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Hubris In The Odyssey

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Our initial introduction to Agamemnon was his not-so-political demonstration of hubris as he disregarded the honor of his men and fulfilled his own selfish desires. Agamemnon's actions led to the retaliation of Apollo and the loss of loyalty of the great warrior Achilleus. It seems like hubris is used by Homer to express power and confidence in a warrior. Interestingly, as the war continues it is Achilleus who demonstrates the most hubris.

Achilleus' displeasure of the actions of his commanding officer, Agamemnon, were clearlye expressed in book eleven. “All the other prizes of honor he gave the great men and the princes are held fast by them, but from me alone of all the Achaians he has taken and keeps the bride of my heart. (page 255, line 335)” He was so butthurt …show more content…

“Son of Peleus, far greatest of the Achaians, Achilleus, do not be angry; such grief has fallen upon th Achaians. For all those who were before the bravest in battle are lying up among the ships with arrow or spear wounds. (page 351, line 22)” The honorable thing for Achilleus to do in this situation would be to rejoin the Achaian forces and defend his brothers. But Achilleus continues to wine about how Agamemnon treated him like a “...dishonored vagabond. (page 352, line 59)” Infact he repeats this statement multiple times whenever discussing this matter. He was so affected by being treated like a lower class, he literally abandoned his duty as a soldier. Patroklos then proposed that he dresses up as Achilleus to inspire the troops and insight fear into the Trojans. Once again, Achilleus demonstrates hubris by rebutting, “So you will diminish my honor. (page 353, line 90)” This interaction between Achillius and Patroklos clearly demonstrates the self-interest of Achillius. He ultimately allows Patroklos to take his armor, knowing that Patroklos will probably

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In Greek culture, honor was immensely important and the Cyclops has none. In contrast, Odysseus brags about the great feats of Agamemnon yelling, “So great a city he sacked, such multitudes he killed”(9.298-299) That Odysseus sees pride in killing, shows that the Greeks valued killing, but only if honorable. There is a stark contrast between the killings of the Cyclops and those of King Agamemnon. In the eyes of the Greeks, Agamemnon’s killings were for his country, his people, and the greater good of society. These murders had a selfless purpose.

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Achilleus, who considers himself a greater fighter than Agamemnon, does not believe that he should be taking orders from Agamemnon, and becomes angered when Agamemnon takes his prize, Brisies when he has to give up his prize, Criseis. Achilleus asks Agamemnon how “Anyone of the Achaians readily obey you” (79) and looses his temper. Achilleus becomes so enraged that he turns on his

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In contrast, in the Oresteia, the myth demonstrates an overwhelming theme of justice. Agamemnons’ death here shows the curse hunting his household from generation to generation, starting from Agamemnon’s father

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Patroclus tries to persuade Achilles by telling him to “at least send him out, let him lead a troop of Myrmidons” so that he can “light the way for their army” (Homer 16.43-44). Patroclus expresses that he loves the Greeks too much to just sit around at the camp. He feels very emotional for his friend, so he wants to take his place and fight this war for him. Patroclus still has a mindset that “If the Trojans think” he is Achilles then “they’ll back off and give the Greeks some breathing space” (Homer 16.44-46). Patroclus believes his cleverness can outdo the Trojans in battle.

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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.

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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.

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If I stay here and fight before the city of Troy, there will be no home- coming for me but my fame shall never die; if I go home to my native land, there will be no great fame for me, but I shall live long and not die an early death.” (Homer 110) This shows that he is selfishness and fearful at the same time of losing and dying in the war. In the very beginning of the Iliad, King Agamemnon and Achilles have an argument for a couple of different reasons. After, the Achians won a battle against a city that was allied with the Trojans each of them received a prize consisted of a young woman from the war.

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Achilles is seen to be full of wrath in the beginning of the book. This wrath is not caused only because Agamemnon takes his prize of war. He is angry at the system which allows Agamemnon to play around with other people’s honors and the system which allows him to decide who gets how much honor. In other words, Achilles does not like the idea that someone else can decide what happens to his honor, despite him deserving most of the honor in relation to how much he contributes in war. As the story proceeds, Achilles seems to contradict himself a lot, and the concept of honor helps us understand this better.

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Also, the fact that he contended with the top man drove his point home: he demanded respect. A man capable of capturing the respect and admiration of an army is a man capable of leading an army; inspiring them, stirring them to bravery, to courage, to wrath, to love, to sorrow, to indignation, to arms, to war. He understood the importance of the way the men viewed him, and knew exactly how to manipulate this to his advantage. Achilles was socially aware, whereas Agamemnon neglected his social

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