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Robes In The Iliad

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Symbolism of Robes One of the many things that Homer describes in ample detail is robes. If they are described in such detail they must be important. So why do they hold such importance in The Iliad and are the details of the robes used to symbolize anything? Some details given by Homer could help the reader figure out the importance of the robes and what the robes symbolize. For example, colors, in any writing from Homer, are important. Also, who has the robes, who is weaving the robes, and where they are being worn is all important. Because it has been established that the robes do mean something, another question that follows the symbolization is, how does Homer expect the audience to feel in relation to the robes? The answer that he …show more content…

After defining robes and tunics, the next step is to look at specific examples. The instance of a robe being described is when Helen is visited by Iris (III.125-28). This passage states that Iris finds Helen “…in the chamber…weaving a great web, / a red folding robe and working into it the numerous struggles / of the Trojans, breaker of horses, and bronze-armored Achaians…” (III.125-28). In this chunk of text, the reader sees Helen in a room with her maidens weaving a robe, an image that can be equated to that of a spider. This passage goes on to say the Achaians and Trojans are fighting this whole war for her sake, which cements the image of a spider weaving her web and catching her prey. Helen, because of Aphrodite, has become a spider that has trapped thousands of people in her web, not just anybody either, people that she has grown to love and care about, and because they are trapped she knows that she, no matter how unintentional it is, is hurting them and causing their deaths. The next time Helen is mentioned wearing a robe is when Aphrodite visits her, the reason being to force Helen to go procreate with Paris. In the beginning of this scene, Helen is pictured as wearing an “…immortal…” robe (III.385). After Helen slings insults at Aphrodite she changes into another robe that is said to be a “…luminous spun robe…” (III.419). The very first robe, because it is given the

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