His discussion on Arete uses this scene as an example. Truly epic in nature, this scene depicts on a grand scale what takes place on Naval installations, Marine and Army bases around the world as our men go off to war. The need of men to be warriors, true to the ideals of our nation, and to continue the traditions of virtue, liberty and freedom. I love everything about it Steve. Thanks for all you do Steve. The only scene more heartbreaking for me is when Andromache is about to have her son taken from her arms to be dashed upon the rocks by the Achaian soldiers in The Trojan Women by Euripedes.
I cannot read it without breaking down into a heap of bawling. What strength and courage to endure all that Andromache did. Rather it is a picture into the soul of those that go into harms way to try and ensure the lives of others are safe. Death happens, but death sitting on the sidelines and doing nothing while your country, or in this case, city-state is being attacked is far more repulsive in nature. They mourned as well they should, but they were proud of him and his courage and he loved his family.
When given the choice to live a long life but have no legacy or to live a short life with an eternal legacy he chooses the latter, a choice it seems he regrets later. One of the only people in the world he cared about was killed so he went on a rage of blood lust thinking it would be the catharsis he needed.
He killed indiscriminately and without thought. He kills Hector and drags him around behind his chariot. The shield of Hephaestus pretty much shows the good life in peace and also the despair war can bring. It shows the happiness that was once Troy contrasted to what will soon come to pass because of war.
It shows that peace and civility, not war and glory, are what should be sought after. Both heroes and their families or whatever Patroclus is to Achilles die so no one is left to make amends. Priam's visit gives both men an understanding of the common bonds of humanity.
Priam follows Iris' instructions of going to Achilles as a suppliant, where he plays the role of a father and not that of king of Troy. Were Priam to go to Achilles as king of Troy, the meeting would be purely for negotiating, and neither Achilles nor Priam would gain spiritually from the encounter. However, going as a suppliant, Priam falls into the category of a guest-friend, and as such, Achilles receives him as the father of Hektor.
Kissing Achilles' hands, Priam lays aside his kingly role and pleads with Achilles to remember his own father, who is also old. Priam says that his sons are dead and the only son who could help him that is, Hektor now lies dead in Achilles' camp.
Priam adds that he has kissed the hands of the man who killed his children. By kissing Achilles' hands instead of avenging Hektor's death, Priam breaks a taboo, and by this act, Priam humbles himself before Achilles.
Priam's act causes Achilles to see Priam as he sees his own father, and the awakening of sympathy within Achilles begins. While Priam mourns for Hektor, Achilles mourns for what his father will endure when he, Achilles, is dead.
By their mourning together, Achilles' wrath becomes anguish, and Priam's anguish becomes forgiveness. Together, the two men form a special kinship through suffering. Through their mutual suffering, Priam and Achilles leave the social sphere of the Homeric world behind and enter the divine sphere of human understanding. The mutual exasperation with the war that motivates the cease-fire of Books 3 and 4 has now disappeared. No longer wanting to end the war, the Trojans desire to win it; that they camp right beside the Achaeans demonstrates their hunger for battle.
Should the Trojans burn their ships, the strongest, noblest men and rulers of the Achaean race would either die in flames or remain stranded on foreign shores. Whereas he earlier frowns upon the infighting of the other gods but remains aloof himself, he now forbids his fellow Olympians from interfering and plunges headlong into the struggle.
Books 7 and 8 give the reader a glimpse of some of the tenets of Greek ritual and belief, which, since Greek culture dominated the ancient Mediterranean world, the Trojan warriors uphold as well. The encounter between Hector and Ajax in Book 7 , which ends with them exchanging arms and thereby sealing an unsettled conflict with a pact of friendship, demonstrates the value placed on respect and individual dignity.
We see that Greek culture places great significance on both enmity and friendship—on both the taking of lives and the giving of gifts—and that each has its proper place. Another aspect of the ancient Greek value system emerges in the agreement both sides make to pause their fighting to bury their respective dead. To the Greeks, piety demanded giving the dead, especially those who had died so gloriously, a proper burial, though proper burial could mean a number of things: here the mourners burn the corpses on a pyre; elsewhere they actually bury them.
According to ancient Greek belief, only souls whose bodies had been properly disposed of could enter the underworld. To leave a soul unburied, or, worse, to leave it as carrion for wild animals, indicated not only disrespect for the dead individual but, perhaps even worse, disregard for established religious traditions.
Ace your assignments with our guide to The Iliad! SparkTeach Teacher's Handbook. He very nearly kills Achilles, but the gods intervene. Hephaestus, sent by Hera, sets the plain on fire and boils the river until he relents.
A great commotion now breaks out among the gods as they watch and argue over the human warfare. Athena defeats Ares and Aphrodite. Poseidon challenges Apollo, but Apollo refuses to fight over mere mortals. His sister Artemis taunts him and tries to encourage him to fight, but Hera overhears her and pounces on her. Meanwhile, Priam sees the human carnage on the battlefield and opens the gates of Troy to his fleeing troops.
Achilles pursues them and very nearly takes the city, but the Trojan prince Agenor challenges him to single combat. Hector now stands as the only Trojan left outside Troy. Priam, overlooking the battlefield from the Trojan ramparts, begs him to come inside, but Hector, having given the overconfident order for the Trojans to camp outside their gates the night before, now feels too ashamed to join them in their retreat.
When Achilles finally returns from chasing Apollo disguised as Agenor , Hector confronts him. At first, the mighty Trojan considers trying to negotiate with Achilles, but he soon realizes the hopelessness of his cause and flees. He runs around the city three times, with Achilles at his heels. Hector stops running and turns to face his opponent. He and Achilles exchange spear throws, but neither scores a hit.
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