According To The U.S. Department Of Veterans’ Affairs,

"A black cloud of grief came shrouding over Achilles. Both hands clawing the ground for soot and filth, he poured it over his head, fouled his handsome face and black ashes settled onto his fresh clean war-shirt. Overpowered in all his power, sprawled in the dust, Achilles lay there, fallen…tearing his hair, defiling it with his own hands" (18.25-30). In this passage Achilles is acting out some of the classic symptoms of depression such as sadness and hopelessness.

In Homer’s Iliad, Achilles hears about the death of his dearest friend and says “Nothing matters to me now / But killing and blood and men in agony” (19.226). In the fit of reckless violence which follows, he slaughters so many young men that he clogs the River Scamander with their gore, slays helpless suppliants, and attempts to mutilate his chief enemy’s body after killing him. While it is impossible to deny Achilles’ compulsive and violent behavior in much of The Iliad, modern research on the effects of battle trauma on the human psyche invites us to reevaluate his behavior. In light of modern research conducted on war veterans suffering from PTSD (Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder), Achilles

At the battle of Troy, Achilles chooses almost certain death in exchange for the honor of avenging Patroclus. As Socrates paraphrases, “when his mother said to him, as he was eager to slay Hector, ‘My son, if you avenge the death of your friend Patroclus and kill Hector, you yourself shall die; for straightway, after Hector, is death appointed unto you,” (The Apology, 28c). However, Socrates is relatively loose in his representation of Achilles. Homer’s Achilles is focused primarily on private affairs as seen when he only agrees to return to battle to avenge personal loss in the form of his “beloved” Patroclus (The Iliad, book 18, 120). Contrastingly, Socrates represents the Greek hero as being much more absorbed by the necessity of attaining honor and justice for both himself and his peers. Through this specific example, Socrates makes it apparent that, he, like Achilles before him, is both willing and able to die if that is what it takes to find truth. He will under no circumstances condemn any of his actions just to save his life.

From the first pages of Homer’s The Iliad, Achilles is portrayed as vengeful, proud, and petty. As the book progresses, the image of Achilles as a spiteful child is sharpened dramatically. Towards the end of the epic; however, Achilles begins to exhibit qualities that are considered heroic even in today’s society. Once his loyal and trusted friend Patroclus dies, Achilles undergoes a drastic change in character. When he confronts the true horror of death, Achilles puts aside his immature

The epic The Iliad by Homer argues that Achilles reaction in many situations is rage. Achilles choice to respond in such a way is very significant. It shows that this emotion is very influential in his day-to-day life. However, there has been much discussion as to whether Achilles’s rage is a virtue or a vice. Other characters throughout The Iliad have commented on his rage, such as Athena, who says, “I came to see if I could check this temper of yours,” (Homer, 235) in a discussion she has with Achilles about his quarrel with Agamemnon. Athena’s comment suggests that it takes a lot of effort to put Achilles’s rage into check. Achilles seemingly uncontrollable rages creates a man throughout The Iliad who “like[s] fighting and war” (234). Most men in this epic longed to end the war; Achilles on the other hand yearned for more battle. Achilles drive for battle makes it evident that his rage and the manifestation of it in other characters as seen throughout The Iliad is not a virtue, but a vice.

In death’s atrocity, Achilles and the Athenians turn towards their self-interests in hopes to regain control and dignity. Achilles withdraws from the army in hopes they will recognize his worth, thus restoring honor to him. The Greeks “were stricken with unendurable grief” yet his “proud spirit” kept him from letting go of his anger. (Il. 9.4, 259). His inability to understand his mortality and resulting lack of philotēs “pitched countless souls of heroes into Hades’ dark” (Il. 1.3-4). Falling into fits of self-pity, Achilles is unable to recognize others’ sufferings, even of his own people. He complains to his mother that Agamemnon “has taken away [his] prize and dishonored” him and playing a lyre by the shore, away from the war displaying death’s reality (Il. 1.370). In his isolating mēnis, Achilles hardens into an apathetic death-like figure. Similarly, the Athenians begin to lack pity as their city turned towards “unprecedented lawlessness,… acts of self-indulgence,” and immorality during the plague (HPW 2.53). The Athenians even abandon their own people in fear of falling ill as well. Their civilization reveals it shallow-nature as they result to only considering present desires as honorable. In the face

The Therapeutic Potential of The Odyssey For PTSD Afflicted Soldiers The Odyssey, a story about a hero named Odysseus and his struggle to get back home, after fighting in war, tells a moving tale that speaks to many soldiers today. His desire to get back home is like that of any soldier, after fighting and training for many years. His love for his home, wife and son is like that of any parent, making him willing to do anything to return to them. When soldiers return, however, they have the chance of carrying frightening memories. These memories can possibly scar soldiers for life, making it hard to do everyday tasks.

The first line of the Iliad describes a human emotion that leads to doom and destruction in Homer's poetic tale of the Trojan War. Achilles' rage is a major catalyst in the action in the Iliad. It is his rage that makes him both withdraw from and, later, rejoin the war with a fury. Why is Achilles enraged? Is his rage ignited solely by his human adversaries or do the gods destine him to the experience? Achilles' rage has many facets. His rage is a personal choice and, at times, is created by the gods.

Although Achilles was quite outraged at this, he gave a respectful response, stating that he would drop out of the war because Agamemnon had dishonored him. Later, the Trojans killed Patroclus, Achilles’ dearest and most trusted friend. Achilles was overcome with grief, but realized how stubborn and selfish he was being by dropping out of the war. He decided that he had to join the war once again to honor Patroclus. He told his mother, “Enough. Let bygones be bygones. Done is done. Despite my anguish I will beat it down, the fury mounting inside me, down by force. But now I’ll go and meet that murderer head-on, that Hector who destroyed the dearest life I know.” It is clear that he knew that in those ancient times, a real hero avenged the death of a dear friend, and would sacrifice his own life to save the dead body and give it a proper burial.

He expresses no fear during battles. Throughout the Iliad, Achilles ignores the norms of the society primarily because he sees himself as a greater figure than one who has to follow a set of rules. Throughout the poem, Achilles shows how much of a savage he is through his gruesome actions. While fighting Hector, after brutally beating him up, Hector begs Achilles to return his body for a proper burial, a respected act after a battle. “Do not allow the dogs to mutilate my body By the Greek ships”, requested Hector (Homer,433). Achilles responds feeling no remorse, “I wish my stomach would let me cut off your flesh in strips and eat it raw for what you 've done to me. In this passage of the Iliad, Homer illustrates how gruesome Achilles really was. Achilles lets his anger drive his actions, seeking redemption, and he offers no respect to any of his enemies.

In Homer’s poem, the Iliad, the legendary, has no two characters that are very much alike yet so different as the Greek warriors, Achilles, and the Prince of Troy, Hector. Achilles is the most powerful fighter on the Greek side, and Hector is the strongest Trojan. Both of them are put into the character of a hero that each society have put them into; yet; it is evident that they are both greatly difficult characters with contrasting roles within their society and with their families, and with the gods. In the Greek culture, Achilles has the role of being an aggressive soldier. The very first lines of the poem, Achilles’ rage is illustrated,

In book one of the Iliad, Homer debunks Achilles rage as both dishonorable and duplicitous. Achilles may demonstrate great courage and strength, but he is severely deficient in the other qualities of an epic hero: temperance, magnanimity, and a sense of loyalty. His rage masked all these essential attributes. Though he is known as the most skilled and strong warrior, that doesn’t make up for the fact that Achilles acts upon his emotions, not his mind. Think of Achilles as a pot of water on a stove; calm and still until interrupted. Agamemnon is the heater and what causes Achilles to boil. In attempt to restore his honor, Achilles “raged on... day after day he ground his heart out, waiting there, yearning…” (1.581, 585-586). Agamemnon refuses

Following his prayer to Thetis, Achilles “sat tight in camp consumed with grief,/His great heart yearning for the battle cry and war” (Iliad 1.519-520). Early on, Homer shows Achilles to highly value battle; it is against Achilles’ nature to passively watch the war unfold. Achilles’ resolve to abandon the Greeks wanes because of Odysseus and Ajax’s differing presentations of Agamemnon’s gifts. I will prove Odysseus’ flattery and bribery hardens Achilles’ determination to leave, but Ajax sways Achilles to stay by condemning his betrayal and urging him toward a moral obligation to the Greek army.

Like Achilles’ “black and murderous” rage, Book XXII is filled with darkness, death, and grief (l.3). Achilles is on his way to accepting of his mortal component when finally accepts Agamemnon’s repayment gifts. The rage he once felt for Agamemnon is now directed towards the Trojans. Hector, the Trojan prince, kills Patroclus, a Greek solider. Now, the Trojans have now personally harmed Achilles by killing his friend. The death of Patroclus leads Achilles into a spiraling darkness; rage consumes his entire demeanor. Unable to he seek revenge against Apollo, he irrationally directs his anger towards Hector. Since the dynamics of the hierarchy system is top to bottom, Achilles cannot retaliate against the puppet master behind Patroclus death. Instead, he is “forced” to pursue the puppet. Blinded by rage and frustration, Achilles fails to see that Hector has the same dilemma: they are nothing more than mere pawns in the god’s chess game. Achilles is also blinded by the fact the share the same phobia: fear of

Achilles starts fighting for revenge, while Hector fights to defend Trojan. After Patroclus was killed by Hector, Antilochus told Achilles. “A black cloud of sorrow came upon Achilles as he heard”, and tells his mother that Hector must die from his spear, he “must pay for Patroclus’ death”(149-151). Achilles loses all his humanity and has no mercy after his friend had been killed; however Hector holds on to his humanity while fighting. Achilles began killing Trojans mercilessly until he got what he wanted, because the vengeance for his friend mattered more than his humanity. Achilles also did not feel remorse when he slaughtered Hector in front of his entire