The Iliad : An Ancient Work

In almost all instances of war the cause has been related to greed, or the gaining of land and possessions. Greed is presented in the very first book of Homer’s “The Iliad.” It isn’t displayed by the cowards, but the “heroes” of the war such as Agamemnon, Achilles, and Pandarus. The entire cause of the Trojan War is the result of the greedy and cowardly behavior of Paris. There are many factors that had sparked the war, including the interference of the gods; however, the main factor to be blamed for the war is greed.

The Iliad shows the violence of war without obscuring the brutality of the bloodshed, demonstrating a willingness to show the inglorious side of war. The poem dedicates pages to chronicling the various ways men are killed, which includes being slaughtered in sleep and being “sliced through the neck, leaving only / A ribbon of skin from which the head dangled” (16.358-359). It is likely unsettling for an audience to contemplate a beheading violent enough to leave the head dangling by nothing but a strip of skin, but that is what happened and it appears to be reported without much apparent censorship. Although Homer does not

The author, Sophocles, opinions on warfare is that war is just not about heroes, who are played up to have no faults, and their moments of glory, but rather that

The Iliad, by Homer, is an epic poem set in the era of the Trojan War, accounting the battle logs during the time of conflict between Agamemnon and Achilles, the text’s tragic protagonist. The heroic outlook on life, in Iliadic terms, is exemplified through the construction of one’s honor through hard work. Being an aspect of the heroic outlook of life, this value is demonstrated through his contribution and dedication to the Trojan War, his experience with neglect from the deities, Achilles’ overall disdain towards Agamemnon, and, lastly, his longingness towards Briseis, his dear lover.

Homer concentrates on Hector throughout the chapter and makes comments about how brave and courageous he was. He also mentions that he is a great commander and leader of the Trojan army. In addition, Hector knew the reason behind the invasion which was Paris stealing Menelaus’ wife, Helen. This gives Agamemnon an excuse to attack Troy. Both Hector and his wife know that he is soon to meet his death, it’s inescapable. However, even though it is not his fight, he still feels compelled to go to war with his country and search for some vague glory. Hector seems to be very heroic. Moreover, Homer describes Hector as an immense warrior almost god-like. But in

Going through war and gaining all the new experiences from it is something all veterans have in common with one another. They share having to go through all the tragedies, all the losses, while also obtaining new friends and creating a brotherhood with their fellow soldiers. They also share the fact that they all, once returned home, need to find some way to deal with their experiences so they can live on. But the overall takeaway veterans have on war and the way they each recover is each individual’s own and can not be entirely compared to one another. While Odysseus and the veterans depicted in Wilfred Owen’s work both value and appreciate life, the way they each reflect on war and the viewpoints they have on it separates them and proves

Although the Achaians and the Trojans place high value on honor earned in battle, multiple characters comment on the futility of war. While in combat, Menelaos angrily declares that the Trojans will never be satisfied with their accomplishments in war, directly contrasting it with more humane activities such as song and dance. Even Achilleus admits, “There [is] no gratitude given for fighting incessantly forever against your enemies… A man dies still if he has done nothing, as one who has done much” (9.316-318). However, the heroes’ recognition of the wasteful, unending nature of war is ultimately meaningless, as emotion drives them to fight even when logic would tell them to turn back.

In Homer’s Iliad we witness the human and violent sides of the two most influential characters; the great Achilles and Hector the horse tamer. In the story, we easily differentiate these two great warriors as Achilles the unbeatable and exaggeratingly prideful warrior and Hector the responsible leader.

Homer and Virgil authored some of the greatest epics of all time. Clearly, Homer’s original poem, the Iliad, influenced Virgil’s Aeneid to a large degree not only in plot setting and characters, but the similarities manifest at the literary level, for instance devices such as the same heroic meter, illustrious similes, allegory, ekriphas, division into books, even though way that the Greeks and Trojans are portrayed amongst many others are features of both works. However, there are striking differences between the two, while the Iliad relies heavily on repetition, the Aeneid has none. While both poems revolve around destiny, the Iliad’s underlying theme is human nature and man’s quest for glory through war. The Aeneid, however, consistently reminds us that the glory to be sought is the future history’s glories, basically saying commitment to destiny was Aeneas’ role so that Caesar and his line can reach their glory. Virgil’s audience during his time would have likely been literate aristocratic patriotic Romans, this allows for allusions to their current state, whether is the way the characters dress, the way they view women, and the way they perceive their ruler and government. Homer does not have this hidden agenda; it purely relates the stories of heroes and gods, to a society that believed in the myths that are revealed.

In The Iliad, the Olympian Gods were depicted as a group of individuals who were still completely vulnerable to mistake and harm despite their great power. Zeus was one, if not the biggest and most powerful God among all other Gods. Known as the King of the Gods, Zeus was a mighty, dominant, and seemingly supreme God, despite his tendency to show surprising silliness and sometimes, the lack of wisdom through his choices, especially when it came to love affairs, which eventually led to many problems that could have been prevented. Zeus, in The Iliad, Zeus is a representation of how ancient Gods were just normal humans equipped with a great degree of power and capabilities, but they have the tendency to show humanly behavior and mistakes.

Throughout the epic of the Iliad, there are a multitude of moral lessons. It is a story of war, loss, love, and forgiveness. The main character, Achilles, faces many difficult decisions where he is faced with discerning what is right and what is wrong. This is the focus of the epic in whole, but there is a definite emphasis on morality in Book 24. In this book, not only does Achilles face this struggle, but Priam as well. The vision of morality that emerges from the Iliad is understanding the importance of forgiveness. Homer uses the Iliad as an ethical guide for readers. He shows how making the right moral choice, forgiving, leads to closure and a more peaceful life.

In The Iliad, two armies were at war on and off for over nine years. One army of warriors are the Trojans and the second are the Achaeans who are led by King Agamemnon. As the king of the Achaeans, Agamemnon gives orders of when and where to attack. His best warrior, Achilles was well trusted and valued by him, though it seems at first. There were years of fighting for the same reason and valued their bond with one another, yet they have significant differences that separate them from one another, which ultimately divided their paths. At the beginning of the war and even before, it could have been concluded that the bond between the King and Achilles was strong up until the realization of the botched bond between these two high-powered men.

The first book of The Iliad immediately communicates to the reader the exact violent and intense fervor of Achilles’ selfish fury. The very first line of Homer’s epic reads as follows, “Rage ― Goddess, sing of Peleus’ son Achilles, murderous, doomed, that cost the Achaeans countless losses, hurling down to the House of Death so many sturdy souls …”

In 415 B.C.E., the Greek playwright Euripides created The Trojan Women, a play that is arguably one of the best studies of the horrific aspects of war ever written. In her analysis of the play, Professor C.A.E. Luschnig maintains, "[Euripides] has made the Trojan War stand for every war… For war is society's great tragedy: victory is an illusion" (8). While the negative elements of war portrayed by Euripides can be found in all wars and even war’s victors must suffer their defeats, there is an even greater tragedy to society than war itself. War is but one result of the inherent evil nature of men and women and that evil nature, not war, is society’s greatest tragedy.

War, with its horror and glory, is something that should not be underestimated in its ability to teach truths about the human condition. War shows the bitter truth of the inevitability of death and exposes one’s family and nation to danger and destruction. However, the ability of war to unify a nation and enlighten the minds of soldiers is significant and is what should be remembered most because in that, one is able to transcend them self and evolve to be a better person. In Thucydides’ History of the Peloponnesian War, the Athenians come to realize the role their unchecked selfishness and greed have played in their ruination because they finally acknowledge the consequences of their actions. And as death is a soldier’s constant companion, the Athenians eventually accept their fate – moira – and learn to put fear aside and endure. Interestingly, Homer conveys a similar view on fate and death in the Iliad, and emphasizes the importance of fighting for those one loves (and the enduring kleos to be gained from heroism in battle). The lessons of war, however, manifest themselves differently in the Iliad in the way that war reveals the “true meaning and purpose of life” – what is worth fighting for and what is not (Mannering).