Writers of history often have the habit of pulling out one’s rose-tinted glasses to fondly write of times long past. Homer was the Greek leading man of this. Homer most famous works are The Iliad and The Odyssey, both epics of famous mythological Greek heroes. Homer first wrote The Iliad some time in the eighth century BC about the Trojan War. The real Trojan War was in the thirteen century. The time gap between the actual event and books only proves the level of nostalgia Homer applies to his writings. He viewed the thirteenth century as the time of powerful gods, extraordinary heroes, and mighty kings. His worldview was reflected in The Iliad, which was stocked to the brim with all three of those kinds of characters. The heroes in particular
Achilles was the son of the King Peleus and Thetis a water goddess. He was also the ruler of the Myrmidons, the land that grew heroes. He was gifted with invulnerability and was a strong skilled warrior. He is direct, passionate, and brave. Homer illustrates Achilles’ skills in his many descriptions of Achilles as “swift-footed”. The other characters frequently comment and describe Achilles’ godlike strength. Achilles’ own dialogue says much about his character as he tells others to “take courage” and directly claims “I’d be a coward, a nobody, if I held back from any action because of something you might say.” Achilles was brave and passionate in what he stood and fought for, this included being unafraid to go against a powerful king, Agamemnon, if he believed they were in the wrong. He also has no tolerance for those he believes to be lacking courage or strength. This is shown once again when he rebukes the king for being a “deer timid coward” who stood behind army rather than “venture with Achaea’s bravest in a
Agamemnon is the king of the Achaeans or “that king of men” as Homer described him as. Agamemnon is stubborn, arrogant, noble, powerful, and has angered his fair share of gods in his life. Homer emphasized Agamemnon power as king by referring to him as “wide-ruling” and “mighty.“ He even further points out Agamemnon as a king in the dialogue when he writes him “the scepter-bearing king whose powerful authority comes from Zeus.” Zeus is the head god of the Olympian gods so to say that Agamemnon’s power came directly from asserted his right to all his power and might. Other characters that appear are implied to be heroic. There is the wise experienced Nestor who has advised better men ”who never showed me any disrespect.” There are the wise advisor Idomeneus, Ajax, and Odysseus. Also there is the wise seer Calchas who bravely spoke against the king. The Iliad clearly defines the way Greek heroes were identified, but it is a tad more difficult to the same in the present. There is no lack of heroes in the modern world and there is no lack of ways to define them. Many of the core heroic characteristics like wisdom, strength, bravery, and power are often remain in some form. These traits thought are often twisted and stretched different ways to fit the story the narrative is trying to
The ancient Greeks and Romans made a variety of contributions to western civilization in the field of literature. Both of these ancient cultures produced a variety of literary works which have persevered the test of time and continue to be studied today. One of the biggest contributions of the ancient Greeks to literature came from an author, who still relatively little is known about, Homer. Homer, believed by many to have been blind, is credited with the authorship of two of ancient Greece’s most famous epic poems, The Iliad and The Odyssey. These two epic poems chronicle the final days of the Trojan War and the epic struggle Odysseus underwent on his sea voyage back to his home after the tragic war. These two epics have had a profound impact on western literature and continue to influence literary scholars and authors to this day. The following excerpt from Bio descries the impact of these ancient poems, “The Iliad and The Odyssey have provided not only seeds but fertilizer for almost all the other arts and sciences in Wester...
Agamemnon demands, the "Argives will give me a prize, a match for my desires, equal to what I have lost, well and good. But if they give me nothing I will take a prize myself (1.159-62)." When Achilles confronts Agamemnon about this, Agamemnon responds, "You are nothing to me--you and your overweening anger! ...
In Webster’s Dictionary, a hero is defined as a person noted for courageous acts or nobility of purpose, especially if this individual has risked or sacrificed his life. In the Iliad and the Odyssey, the code which administers the conduct of the Homeric heroes is a straightforward idea. The aim of every hero is to achieve honor. Throughout the Iliad and the Odyssey, different characters take on the role of a hero. Honor is essential to the Homeric heroes, so much that life would be meaningless without it. Thus, honor is more important than life itself.
The Greeks also had their share of icons and heroes. They admired Jason and his quest for the golden fleece, and Perseus, the killer of Medusa, but their finest heroes come from Homer’s Iliad: Hector and Achilles. Hector was the best warrior in Troy and the son of Priam, the king of Troy. Achilles was the great warrior of the Greek army and killed Hector. The Greek citizens, siding with their own nationality, declared the Greek warrior Achilles the hero of the Trojan War, but since ancient Greece no longer exists an unbiased view of the Ilia...
In the introduction of the Essential Illiad given by Sheila Murnaghan, Achilles is labeled as “the greatest of the Greek heroes”. In classic mythology a hero is a person of great strength and courage celebrated for bold exploits and is often the offspring of a mortal and a god. Achilles was the greatest fighter among the Greeks or Trojans and feared no man in battle. He was also the offspring of a mortal and a god so by classic mythology definition, Achilles was indeed a hero. A hero is defined by the present day Websters Dictionary as: “one who inspires through manners and actions; an individual who leads through personal example and accomplishments requiring bravery, skill, determination, and other admirable qualities.” Achilles, in no manner, fits this definition. By contemporary standards, he is instead a pathetic villain. Aside from being a kidnapper, rapist and murderer, Achilles proves to be emotionally weak, selfish, and malicious. Many times throughout the Illiad, Achilles is also referred to as “godlike”. The gods of Greek mythology were subject to the same emotions and character flaws as humans, and though privileged to some foresight, the gods had similar mental capacities as humans. What really set the gods apart were their powers (controlling the elements, changing their appearance, etc.), great strength, and immortality. Because of his great strength and apparent invincibility, it is easy to see why Achilles would...
In the Iliad, Achilles is the main protagonist. He is a demi-god and is the son of the nymph Thetis and Peleus who was the King of the Myrmidons. He was a Greek hero of the Trojan War. He falls in love with a battle prize called Briseis. He is to portray, “as a brave, loyal, cocky, intelligent and even superhuman soldier. In Achilles ' case, the word "superhuman" is literal; he is the result of a union between a god and a mortal.”(Harvard 1)
In Homer’s The Iliad, Achilles is often referred to as a very courageous Greek hero but a further look into the epic will reveal a man that is more arrogant than courageous. It was truly his arrogance that made his name famous and not his courage. Achilles was a narcissistic, self-serving man who was not concerned with his fellow country man. His actions of courage can easily be revealed as selfishness instead of what most people believe.
Homer is credited for writing epics that generate source materials for the modern world. The Iliad and the Odyssey by Homer are captivating stories with fascinating heroic characters. The Homer stories share with classical mythology typical recurrent motifs. The two Homer epic poems focus on the Trojan War, and its result. The epic poems contain the Greek mythology featuring the Greek gods, goddesses, mythological creatures, and the Greek heroes, and heroines. In addition, the principal motifs typical of classical mythological hero stories are; the dominance of fate, evil fighting against the gods, and death. In both the classic mythology, and he modern fiction hero stories, the heroes always have a helper in their expedition, but ultimately, they have to stand alone, face the darkness, and conquer it in order to become victorious.
The first requirement of Aristotle's tragic hero is that they are more admirable than the average character. Achilles meets this requirement because of his ability on the battlefield. In The Iliad, the background to the story is the war between the Greeks and the Trojans. This background is not only the basis for the story overall, but is also the basis for Achilles' own story. This begins when Achilles refuses to join the battle because he is insulted by Agamemnon. This decision results in the action that drives the remainder of the story. Later in the story when Achilles becomes angered and goes to the other extreme, launching into battle and killing ferociously. The significance of this is that it places battle as central to both Achilles' story and to what is important in the setting of the story. Importantly, the aspect that makes Achilles greater than most is his ability o...
Because he embodied Greek ideals, was ‘immortalized’ through his actions and glorious death, and was courageous, Achilles was an epic hero. Honor was of the utmost importance to both him and the entire Greek society, he chose to die a hero in battle, and he avenged the death of Patroclus even through mourning; Achilles is the true hero of the Iliad.
In 700 B.C, Homer, a blind Greek poet, composed The Iliad. This work has become one of the most significant works in Western literature. The Iliad is an epic poem. It is a long narrative poem in verse form which tells the story of a hero. Achilles is the epic hero in The Iliad. Achilles is the best warrior of the Achaeans and Hector was the top warrior for the Trojans. Although Achilles and Hector seem very similar, they actually have a lot of differences between the two of them, which makes each of them unique. The similarities are prominent between Achilles and Hector, but they were different in the way the way they lived, why they fought, and by their mentality.
Homer’s epic poems, The Iliad and The Odyssey, are similar in many ways as well as different. The gods of Mount Olympus play a big role in each of the stories; but that does not necessarily mean the same role. The attitudes betrayed from the gods seem as if they are nearly polar opposites from the Iliad to the Odyssey. Yes, there are some similarities shown from the gods rather than just their name but there are very few. The structure as well as the theme of the two poems shows a few similarities and many differences, also.
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.
The character of Achilles is first introduced in book one of The Iliad, which some people consider to be the “Wrath or Rage of Achilles.” Homer used the particular scene where Agamemnon collects Achilles’ prize, Chryses’ daughter, to develope this particular character’s heroic framework. In rage, Achilles accuses Agamemnon of being excessively prideful, like a multitude of the Achaean warriors. With enough adios to give the prize back, he proceeds to call out to his mother in disarray, like a small child running to one’s mother when he or she does not get their way. Through his mother, Thetis’ prophecy to Zeus about Achilles, the audience is made aware that he will either live a short, glorious life or a long, lusterless life.
The fact that the opening lines of the epic are about Achilles’ power and the people he has killed as a soldier on the Greek side show the huge importance given to him and his power. In his confrontation with Agamemnon regarding Chryseis, he tells Agamemnon that the Greek people want him to give Chryseis back to her father, the priest. This is an example of his great status among his people – he represents them, the one that lets Agamemnon hear their voice.