their passing, describing the terror and ugliness of war, and, through the characters of Achilleus and Hector, displaying the high price of glory.
Although the Homeric society had Gods to lead its character, still emotion was able to overtake logic and calculated moves in war. Achilles was warned that “[He is] destined for both an early death and misery beyond compare” (Il. 1.438-439) yet, he continues to fight for tîmê and kleos. The pride that comes from success on the battlefield is worth much more than being in safe. Half man, half god, Achilles innately had a more complete scope of the world after his actions. Even though
In 1940, McDonalds was not the multi-million dollar industry that people recognize today. In fact, it started out as a small drive-in style BBQ restaurant, owned by Dick and Mac McDonald, in San Bernadino, California. However in 1948, the entire workings of the restaurant were altered, making it the dawn of the McDonald’s empire. This new drive-in, like other drive-in restaurants of its time, struggled to make a large amount of profit, due to selling low-priced food using traditional methods, which were often labor intensive and expensive. But the McDonald brothers fixed this problem by reducing their menu 25 items to nine items: hamburgers, cheeseburgers, soft drinks, milk, coffee, potato chips, and a slice of pie. Their staple item, the 30 cent hamburger, accounted for 80 percent of their total sales. Later, the brothers altered the production to that of the Fordist assembly line in order to make the whole operation fast and efficient, halving the price of their items, including their prized hamburger. (http://www.aboutmcdonalds.com/mcd/our_company/mcdonalds_history_timeline.html?DCSext.destination=http://www.aboutmcdonalds.com/mcd/our_company/mcd_history.html).
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