Research Paper On Achilles

Many people have heard of Achilles, whether in Greek Mythology or when referring to the tendon in their foot. He is well known in the Iliad as the main force for the Achaeans in the Trojan War, dubbed the “swiftest warrior,” “Achilles dear to Zeus”, and “brilliant runner.” However many do not know the story of Achilles when he walks away from the Achaean campaign over a scuffle of war prizes. His action cripples the Achaean army, costing the lives of many. The story of the Trojan War is one where Achilles ultimately leads the Achaeans to Troy and kills Hector outside Priam’s walls. However, it was Patroclus, Achilles’ brother-in-arms, who should be accredited with the Achaean victories and know for his success against the Trojans in the

The Song of Achilles is a tragedy in any sense of the word. Miller retells the classic tale of Achilles through lyrical prose and interprets the ancient story in a contemporary way. The myth is modernized with the humanization of Achilles and Patroclus, who get realistic backgrounds, and are fleshed out in complete contrast to the one-dimensional characters of myth and legend. The story is told from Patroclus’ point of view as Achilles drags him through life.

Achilles views as demonstrated before, clearly shows the change that has taken place in him, where once he would leaped at an opportunity to battle for glory and honor, now he shows reservation. Achilles is reluctant to risk his life on a fool's errand, for glory and honor. He is disenchanted about honor and all life effort to gain honor no matter how great it might be. He felt they were nothing but the personal honor and glory of others. But, of course, Achilles never actually leaves, although he threatens

The great talents that Achilles’ possesses cause him to become much admired and well known by both the Greeks and the Trojans. He begins to believe all the good things people are say and becomes an arrogant, child-like, selfish person which all mark Achilles’ hubris part of his behavior cycle. Achilles shows his arrogance when he gets angry with Agamemnon for him wanting take his prize of honor, which Achilles worked very hard to get. Because of this, Achilles begins to lose his capability to think straight and weigh all the factors in situations, and withdraws himself from the battle. Later on after Achilles overcomes the death of his best friend and regains back his courage and pride, Achilles kills Hector and thinks he is invincible for doing the great deed he did. Achilles fought Hector for honor over all else and performed the death of Hector almost as a duty and feels proud of himself for doing so. Before he kills Hector, Achilles declares, “I will go forth to slay Hector, who killed the man the I loved… Until then, may I win great fame and glory, and may every Trojan realize that the greatest of the Greeks no longer remains apart from battle”(145).

The story is about Achilles and Patroclus meeting, becoming friends, and eventually lovers. This all occurs as Achilles trained to become a great warrior by his sea goddess mother. After the war begins in Troy, Patroclus dies in combat and Achilles avenges him.

Through further research, I have learned that this vase “depicts the heroes Achilles and Ajax playing a board game” (Two-Handled Jar with Achilles and Ajax).

As the movie begins we are introduced to Achilles as a fierce and strong warrior, fearing no one. He begins the first step of Harris’ journey, also known as the call, when Odysseus goes to talk to him. Odysseus visits Achilles to ask him to fight in the war in Troy. He describes the war as great and in need of their best warrior, the perfect invitation into his journey. The second step in Harris’ journey is the threshold, where we encounter obstacles and doubts. One of the main examples of threshold in Achilles’ life would be his mother. When Achilles brings up that he has been invited to war his mother gives him two options. Those options are to stay where he is a live a normal long life with a wife children and happiness where not many would remember his legacy, or to go to war and possibly die fighting but be remembered for years to come. At that point Achilles started

Achilles is the strongest and bravest warrior during the Trojan war. He fights with godlike strength and power, and he is the key to winning the war. King Agamemnon wants Achilles to fight for him because he thinks that he can’t win the war without him. Agamemnon believes he can bribe Achilles and is shocked by his refusal to come back and fight in the war. Achilles was justified for not wanting to fight and had good reasons to refuse the bribes of the king. Agamemnon stole the girl Achilles loved, which angered him, and caused him to lose his desire to fight for a king who had wronged him in this way. Achilles also realizes that glory and riches aren’t worth dying for.

Achilles can be described as a Tragic Hero in many ways. He was brave and had great strength but, he was also prideful and lacked control with his emotions, and in all the label of a tragic hero fits him. A Tragic hero is “a literary character who makes an error of judgment or has a fatal flaw that, combined with fate and external forces, brings on a tragedy” (“Tragic Hero”). To many men Achilles was god-like, and immortal, the epitome of a hero to the Greeks, he was strong, brave in the face of war, and of noble birth because he was the son of a goddess. In the Iliad, Achilles, driven by anger seeks revenge on Hector for killing his “dearest comrade” (“The Heroic Age”), Patroclus, whom he claims to have valued more than his own life. He

Achilles knew that the Achaians could not win the war without him. His alienation was the catalyst for the destruction awaiting the Achaians. He was aware of this, but, because of his pride, he did nothing to stop it. When Priam visited Achilles to redeem the body of his son Hektor, Achilles showed a more humane side of himself. “So [Priam] spoke, and stirred in [Achilles] a passion of grieving for his own father” (488; bk.24, ln.507). Priam appealed to Achilles’ human emotions by speaking of his father; he provoked sympathy in Achilles. Achilles had integrated himself with humanity once more and had begun to see life from a mortal point of

In the first part of Book eighteen, Homer described how Achilles sad from the death of Patroclos. Troy took advantage of Achilles was not in the army pressed hard to Creek army, and killed his friend Patroclos. Achilles was brokenhearted, so his mother hears him below the sea. She was comforting Achilles. According to Book eighteen Achilles admits that he didn’t help his friend Patroclos and Greek warriors on the battlefield. He has no choice to return to the fight to avenge the death of friend and Creek army, and defeat Trojans. When Thetis realized that Achilles decided to return to the battlefield. Thetis promises him that she is going to make him a new suit of armor for Achilles. Achilles has overcome his weakness by facing the truth of

Although, Achilles is seen away from the army, he still rejects domestic life even though it would bring him peace, it would not bring him honor. Although, Achilles sees that he has chosen a warrior life, he is fated for a short life and a death in battle, which is the ultimate way to achieve honor. We see an inner turmoil of nursing his wounded honor and denying "his great hear yearning for the battle cry and war" (242). Achilles is a proud and stubborn person who had to fight relentlessly for everything. The pursuit of honor led to a greed for glory, an unrelenting pride, and this bloodlust.

Once Achilles decides to go after Hector to seek revenge for his fallen comrades death, he seals his fate of living a short life full of glory, rather than going back home to live a quiet, uneventful life in peace. This shows a dramatic reversal in Achilles character as his desire to defend his loved ones overcomes his pride from defying Agamemnon. In honor of Patroclus, Achilles comes out from the Achaean ships and

In literature, a sympathetic character is defined as a character who the audience is capable of relating to and also capable of understanding. Heroes are often regarded to as a sympathetic character and that is exactly what Achilles is. Achilles is the immortal main character in The Iliad who fought with the Greeks in the Trojan war. Although Achilles is immortal, he does suffer from a tragic flaw, his pride. Achilles also struggles with being able to control his emotions. In book 22 of the Iliad, Achilles goal is to get revenge on Hector for killing his beloved comrade, Patroclus. At the time, Achilles had not been fighting with the Greek army because he felt his heroic acts had not been appreciated. The love Achilles had for Patroclus lead

Achilles believed that he was not receiving his share of recognition for the work he was doing in the war effort. Achilles states, “You can take it that neither my Lord Agamemnon nor the rest of the Danaans are going to win me over, since it appears that a man gets no thanks for struggling with the enemy day in and day out” (Homer 7). Odysseus argued that Agamemnon would give him many rewards for his return to battle, but in Achilles’ reply he says that he doesn’t want anything from Agamemnon. He begins to come to the realization that he wants a long life rather than personal glory and wealth so he declines the offer.