Homer reveals his ideas of glory through the use of similes, comparing great men to flora and natural forces, conveying the idea that glory comes from these forces themselves. These similes Homer uses in The Iliad exemplify how glory obtained in battle is nothing compared to the glory and immortality of nature. Homer purposely juxtaposes the images of nature, using diction to intensify their glory, to images of men fighting for glory. During battles, especially when warriors are gaining immense glory, many similes about plants and natural forces appear. In book XII, two Trojan warriors arising to the front line in battle are compared to “oaks that rear their crests on a mountain ridge, / standing up to the gales and driving rains, day …show more content…
In book XI, Nestor gives a speech in which he reflects back on his time as a warrior. During this dialogue, he compares him charging the enemy lines to “a black tornado” (XI. 888). A tornado is powerful and full of force, and Nestor uses this to describe himself as such (Weil). A tornado is full of glory because it is well known by all people for its destructive force, such force that only a god can even become close in equaling it. Just like a flood would, a tornado destroys all in its path, with no mercy because it is inanimate. Parallel to the life of a tornado, Nestor was a glorious warrior in his prime. But now that he is older, he no longer has great glory. He rather commands respect for his mass amount of knowledge, and in this way still holds some glory. The fame he still has is not anywhere close to the glory he held in his prime though. This loss of glory is also like a tornado: it is glorious in its power while it lives, but after it is gone it does not instill as much fear in the hearts of people. The path of destruction it leaves ends the glory of that specific tornado, but the stories passed along about it increase the glory in the concept of a tornado (Ready). The fact that Nestor, an older man with the most knowledge, chose to use a tornado to describe his glorious time as a warrior highlights the fact that he believes natural forces to hold true …show more content…
When warriors are killed, the glory they have acquired throughout their lifetime gets transferred to their killer. While glory is usually lost throughout time for warriors and other items, like glorious structures, death during war is a major reason of why many warrior’s glory is cut short. Paralleling to this loss of glory, glory can be lost from plants. When they are killed, they lose their glory. An example of this from the text is during book XIII, when warriors are killed and their fall to the earth is juxtaposed to “down he went like a tall ash on a landmark mountain ridge that glistens far and wide” (XIII. 213-214). Just like the warrior, the ash tree is being cut down, and its glory is ending. The tree no longer braces the forces on that mountain ridge, and instead will be burned or left to decompose. This shows that just as the warriors can lost their glory, so can plants. Another place this tree metaphor is used to explain a loss of glory, and life, is when a warrior is decapitated, and his head is described “rolling through the carnage like a log” (XI. 170). A log is but a husk of the former tree it used to be, devoid of both life and glory. While nature does embody true glory, its glory can be easily lost when disrupted by a stronger force (Weil). But, unlike humans, the plant’s glory is kept alive through its species, which created plants
It is important to note that the Iliad is originally a poem told by many bards and storytellers; by using similes, Homer compliments the spoken word of the Iliad with a visual component. In certain scenes, Homer utilizes similes in the Greeks’ favor, elevating their battle prowess in comparison to the Trojans. Presented to a primarily Greek audience, Homer’s particularity in bolstering the Greek army plays to the bias of the audience––augmenting the atmosphere of the crowd. The implementation of similes throughout the epic is vital to the poem as it provides the Greek audience with a brief respite from the practically nonstop gore of
Similes are used by Homer within the Iliad to induce pathos by contrasting the unnatural bestiality of battle with vivid imagery from the natural world. The innocence of nature within the smilies not only allows for a break from the endless grim of war, but also increases the connectability of the epic. Not everyone, even during the historical time period the Iliad was composed in, experienced war. Therefore, the comparison of war to something common, like nature, allows the audience to connect with the work and experience the pathos it induces.
A man threw his son of a mountain because he was ugly. A soldier doomed his countrymen because his prize was stolen from him. A woman plotted the destruction of an entire city because one man chose another woman over her. Murder, jealousy, and impulsive anger, none of these traits sound virtuous, and yet these were among the most virtuous of people. Through The Iliad by Homer, the differences between Ancient Greek idea and the current idea of righteousness become visible. But power and goodness cannot stave off misfortune and grief. Although his definition of virtue remains drastically different from the modern definition, Homer teaches that virtue does not save from tragedy and divine power does not always rescue from pain and sorrow.
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.
The idea of individual honor is predominant all through the Iliad. The honor of each individual in Homeric society was vital, however to the saint, his honor was central. He couldn 't continue put-down, and he felt that he needed to secure his notoriety — even unto demise. The saint 's obligation was to battle, and the main way he had of picking up transcendence and everlasting status was through gallant activity on the front line; in this manner, he persistently arranged his life for the life-and-demise dangers of fight. The Homeric saint trusted that men needed to stand together in fight; men needed to regard each other; and they needed to abstain from over the top brutality. This last condition was basically vital for the Homeric legend. He detested conscious demonstrations of cold-bloodedness and bad form. On the off chance that he were prepared to execute a casualty, he trusted that he ought to do it rapidly; he was not to disfigure him, as Achilles does with Hektor 's body. By tailing this code, a saint picked up a
than the times of today. Back then, the most important aspect of life for a
The Iliad is an epic tale of war and hero’s within the Greek way of life. A
“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.
In The Iliad, Homer uses vivid similes developed over several lines to enhance the atmosphere of the scene. Both to help the reader understand the vastness of the situation and enhance imagery, these epic similes as they are known help immerse the reader in the image as well as give it a deeper meaning. In Achilles’ pursuit of Hector, Homer does exactly this using two similes rather than one. Both similes hold different imagery of the same situation helping to describe the occurrence from different perspectives as well as give a diverse view on the actions of the characters.
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.
Throughout the Iliad the warriors' dream of peace is projected over and over again in elaborate similes developed against a background of violence and death. Homer is able to balance the celebration of war's tragic, heroic values with scenes of battle and those creative values of civilized life that war destroys. The shield of Achilles symbolically represents the two poles of human condition, war and peace, with their corresponding aspects of human nature, the destructive and creative, which are implicit in every situation and statement of the poem and are put before us in something approaching abstract form; its emblem is an image of human life as a whole.
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 Iliad is a poem that celebrates the heroic values war imposes on its votaries (27)." Homer himself describes war as "bringing glory to man." War is a huge part of both the Achaeans and the Trojans' lives. Characters gain glory through their performances and bravery in battle. Furthermore, Homer persuades the reader that war is the glorious way to settle a dispute. For example, Hector and other Trojans scorn Paris for backing down from Menelaus. On the other hand, Achilles acquires glory by deferring the option of a long, peaceful life in order to fight and become an epic hero. The characters in The Iliad value honor and glory to such a degree that they are willing to give up life itself in order to possess it.
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.
Victories in battle gained the Homeric hero honour in the eyes of their fellow aristoi; however, this was not enough to exhibit their triumphs. ‘… [T]here appears to be a close equation between honour… and the possession of a ‘prize’… ’ (Block 1, p. 50), as success in battle could be forgot, the heroes materialised these victories within the prizes taken as the spoils of war. These prizes provided a lasting symbol of their achievements; therefore, their importance was immense. We see this importance demonstrated in the way Agamemnon is determined to retain Chryseis, his ‘trophy’, saying to her father, ‘The girl I will not give back…’ (Iliad, 1.29). She is the embodiment of his honour, manifested in the flesh. When forced to give her back to her father, Agamemnon’s symbol of honour is gone and his pride is wounded. This dishonour may even jeopardise his position as leader of the Greek army and explains why he demands another man’s ‘prize’.