Aphamnon And Agameliad: Differences In The Iliad

Agamemnon and Achilles are different and they make different decisions while facing choices. When the old priest of Apollo, Chryses, comes to Greece to ransom his daughter, Agamemnon is being rude to the old man and says: “The god’s staff and ribbons won’t save you next time. The girl is mine, and she’ll be an old woman in Argos. Before I let her go, working the loom in my house and coming to my bed, far from her homeland,” (1. 36-39). The narrator tells us at the second page of the book that Agamemnon is a jerk and he doesn’t respect the gods. He is really rude to an old man even he plunders his daughter and the father is a priest, a representative of a superior god. He insults him and Apollo at the same time. This quote shows the rudeness and the disrespect to gods

In book nine of the Iliad, Homer portrays Achilles refusal to Agamemnon as the circumstance of the Greek world’s structure being out of order. A world of system, where many warriors risk their lives in seek of honor. “Swift runner” (9.638) Achilles is conscious and aware that the Greek realm is stagnant and heading to its own doom. Achilles fights hard in battles in the name of “mighty king” (9.368) Agamemnon and in returns gets nothing. In addition, he also deeply feels the nihilism of the Greek culture and its order. Bernard Knox writes, “a pattern fixed from the beginning and not subject to change or on the other hand, the complete freedom and meaningless anarchy of an unpredictable universe” (Knox 40). Knox relates how uncertain universes

Through the history of the world, man has always been driven by self gain and each man believes he is self justified. When Agamemnon and Achilles argue over the return of Chryseis and the prize Briseis, they both think they are right. Achilles convinces Agamemnon to return the stolen Chryseis but King Agamemnon takes Achilles’ Briseis as compensation. Agamemnon is most justified in his actions. No, he did not fight on the front lines with Achilles and his men, but as the king he has every right to stay behind his army and lead. A king should be ready to give everything for his kingdom, but that does not mean they should lead every charge. Many people have pointed out that if it were expected of a King to fight in every battle it would be impossible for him to

The first book of the Iliad begins with the beginning of Achilles’ rage, the rage that will eventually cause his own people so much grief and is also the force for Homer’s version of the story of the Trojan War. Whereas the taking of Helen is the focus of the larger, traditional story, the feud between Agamemnon and the hero Achilles over a kidnapped girl defines the Iliad. Both feature a conflict over a woman, Helen and Chryses’ daughter, and a need for resolution as well as a breach of social contract: Paris steals the wife of Agamemnon, ruining the bonds of the guest relationship, while Agamemnon denies Chryse his right to ransom and invokes the wrath of the gods in the form of a plague. In both cases, however, it becomes clear that the conflict will not be resolved quickly, but will continue through the very heart of the story. By “singing of Achilles’ rage” from the first line, the narrator is clearly showing the audience that this Trojan war is not the war of Hector or Paris or Helen, but of the proud Achilles and his hero-sized enemy.

Conflict is one of many challenges in everyday life. It is presented to us in many ways such as trying to figure out how to get your homework done on time, finding a way to win the football game, or something just as simple as trying to get out of doing your chores. However, there are times in everyone's life where your conflict is beyond the norm. These could include standing up to your school bully, trying to save someone’s life, or as many would say the greatest conflict in human history, the Nazis rise to power. There are many ways to solve a conflict in general no matter how morally wrong it is. However, history has shown time and time again that the best way to solve a conflict is to stand up to it while also

Achilles questions himself, "Should he draw the long sharp sword slung at his hip, thrust through the ranks and kill Agamemnon now?--or check his rage and beat his fury down?" (108). Here, Hera has Athena intervene to keep Achilles from killing Agamemnon, which shows how the gods control Achilles' destiny. The argument between Achilles and Agamemnon clearly shows that the two men have different opinions about the power of the gods, what is holy or unholy, and what is proper treatment of other men. These differences are one source of Achilles' rage.

In book one of the Iliad, a plague is placed on the Achaian army because Agamemnon wouldn’t release Chryseis, a maiden he’d taken as a prize for sacking a Trojan-allied town. Agamemnon refuses to give up Chryseis until Achilleus surrenders Briseis, another maiden, to him as consultation. This insults Achilleus’ pride and is the first event in the epic to fuel his burning rage (1.8-1.611). Due to his leader, Agamemnon, wounding his pride, he refuses to fight for the Achaians for the first 15 books. However, the tide turns in book 16 when Patroklos, Achilleus’ friend, is killed (16.816-16.821). His rage causes him to join the Achaians once more and develope aristeia, where a hero in battle has his finest moments. He nearly single-handedly slaughters the Trojan army by splitting their ranks and pursuing half of them into the river, where he recognizes Lykaon (21.1-21.35).

He acknowledges the idea that others look at conflict theory as pertaining to specific events in history; however, he insists that it is more than that and that “the perspective is much broader and includes all of what goes on in society” (Collins 1994:47). He stresses upon the fact that it is not about simply having conflicts occur, but rather, how domination happens even when conflict is not outwardly occuring (Collins 1994:47).

There could be those who might have more power than the other, leading to a brutal conflict, and also results in unhappiness. In this case, not every situation can be

“The Aeneid” and “The Iliad” are relatively two different epics that were written decades apart. However, they have their similarities. These are two epics with the fate of two heroes. In the epic “The Aeneid,” the readers follow the journey of a man named Aeneas who is a Trojan refugee who journeys from his homeland of Troy to find Rome for the generations of the future. “The Iliad” is a story of the Trojan War and the hero of the story Achilles. Achilles was one of the bravest soldiers of the Greek army, but he was just as vain as he was brave. Both heroes showed a great amount of heroic actions throughout their perspective epics. Aeneas kills the Latin warrior Turnus and ventures away from his burning Troy to find Rome and prepare it for the future generations to come. Achilles fights for the Greeks which eventually results in him dying a hero’s death.

The Ramayana and The Iliad are both significant pieces of literature in India and Greece. The two main characters in the stories are Rama and Achilles. In the Ramayana, Rama is a prince who had been exiled the kingdom to the forest. In the Iliad, Achilles is an egotistical warrior who goes to war to claim glory and fame. The two heroes from the Ramayana and the Iliad are both epic heroes who share some similarities and differences regarding their heroism.

The Athenians believed they had been wronged and that “the strong do what they can, the weak suffer what they must” (CCW 57). The Melian Dialogue is a commentary on the impact of power hungry nations and how a haughty approach is often unnecessary and leads to conflicts that could otherwise be avoided. The independent variable is the domination sought after by acquisitive unions such as the Athenians. The dependent variable is the war and tyranny that can result from hostility between such prideful nations. Furthermore, the theory that amity equals weakness is presented in The Melian Dialogue by the Athenians. The Athenians respond to the Melians request for neutrality by stating that “your hostility cannot so much hurt us as your friendship will be an argument to our subjects of our weakness” (CCW 57). According to the Athenians, equality represented impotence and vulnerability. The independent variable is the superiority necessary to prove strength and power. The dependent variable is the way in which other nations perceived the Athenians regarding their capability and vehemence.

Thetis asked, “Zeus of the counsels, lord of the Olympos, now do him honor. So long put strength in the Trojans, until the Achaians give my son his rights, and his honor is increased among them,” (Homer, I, 261-263). By seizing Briseis, Agamemnon had not only hurt Achilleus’ pride and take credit for all the glory, but also show who’s more powerful. Achilleus’ pride had taken over him and caused him to think about himself. His pride felt the need to show who’s more powerful after what Agamemnon had embarrassed him with. He needs to prove his people that he’s better so he can hold power over them.In the modern society today, when our honor are harmed, our pride strives to regain it by accomplishing something whether it’s to prove one with better scores or power. This is just like Achilleus who strived to harm Agamemnon’s army to regain

quarrel arose and Achilleus was asked to allow Briseis, a prize that he won in battle, to go

International relations show an example of ethical and political morality. Ethical morality and natural law dictates a nations’ common culture while the positive law puts a firmer set of action and governance. For something to be ethical it has to be measured by two measurements: “one’s own system of personal rectitude, or conscience; the second is the common interest” (Norchi 13). Relations with other nations means dealing with the others governments and their laws so their interaction should be balancing a common good. Power plays a crucial role in dismantling a balance of power in interactions and this is seen in the Melian Dialogue. Power in excess like the Athenians will sever a bond to the common cultures of morals for positive law because as the “As the goals become bigger the good for the country gets more difficult.” (Thucydides 102). The