Leaving a Life of Violence to Find Your Own Path In Long Way Down, Reynolds set the theme with his introduction of Will Holloman, the main character. Everyone believes Will doesn't have the guts to follow The Rules like those before him. The Rules are simple: no crying, no snitching, and killing for revenge.
Pathos: 223-227 Peleus’s son Achilles voiced his thoughts in anger. “But Peleus' son once again in words of derision
But we’ll let that be no matter how it hurts. And conquer our pride, because we must.” Achilles is telling his mother in other words, he is picking his battles wisely. He would rather leave the fight with Agamemnon alone and pursue the fight with Hector, after all Hector
However, Priam sought hospitality and mercy rather than revenge. Hospitality is also important because of its link with honor and glory, another common theme in the Iliad. By combining the theme of honor into situations that also relate to hospitality, characters can make concrete points and develop the story. Achilles, when being to rejoin the army by Phoenix in book nine, is hospitable, however, he is also concerned with his honor as Agamemnon had just dishonored him. The combination of these two themes allow Achilles to make the point that he will be hospitable to his friends and fellow soldiers but due to the slight on his honor he will not be able to forgive Agamemnon.
It is so deeply rooted that it encompasses Achilles, becoming a characteristic of this great warrior, influencing his actions and chooses throughout the story, such as leaving the fighting and considering the idea to return to Pythia. The depth of Achilles rage and hatred is demonstrated through in his response to Agamemnon, concerning the gifts he offered as compensation for his wrongs, saying that “not if his gifts outnumbered all the grains of sand and dust in the earth, no not even then could Agamemnon bring my fighting spirit round” (9.470-472). The true rage of Achilles is extremely important to the entire story of The Iliad, as from Book One through Book Nine Achilles allows this rage to control his actions, causing him to Achilles remains absent from the fighting as well as causing him to pray to Zeus that Trojans may receive the upper hand in the fighting so that the Greeks may suffer for Agamemnon’s actions. Therefore, this profound rage is an extremely important aspect of The Iliad, as it ultimately effects not only Achilles actions but also course of the
How can he take time to nurture his relationships when the only bond he nurtures is with the slot machine? Similarly, the warriors in “The Iliad” believe, in the defiance of the odds, that they may be the next to slaughter a mighty Achaean or Trojan warrior. We see this reflected in Achilles’ in his utterance on Aeneas, “Never, never again will he have the nerve to test my fighting power—even now he was glad to save himself from death.” These men take the opinions and appraisals of their fellow men more seriously than the plaintive requests of their families. Those who do not love them, the fellow members of their army, possess the leverage and power to criticize their character and render judgments that weigh more heavily on their-self worth.
Book 21 focused heavily on setting up for the audience and everyone around him that the entire reason he was there was to avenge his best friend and make sure that everyone responsible paid for his death. One particular quote caught my attention as being a good explanation, stating “No, you’ll all die, die ugly deaths, until you have paid for the Greeks’ loss, for Patroclus dead, killed by the ships while I was away” (Iliad, Book 21, 141-43). He also exposes his motive for why he feels he must avenge Patroclus- he feels responsible for not being there when Patroclus died, possibly able to prevent him from meeting such a fate. Now he is taking out his anger over Patroclus’ death on all Trojans and refuses to show any of them mercy. Going beyond just seeking revenge, he’s also continuing to partake in the aforementioned brutal violence.
The Iliad is a riveting tale of violence and rage amongst heartbreak and tragedy, where a range of emotions are evoked through various events and decisions made by the characters throughout. Some of these characters act on impulse, while others think over with others and themselves to find the best course of action and do what they feel would be the best, be it for their families or their people, or for themselves alone. Through such feelings, certain events play out that either work out to the favor of the characters, or the exact opposite. Characters like Achilles and Agamemnon act on their anger, often going beyond what would be deemed reasonable and even affecting the events following. Achilles’ anger was triggered by Agamemnon’s arrogance
Achilles and Hector in The Iliad and Medea and Jason Medea all have characteristics that eventually led to their downfall. Achilles is a furious man, and it leads him to do unspeakable things. Hector is very prideful, and it clouds his judgement. In Medea, Medea is revengeful, and all she thinks about his getting revenge. Jason is insensitive, and it cost him his family.
In the Iliad, Achilles is responding to Odysseus’s speech attempting to convince him to return to the war. Achilles’ main argument against returning is his incalculable rage against Agamemnon for “the prize of honor / The warlord Agamemnon gave me / And in his insulting arrogance took back” which is not only an insult to Achilles’ status, but also to his honor as a warrior (Il. 9.378-379). In addition to focusing on the main argument of Achilles’ speech, it is worth noting the contradictions present within his speech as well.
Agamemnon’s taking of Briseis enrages Achilles and spurs him to remove himself from the war, leading to a massive death toll in the Achaean forces. In stealing Briseis from Achilles, he is not only robbing of him of a material prize, but also a symbol of honor, his geras, in Greek culture. In retaliation, Achilles removes himself from the war and prays to his mother, Thetis, that she will ask Zeus to damage the Achaean forces. Achilles’ only goal is that “even mighty Atrides can see how mad he was to disgrace Achilles” (1.488-490). Despite having no true grievance against the Achaean army as a whole, Achilles’ rage blinds him from the potential harm that may befall his troops.
In Iliad, the first revenge action was made by Menelaus, the king of Sparta. He enraged and decided to take a revenge from the Trojans, because of loss of his wife, Helen. When he went to war, plenty of his companions joined him, such as Achilles, the leader of the Myrmidons, Odysseus, the king of Ithaca, Ajax the Greater, the king of Salamis, etc. After that, in book 16, Achilles lends Patroclus his armor, sends him off with a stern admonition to not to pursue the Trojans. However, Patroclus ignoring Achilles’ command, pursues and reaches the gates of Troy and is killed by Hector.
We see this taking place when Achilles is trying to convince Agamemnon to give the girl back to her father. He says in line 150, “We Achaeans will pay you back…if Zeus will grant us the gift, somehow, someday, to raze Troy’s massive ramparts to the ground.” Achilles is offering to repay for his honor later on, when they conquer Troy. Agamemnon refuses again, however, this shows
Athena seeking revenge approaches Hector with the guise of Deiphobus, Hector’s brother, while Hector was being hunted down by Achilles, “‘Now, let’s go straight for him. Let’s fight and not hold back our spears, so we can see if Achilles kills us both, then takes the bloodstained trophies to the ships, or whether you’ll destroy him on your spear’” (Homer, Iliad 22. 301-305). This action was brought on by revenge in divine
Homer underlines that this behavior is foul, for Achilles allows his soldiers to wound the body and then bounds Hector’s feet to his chariot in order to harm the body. Although Hector asked him to give his body to his family, Achilles ignores the last will of the dying Trojan hero because he is still obsessed with his revenge. One should remember that the Greeks believed it was the issue of primary importance to bury a person’s body in a decent way so that their spirit would find the sanctuary. In other words, Achilles takes revenge in the most horrible way
