Iliad Essay

Homer’s Use of Simile Homer’s uses the literary device of a simile though out his literature. A simily is the direct comparison of two different things commonly using “like” or “as” for an introduction. Homer elevates this figure of speech into the lengthy vivid descriptions of epic poetry, making it one of his principal conventions. They become what we call epic or Homeric similes. The Iliad itself has over two hundred uses of similes.

Metaphors and similes are comparing two unlike objects, and should have nothing to do with the action of a living thing.

In “A River Runs Through It,” similes are used constantly. They usually relate a person or object to an animal or living entity. For one example, Maclean uses a simile to compare life’s

Homer, the son of Telemachus and Epikaste, was a Greek poet and court singer born sometime between the 12th and 8th century B.C. There is no certainty of his birth place, but it is believed that he was born somewhere on the Asia Minor coast. The language he uses in his poetry suggests that he may have been native to what is known today as Turkey. His is believed to be the originator of Europe’s first known literature, yet very little is actually known about him and what little information we do have was derived from scrupulously studying his works (softschools.com). Some would debate that he never really existed and that his works were just stories passed down orally through folk tales from generation to generation, but it is apparent that his poetry ended up setting the common values that preserved the Greek’s own ideas about themselves, provided the foundation for the model of heroism, and seemed to portray the Greek gods as always being less clever than their mortal contemporaries (pbs.org).

This quote demonstrates a simile because of how the quote compares the hound, Argos, and trash. Argos is not literally trash, however both the waste and the dog are treated in the same manner.

Similes also help readers understand many different themes throughout the novel. One can understand a story better if they can figure out what the main theme is. Figurative language can

Homeric similes can be used throughout an epic to compare two unlike things in a way that will redirect the reader’s attention or intensify heroic stature of a subject. In three main places in The Odyssey, Homer uses this type of elaborate simile to engage the reader on a deeper level. These three points of the epic in which the Homeric similes create depth are the reunion of Odysseus and his son, the stringing of a bow, and the battle against the suitors. The reunion of Odysseus and his son, Telemachus, is a poignant moment in the epic.

The epic poem, The Iliad, tells part of the story of Menelaus’ over glorified temper tantrum that became a war between the Greeks and the Trojans. Both the Greeks and the Trojans live in the same general area around the Mediterranean. Because both parties in the war were from the same area, literary critiques studying The Iliad split into two basic groups concerning how this affects the work as a whole. They either side that: the two groups have enough differences, that the meaning of the work shows the human condition concerning how even small differences in people eventually causes one group to hate the other; or they have so many similarities in culture, values, religion, language, and so on that it reflects the faults of humanity in how

"Sing, goddess, of Achilles ruinous anger Which brought ten thousand pains to the Achaeans, And cast the souls of many stalwart heroes To Hades, and their bodies to the dogs And birds of prey" (Homer). Containing a war that echoes through the ages, the Iliad was an epic writing of conflict and struggle between two kingdoms. The poem is one of the most insightful, eventful, and influential writings of Greek mythology. Homer, whether or not if he was real, wrote these poems based on oral stories passed down by bards that traveled across the lands. In the Iliad one of the major characters is named Achilles, who is a superhuman born from an immortal nymph named Thetis.

A simile is a method of expression that compares different things using the word like or as. Authors utilize similes for a few reasons, yet the most evident one is illustration. They need to make an enduring impression in the audiences' minds. In Book II of The Iliad, the similes are drawn immensely from the world of nature: monsters, trees and plants, and scenes from lifeless nature (mountains, sun, moon, stars, fire, mists, ocean, snow, and so on.) The assembled armed forces are contrasted with herds of winged animals.

Homer’s epic The Iliad, is a great tale of war and glory. It takes place during the last year of the ten year Greek-Trojan war. The Greeks have been fighting with the Trojans for quite some time, and just when peace seemed like a possibility, the youngest prince of Troy, Paris, acts out selfishly and steals the beautiful wife of Menelaus, Helen. This instigates the fighting again. Throughout The Iliad, Homer tells of two heroes, both similar, but also very different in their character; the great and powerful Greek, Achilles, and the strong, loving father, Prince Hector of Troy. In Homer’s The Iliad, Hector and Achilles differ as heroes in regards to pride, duty, and family love, the latter being self-centered and prideful, while the

      The Iliad is a story of rages of Achilles and the War of Troy. Thanks to the techniques of the author, Homer, The Iliad is very colorful, romantic, and it makes the readers imagine the ancient Greeks and their times of war. Homer is believed to be the author of epics other than the Iliad, although their authorship remains uncertain. Historian believes that Homer probably lived in the eighth century, B.C.1 (Discovering World History). However, there are very few things that we know about him. Some historians think Homer's birthplace may have been on an island on the eastern edge of the Aegean Sea, or perhaps in a city on the nearby coast, but they don't have evidence to

According to Charlotte Higgins, the Iliad “tells us… about the atrocities and indiscriminate slaughter; about war’s peculiar mercilessness to women and children.” This is explored in the tale of Skamandrios, AKA Astyanax.

The Iliad is an epic tale of war and hero’s within the Greek way of life. A

After reading Homer’s text, we realize that while it contains fine poetic history it is in fact about the human condition and how it affects people, Achilles primarily. The reality for people in the world of The Iliad is that they live under many gods, and that they can not please all of them; indeed, the gods are at odds with each other and to support one means to upset another. While the ideal condition for the Greeks is to possess sophrosyne, in reality there are too many uncontrollable external pressures to do so. Just as the gods who influence men are not harmonious, therefore, we find this quality also in the explanation of the human condition for Greek cultures.