What Role Did The Greek Gods Play In The Story Of The Morphed

The Greek forces won the Trojan War. The story of the war is a cornerstone of Greek legend, and pervaded Greek literature and culture. Though the evidence for the Trojan War as historical fact is scarce, it was a formative event in Greek cultural memory, producing some of the classical world’s most famous heroes and narratives. The War was won, Helen was retrieved from Paris, whose violation of ξενία was redressed, the heroes attained the κλέος that many of them fought for – and yet the positive outcomes of the Trojan War are difficult to grasp. For the victims of the Trojan War, the tragedy is obvious; the War ended in genocide and total cultural destruction. But such a war, burnt into legend, should have left the victors far better off; and yet, the Greek heroes only suffer because of it. They die tragic, dishonourable deaths; their households are left in ruin; their families are torn apart. From both modern and classical perspectives, the Trojan War is a tragedy, a “harrowing destruction of life” (Euripides, Andromache, 291). The victory is pyrrhic, the loss of life is horrific, the reparations non-existent.

In the Greek epic, The Iliad, Homer describes the siege and capture of the ancient city of Troy by Achilles and the Achaean warriors. Achilles, being a fearless fighter, defeated many throughout his battles against the Trojan army, including the brave-hearted Hector during the invasion of Troy. Though Achilles has been given the title of the hero of the Trojan War, many historians believe that Hector was a greater hero than Achilles. When comparing the characteristics of an epic hero such as being a national hero and having supernatural abilities, Hector clearly surpasses Achilles. In this essay, the argument will be supported through the context of the heroic personas revealed by the warriors and the non-heroic qualities that dishonored

What are the main characteristics of a larger-than-life epic hero? An epic hero is a brave and powerful warrior who is motivated to fight both internal and external conflicts to achieve glory and ranks above a normal man. In Homer’s epic poems The Iliad and The Odyssey, Achilles and Odysseus are the well-known heroes. Achilles fights Hektor outside the walls of Troy because Hektor killed his best friend, Patroclus. After fighting in the Trojan War, Odysseus takes on a journey to return back to Ithaca to see his wife, Penelope, and his son, Telemachus. Through his use of tone, figurative language, mood, and imagery, Homer’s epic poems The Iliad and The Odyssey show how Achilles and

The Iliad begins with the clash between Achilles and Agamemnon. Agamemnon has little, if any, respect for the gods. This is displayed by his irreverent

In the Iliad there are many characters that could be considered heroic. But the two main characters that stand out as heroes to me are swift-footed Achilles and flashing-helmet Hector. Numerous times throughout the epic they display qualities and traits that are unsurpassed by anyone on their side. Many times throughout the epic Achilles and Hector are tested for their strength, and will to win in battle, which for both warriors always ends up positive because they always win their battles. Although both fighters are among the elite status in the armies, they each show human and god-like qualities that help them be as a fierce and feared as possible.

For the ancient Greeks, culture is of the utmost importance. Greek family values are so strong that elements of tradition and culture transcend many generations. One particular tradition, literature, is a custom that has been passed down from generation to generation. Thousands of families, from their parents to their children, are told the stories of men and women who grew up and became great warriors that saved the world. These children later grew up with the goal of becoming those same heroes; they grew up wanting to save the world just like the characters in the stories. In this particular epic, we encounter the characters of Achilles and Hector, both ideal warriors; one uses his physical aptitude, the other his intellect and desire to

The Trojan War is described as one of histories most legendary battles. This battle is told to have lasted ten years, resulting in the eventual collapse of Troy, under the siege of Greek forces. Modern knowledge of the Trojan War has survived mainly through the account given in Homer’s Illiad, and while having proved to be a rich source of inspiration for other writers, artists, and even filmmakers in recent history, much speculation still exists surrounding his account. I will analyze modern interpretations of the Trojan War and examine both speculation and support for Homer’s account. Concluding with sufficient evidence that has been collected surrounding this epic battle, proving Homer’s account of a massive battle between these two powerful city states to not be just a tale of myth and legend, but actual history.

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

I can relate Achilles the modern character of the Avengers, from the marvel movies. They are super heroes who stop the villains but usually cause a lot of destruction to the city in the process of stopping these villains. It’s not a direct relation in their morals, but more a relation to the dramatic irony in the character of Achilles. Achilles doesn’t want to fight and says he will not go to war and issues this ultimatum to Agamemnon even though he is the best fighter and will hurt the others by not fighting. This is dramatic irony because Achilles doesn’t think he is doing any wrong by saying this, when in fact he is and we as an audience can clearly see this even if the character can’t. I can relate this to the characters of the Avengers because they all think they are doing a good thing by saving the civilians from the enemies who are trying to take over the world. They do save the city from the enemies, but they usually end up destroying the city and sometimes hurt civilians in the process even though they think they saved the world and did no harm. The Avengers are also representing dramatic irony because they think they are only doing what is best, however as an audience we can see by doing the good by killing the villain they are also causing tremendous damage to the city which is bad.

The first few weeks at camp Half-blood were to get me ready for the big quest to save the Greek Gods beloved hero Achilles. Chiron the centaur that stated the prophecy has been a big help in understanding of what my quest is supposed to accomplish. It was stated that I had to travel to Hade’s Lair with two friends, and then go through three trials to gain an elixir that would bring back to life one person. I was chosen because my lady Styx gave me powers to be able to travel to and from the underworld therefore I was the best chose even without experience. Since arriving to the camp I have made at least two friends that I believe the prophecy was talking about, Annabeth Chase daughter of Athena and Percy Jackson son of Poseidon. Both have

He speaks respectfully of the gods, characterizing them as “givers of good things”, and for this, they deserve our reverence and gratitude [CITATION]. Yet this illusion of the almighty, supreme God splinters throughout the poem as Hesiod reveals the chaotic and morally questionable actions of the immortals. “Learning of a prophecy that he will be dethroned by one of his children, Kronos seizes the newborns and swallows them” (Melchert 3). Simultaneously, Homer speaks of the immoral actions of Zeus in his involvement in the Trojan War, as depicted when Zeus agrees to aid Achilles, allowing the Trojans to prevail only until Achilles’ honor was restored, which resulted in countless innocent deaths. Both poets blatantly write about the powerful might of the gods, yet they give the rulers of their world the same attributes disgraced among mortal men: adultery, vengeance, and excessive anger. The appearance of the Gods presented by Hesiod and Homer is anything but deserving of reverence, but both poets stand by their writing while also maintaining an untarnished respect for their

Achilles then asks his mother to convince Zeus to honor him at the cost of the Greeks. He wants the Greeks to be defeated in battle so that they realize how important Achilles was to them and so that they will honor and respect him as their greatest warrior and most important leader. Zeus grants the wish of Thetis and the battle begins to change dramatically.

all the commotion was about, she was amazed at the sight of her infant son

Achilles’ sinful desire for glory ended up killing him, his comrades, and his reputation. Achilles spent the majority of the battle withdrawn from the fight and moping, so when he eventually ended up dying there was nothing particularly noble or glorious about it. If, however, Achilles had gone out heroically and risked his life at the beginning of the battle as he fought alongside his comrades, he could have died in battle and had people remember him as one of the greatest Greek heroes that ever lived. Achilles had three main faults in his personality that ruined his chance at glory. First, because of his selfishness, Achilles kept making choices that benefited himself and nobody else, which is in stark contrast with the selfless mindset required of a hero. Second, because of his pride, Achilles withdrew from the battle and stubbornly refused to fight, which resulted in the deaths of countless comrades. Finally, Achilles’ anger towards Agamemnon kept Achilles from fighting, allowing the Trojans to win many battles. When Achilles finally died in The Odyssey, he was merely making up for his wrong attitude earlier in the war. He was not fighting in order that he might protect and save his comrades. That, therefore, is why it was not at all noble of him to want to die for glory.

The stories and myths that we hear about the Trojan War are truly exciting and interesting, but have you ever heard the story explaining why this war was fought in the first place? Odds are you probably have not. Truth is, the reason this war was fought was because of the poor judgement of a young prince.