How Does Homer Present The Brutalization Of War In The Iliad

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In the epic poem, The Iliad, Homer, the author, embeds numerous literary devices into the text in order to deepen the meaning of the work as a whole. The Iliad focuses on a single story regarding Achilles rage in the ninth year of the Trojan war. By depicting the story of Achilles rage with literary devices, Homer displays the horror of war through the eyes of a Homeric society. Homer’s use of graphic imagery and sympathetic backstories illustrate the brutalization of war. In Book XVI, Homer uses graphic imagery illustrating Kebriones’ death to portray the brutalization of war. Taking the form of a Trojan warrior, Apollo commands Hektor to go on the offensive. Although fleeting, Patroklos retaliates against Hektor’s advance: Patroklos braces himself as he scores a direct hit on Hektor’s driver, Kebriones’ skull with a jagged stone; smashing his facing features, causing hit eyes to burst from his skull and thus draining the life out of the bastard son’s body. Through the illustration of Kebriones’ death, Homer indicates how innocent men pointlessly die gruesome deaths; ultimately suffering from the ruthlessness of war. …show more content…

Homer confronts the premise that every man is fated to die, and proposes that Simoeisios and many others merely appear in the poem to perish. Homer provides a small backstory, a gesture that represents everything Simoeisios left behind when entering the war. Likewise, in Book VI of The Iliad, Homer provides a sympathetic backstory indicating his unfavorable attitude towards to the brutalization of war. As Hektor returns to Troy to rally the spirits of his people, he is met by Andromakhe who begs him to remain inside the walls of Troy. She continues by uttering a sympathetic backstory regarding the past loss of her family members to the Achaean

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