Iliad

The conflict between Achilles and Agamemnon over the sex slave Briseis may seem somewhat trivial on the face of it. But to both these men with big egos, this is a matter of honor. As far as...

Achilles is a Greek hero, and this means he has character flaws. Achilles is enraged when Agamemnon takes Briseis, and this action threatens his pride. Achilles is egotistical and craves glory and...

The scene in which Andromache bids farewell to Hector on the eve of battle is one of the most tender in the entire poem. Hector appears in body armor, a long plume emerging from his helmet, to say...

As we see in book 3 of the Iliad, Helen and Paris have mixed feelings for one another. Especially in Helen, lust and an extreme desire for Paris mix with a sense of sorrow and disgust at the...

Andromache is precious to Hector for the following three reasons. First, he knows she loves and cares about him. As she tells him, he is her everything: a husband, a beloved companion, and also,...

Achilles is the pre-eminent warrior among the Achaeans, and his status as such makes his rage the primary driver of events in the Iliad. Wherever his rage is directed, the action of the poem...

To offer supplications to a god is to pray to them and ask for favors. The Trojan women are terrified and turning to Athena, the goddess of wisdom, for protection against the invading Greeks. In...

The Iliad reveals much about Greek culture as it existed before the Classical Age. As other contributors have already pointed out, we see within this poem the primacy of warfare in the era....

It's not enough for the Trojans to fight bravely on the field of battle. If they're going to prevail against the Achaeans, they're going to need some divine assistance. That's one of the reasons...

Andromache is called Hector's precious wife quite simply because she is precious to him. The entire war is caused by Paris's love for Helen, and the squabble between Agamemnon and Achilles which...

The gods and goddesses portrayed in Homer's Iliad are anthropomorphic, meaning that they take forms like those of human beings. Even though they are immortal and have great powers, the gods have...

In Book 1 of the Iliad, Agamemnon is forced to return the girl Chryseis to her father, a priest of Apollo, in order to end a mysterious plague that has been afflicting the Greek army. Agamemnon is...

The structure and themes of Homer's epic poem the Iliad have become the exemplar for many of the subsequent epic poems in the Western literary canon. For your assignment, consider the following...

First of all, The Iliad is extremely important as a historical document and a lens through which we can examine the ancient past. Through this epic, we can gain insights into the religious life of...

The gods have a complicated but important role in The Iliad. On the one hand, they are far more powerful than human beings and are depicted as having the ability to shape and manipulate human...

Both versions appear in antiquity. Neither is "correct" or "incorrect". They are just two different versions of a story.

In the Iliad, the gods and goddesses play a very important part. In order to answer your question, you might want to explain that this is because the ancient Greek faith believed that the gods were...

Achilles became angered by Hector when in Book 17 Hector killed Achilles' dear friend and half brother Patroclus. In Book 17, Achilles sends Patroclus to help defend the Achaian ships from the...

Even if one accepts that there really is such a thing as unconditional love between humans, it’s notable by its absence from the relationship between Helen and Paris. To a large extent, this is...

Answers will vary for this opinion-based question. It is important to provide reasons to back up and explain your answer. Zeus is reluctant to bestow the golden apple. He says Paris, a Trojan...

As he heads off out to battle, Hector knows what's at stake. If Troy should fall, then all the men will be wiped out and the women and children sold into slavery. As Hector has a wife and son, he's...

It was dangerous for King Priam to claim the body of his son Hector because he had to go into the Greek camp all by himself. He might have been killed or taken prisoner before he ever reached...

As readerofbooks suggests, there may be many morals in a work of such length and complexity as Homer's Iliad. As his post also suggests, "the costs of pride" can be argued to be the central moral...

Homer's world is very different than our world. This might be an obvious statement, but it is a necessary point to make. In Homer's world, certain characteristics were valued like courage, honor,...

Andromache is near the battlement, or city wall, because Troy's fundamental civil engineering feat is the development of these high walls. She stands at these walls at a couple of moments. The...

The gods and goddesses of ancient Greek mythology regularly intervene throughout the Iliad. They get involved at key points, invariably driving the action forward. In doing so, they show themselves...

The Iliad reveals the loyalty and devotion which are integral parts of Hector's and Andromache's characterization. Hector and Andromache are two of the most loyal characters in the Iliad. They...

I would make the choice that Hector makes: responsibility to other people. This is one of the many personal qualities that makes Hector such a sympathetic character and which distinguishes him from...

Achilles comes into the Iliad a glorious and prideful hero, demanding due respect and prizes for the acts of glory and talent he displays on the battlefield at Troy. This can be seen in Book One...

Plato called Homer the teacher of Greece and Homer has continued to be widely read, referred to, and imitated throughout subsequent western literature, from Virgil's Aeneid to Walcott's Omeros. As...

Achilles death is not described in the text of The Iliad. The story of his death is part of later Greek myths. However the death of Achilles is predicted by Hector in Book 22, as he is dying by...

Historians have now dug up enough facts to believe that something like the Trojan War may have really occurred. However, the story of how it began and what started it is part of Ancient Greek...

Arete is honor and excellence. Males achieved arete in the Ancient Greek world by becoming valiant warriors. War was the chief source of male honor in life and after death, for courageous fighters...

As noted by gcarden498, "in medias res" is a Latin phrase meaning "in the middle of things." With respect to Homer's Iliad, because other poems in the Greek epic cycle dealt with the events leading...

Homer's Iliad opens with thematic lines: Anger be now my song, immortal one, Akhileus' anger, doomed and ruinous, That causes the Akhaians loss on bitter loss And crowded brave souls into the...

The most famous description of Hector's death occurs in Book 22 of Homer's Iliad. In this book, Achilles, having reconciled his quarrel with Agamemnon, returns to the fighting and is intent on...

There are two ways in which to answer this. Let me give you two types of answers. One from a human point of view, and another from a divine point of view. From a human point of view, Hector died...

Homer's poem The Iliad is a classic example of an epic poem because it adheres to the traditional epic form in so many ways. For instance, the story takes place over a wide area. Specifically, The...

Apollo helps Hector and the Trojans because the god is angry at the Greeks for dishonoring his priest. According to Homer: And which of the gods was it that set them on to quarrel? It was the son...

Achilles' stallions were named Balios and Xanthos, born of a union between the harpy Podarge and Zephyros (the West Wind). The horses, who were immortal, were given by Poseidon as a gift to...

Homer's The Iliad is one of the most famous examples of Classic Greek poetry. Epic poetry is characterized by lengthy narrative and themes of heroism or a journey. Many other genres have been...

In a story full of heroic characters it can be hard to identify the central hero. The other educator answer here makes a good case for Hector. He does seem to be the most heroic hero in the epic...

Andromache is utterly crestfallen at news of her husband Hector's death. Even though she foretold his demise, it's still incredibly hard for her to handle. So she weeps and wails bitterly over her...

The narrator of Homer's Illiad speaks from a third-person omniscient point of view. Specifically, the narrator is the poet himself. Homer appears to know the gist of the historical events that he...

In book 6, Hector is about to leave for battle with the Greeks. He is saying goodbye to his wife and says the following prayer over his infant son, Astyanax: Then he took his darling child, kissed...

I think that there is a very interesting dynamic between Hector and Helen. Both of them represent opposite ends of the source of action. Helen's presence in the drama is the result of Paris'...

Achilles and Hector are both the greatest warriors of their respective camps, the Greeks and the Trojans. When it comes to their personalities, they could not be more different. Achilles is quick...

Justice in Homer is of a fairly primitive variety, based on customs of retribution and recompense. Response to what is seen as injustice can result in a demand for immediate compensation, as in the...

You could argue that before the story began, the Trojans had already received the help of Poseidon in building their wall, but thanks to their lack of tribute he had withdrawn his protection, so...

Joseph Campbell was a student of mythology and folklore who condensed his understanding of such stories into a monomyth that he termed "the Hero's Journey." The steps of this journey are summarized...