Essay on Achilles as the Hero of Homer’s Iliad -- Iliad essays

Achilles as the Hero of Homers Iliad When Homer lived, the summit of a hero was measured by the yardstick of fighting ability. In Homers Iliad, the character of Achilles represents the epitome of the Greek heroic work out. Only Achilles fights for pure heroics, while the characters of Diomedes and Hector leave good contrasts. Prowess on the fightingfield was ranked supreme, high above any considerations of morality(Martin 26). Nestor, for example, tells Agamemnon and Achilles that he has known much bettor men than them center men who are better at fighting. Achilles refuses Lycaon clemency because Patroclus. who is dead. was a much better man than he is by far i.e. a much better fighter. Achilles urges Hector to show his worth and fight like a man worth means simply ability to fight. By this criterion Achilles ranks second to none. He is an immensely talented fighter and he considers himself a prince among men. It is a reflection of his ability that the action speeds up rapi dly on his return to the battle after Book 16 and Patroclus death. Two thirds of the epic arc slow and tedious on Achilles return the last third is fast and moves most speedily. Achilles unstoppable battle madness surpasses without doubt that of the other heroes in the lliad. He is brave, vicious and powerful. He splits the Trojans and drives them back without difficulty at all. Moreover, his bravery is not restricted to humans. He is angry with Apollo for deceiving him and his battle with the river god Xanthus ends in more success than Diomedes attempts against the gods in Book 5 (although he admittedly has much divine support). The heroic code was recognised as a desire to excel. For the heroes excellent was ... ...Finkelberg, Margalit. Odysseus and the genus hero . Greece and Rome v. 42 (Apr. 95) p. 1-14. Goodrich, Norma. Myths of the hero. overbold York Orion Press, 1962. Homer Iliad. Trans. Robert Fagles. New York Penguin Books, 1990. Martin, Richard. The Language of Heroe s Speech and Performance in the Iliad. Ithaca Cornell University Press, 1989. Parry, tenner M. The Language of Achilles and Other Papers. Oxford Clarendon Press, 1989. Schein, Seth L. The Mortal Hero An Introduction to Homers Iliad. Berkeley University of California Press, 1984. Shive, David M. Naming Achilles. New York Oxford University Press, 1987. Van Nortwick, Thomas. Somewhere I have travelled the heros journey. New York Oxford University Press, 1996. Whitman, Cedric H. Homer and the Heroic Tradition. Cambridge, Mass. Harvard University Press, 1958.