Honor And Glory By Homer

The Greeks placed great importance on personal honor. Why is this? Is it because to them man I nothing without honor. Or is it that the honor is more important than the man? "Honor to the Greeks is something that is won by a man's prowess, his ability to fight and be victorious on the battle field"(Schein 62). This is just one example of how honor is obtained. A second method of gaining honor is to be a great orator, one must posses the ability to speak in the assembly and express his ideas eloquently, and persuasively to the gathered body. A third way of achieving personal honor is to demonstrate athletic ability.

Honor: honesty, fairness, or integrity in one 's beliefs and actions; this is the definition by which these two characters, Hector and Achilles, ought to be judged. By taking this definition to heart, Achilles is far from honorable. Throughout the Iliad, Achilles acts on rage and revenge. “Rage-Goddess, sing the rage of Peleus’ son Achilles, murderous, doomed, that cost the Achaens countless losses, hurling down to the House of Death so many sturdy souls, great fighters’ souls, but made their bodies carrion, feasts for the dogs and birds…” (1, 1-5) From the beginning of the epic the reader learns of Achilles rage and wants for

Socrates’ primary motivation for comparing himself to Achilles, the best of all the classic heroes, is to convince the jury of his Achillean heroism. One attribute of a hero according to the events of the Iliad is that one must either kill or be killed in the pursuit of honor. Correspondingly, the Iliad chronicles Achilles’ life and death on the natural path to heroism. Despite the

The notion of honor is prevalent throughout the Iliad and Antigone. Both texts demonstrate that honor is essential to Greek heroes because honor is the foundation of the society and family. Homer and Sophocles clearly show that honor guides people’s actions and responses and decides the fate of themselves and others. Both authors also place emphasis on the importance of proper burial because it is a strong indication of honor to the deceased and the deceased’s family. As can be seen in the Iliad and Antigone, the aim of every Greek hero is to gain everlasting honor because it ensures his place in the social memory of his society resounding even after death.

Unlike Achilles, Hector bravely stays in the battle and calls upon Achilles. As Achilles rejoins the battle, Hector cowardly runs from Achilles thus also showing an un-hero like response from Hector. As the epic poem climax’s into the battle between Achilles and Hector, both characters are in angst to whom the God’s will side with.”I know you well- I see my fate before me./Never a chance that I could win you over.../Iron inside your chest, that heart of yours./But now beware, or my curse will draw God’s wrath/upon your head, that day when Paris and lord Apollo-/for all your fighting heart-destroy you at the Scaen Gates!” (Homer 22:420-424) In this quote Hector realizes that the Gods have sided with Achilles and death is near to Hector. As Achilles pursues to kill Hector, Hector pleads for a proper burial. This is because in Ancient Greek times, it was often believed if you did not have a proper burial, you were destined to suffer between worlds until your rites of passage into the underworld were completed. The Greeks saw immortality as areté, which means excellence and virtue. This is achieved through victory in battle which Hector was not able to obtain. “But this Achilles - first he slaughters Hector,/ He rips away the noble prince's life/ then lashes him to his chariot, drags him round/ his beloved comrade's tomb. But why, I ask you?/ What good will it do him?What honor will he gain?/Let that man

Every character in a story is motivated by a feeling or action. In Homer’s Iliad, the themes of aidos (shame) and kleos (honor) are used to propel the story forward and to keep the reader’s attention. The actions of the characters are heavily influenced by shame and honor. Homer does a stupendous job of portraying the feelings of shame and honor to develop specific characters in the story.

The idea of kleos otherwise known as glory in Greek, and honor is one of the most essential motifs of the Iliad. For many warriors depicted in the Iliad, honor was vital and personal. For many, Glory earned in battle was more important than one’s life. Glory or the lack of, was remembered long after one’s life. Possibly the greatest fundamental part of honor to the fighters of the Iliad was courage in battle as shown throughout multiple books. Throughout the course of this book we can see how different characters display these traits and how they influence the course of the war. Even though the Achaeans and Trojans are enemies they display a similar view, the acquisition of glory is more significant than life

In Homer’s epic, Iliad, Achilles is one of the main figures of the Trojan War. Achilles’ beliefs that he defines throughout the passage are influenced by the manipulations of war that he encounters, along with a focus on what the idea of glory entails and the effects that it has on one’s honor. They are two separate concepts, he recognizes, and during the Trojan War he knew that he could not have both. In the selected passage from Book Nine, it is clear that Achilles, the Greek warrior, questions and reevaluates the idea of honor and glory, as he believes honor and glory are inherently incompatible, thus causing him to sacrifice one in order to have the other. This reevaluation emphasizes the abnormal attitude from a once fierce warrior and

The point of The Iliad is personal honor. Honor was prevalent throughout the poem. The honor of every person in Homeric culture was important. Homer demonstrated some lack of honor in some of the main characters. Therefore, Homer wants to infuse pride, emotions, and values into the main characters who are viewed as heroes that the society looks up to. With these three solutions it would help out the honor culture.

Honor is defined as a high respect given to an individual that brings credit. To receive honor is paralleled to being crowned with jewels and being regarded as a role model to all. The society that the Iliad portrays is “centered on the battlefield of achievement and its rewards” (Homer, xxi). The figures in Homer’s epic poem, the Iliad, partake in events that will allow them to “receive more honor and more material rewards” even if it means that they must indulge themselves in heightened risks that could end in death (xxiii). Hector, one of the most pivotal characters in the poem, illustrates the lust for glory and ignorance of everything else that holds just as much importance. As his character is strengthened, it can be seen that every

Honor is a privilege; a thing conferred as a distinction, especially an official award for bravery or achievement: the highest military honors. Honor is very important to many, and this is proven to be very true in The Iliad. Two of the main characters in The Iliad, Achilles and Hector, show how honor can be earned and lost. When The Iliad begins, the Greek side is throwing the wedding of Peleus and Thetis. They were the parents of Achilles. At their wedding, Eris, the goddess of strife, presents a golden apple with the message, "For the Fairest." Hera, Athena, and Aphrodite all try to claim the prize. Paris, the poor but royal shepherd was chosen to be the judge of the dispute between the three goddesses. Hera offered him rule over all of Asia. Athena offers victory in battle and supreme wisdom. But Aphrodite offers the most beautiful woman in the world, Helen, wife of Menelaus, the ruler of Sparta. Paris proclaims Aphrodite the fairest of all and anticipates his prize. Then, Paris travels to Sparta, where Menelaus and Helen treat him royally until Menelaus has to travel to Crete to conduct business. In Menelaus' absence, Paris abducted Helen and returns with her to Troy. When Menelaus heard about his wife’s kidnapping, he immediately goes to his brother, Agamemnon, the great ruler of Mycenae. At first the two brothers try diplomacy with Troy to secure the return of Helen. When that fails, they determine to enlist the aid of many other rulers of small Greek kingdoms. Honor was very important to Ancient Greeks because how you were seen by others depended on the amount of honor someone had. In The Iliad, Achilles and Hector constantly battled for honor, and showed how difficult it is to gain honor.

Nestor, noble charioteer, captures best the essence of Achilles when he says, “Achilles, brave as he is, he has no care, / no pity for our Achaeans” (Homer 11.787-788). Most readers of the Iliad, consider Achilles the greatest warrior of The Trojan War, however, he lacks an important characteristic; care for others. Achilles’ best friend Patroclus, has described him as a great warrior, but a terrible person (11.774). In Homer's Iliad, Hector the great warrior of the Trojans, exhibits a selfless leadership approach, which contrasts to Achilles’ selfish actions as a leader. In order to be a great warrior, one’s loyalty must belong to something outside of themselves, and it’s through Achilles’ self-centered actions, that he loses the title of the greatest warrior to Hector. As the two capital warriors of the different sides of the Trojan war, Hector and Achilles provide an interesting contrast between two powerful leaders. Known for being loyal, selfless, and dedicated to his army, Hector contrasts to Achilles, who is self-serving in every aspect of his life. Despite his defeat at the hands of Achilles, Hector proves to be the greatest warrior of the Trojan War. The first characteristic Hector possesses, making him the superior warrior, is his ability to set his pride aside when he knows it will benefit his army. In contrast, Achilles allows his pride to control him and detriment his army. Another vital characteristic Hector’s possesses, making him a better leader, and

Warriors of ancient Greece were considered heroes by following the Heroic Code of excellence. They achieved this by acquiring a kleos; establishing fame, glory and a positive reputation. It was not an easy task to become a Grecian hero. Building and maintaining kleos meant that a warrior must be brave and strong, be “a speaker of words and a doer of deeds.” The solider had to protect his friends and harm his enemies, respect the gods and his elders, and most of all value his honor over his life. To die in battle, and be spoken of after death was the most important act of honor for a hero. The Greek tragedy, Iliad, attributed to Homer, portrays Achilles as the most gallant hero of the Athenian army. The story tells of Achilles, who develops into the greatest hero of the Trojan War. While the end of the end of the poem does portray Achilles as the solider that the story foretells throughout the poem he does not act like that. Many times in the story Achilles actions are perceived as unheroic but ultimately they shape the course of the few weeks of the Trojan Wars described in the Iliad, the Achaean’s final victory at Troy and his emergence as a hero.

Before his death the Trojan leader Hector exclaims, “Well let me die⎼but not without struggle, not without glory, no, in some great clash of arms that even men to come will hear of down the years,” (22.359-362). This proclamation reveals an important theme in Homer’s Iliad. Throughout the epic poem, the concept of honor and shame constantly reappears, from being the cause of the plot to personification as Greek and Trojan heroes to the dichotomy of honor and shame within the gods. Homer uses honor and shame as a major theme of the Iliad to show how important these attributes are to the human condition.

In the Homeric society, being an ideal and successful warrior was so critically important to many individuals for the sake of being remembered. Like the love of glory, no one would remember the person for centuries if he/she did not give them a reason to remember he/she. By being a brave and a heroic warrior it gave fame and recognition to the warrior which, in return, made them memorable. In the text it can be seen that Hector will go to great lengths to be the brave warrior that he is. For example, he criticizes his own brother for being a coward when fighting against Menelaus, stating that his charm and good looks are going to get him nowhere in the realm of being a great hero and being remembered. He even stands firm to protect Troy even though he does not agree with the war. Since Hector is the mightiest of warriors for the Trojans, he always leads his army into battle, gives commands, and kills fiercely for the sake of his reputation. His loyalness to the king, his royal position, his country and his army all contribute to him being a brave warrior and for him to receive the glory and being honored.