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 dominates the first half of the Iliad is caused by Agamemnon's laying claim to Briseis, whom Achilles says he loves. However, the love of Hector, a devoted family man, for his wife and his young son is unique and is the poem's most touching portrayal of domestic life.
A woman in ancient Greece might be precious for various reasons. Though we know much less about the Mycenaean period than we do about the Golden Age of Athens, it is clear that women played a very restricted role in social and public life. Intelligence or even beauty were not of the first importance. However, courage and resilience would make a woman a precious consort, as life was dangerous, even for those who did not live in a city under siege.
Another important quality, particularly for a princess, was fertility. Andromache is precious because she has provided Hector with a male heir, who, in normal circumstances, might one day rule the city. Finally, there is the matter of birth and lineage. A wife had to be a fitting consort for her husband, and for a prince of Troy, this meant a woman of noble or royal birth.
Women in ancient Greece had very limited roles. They were confined to the home, where they were expected to perform household chores and look after their husbands and children.
Andromache, wife of the great Trojan warrior Hector, breaker of horses, is the epitome of the Greek wife and mother. She embodies three qualities that would make other people regard her as precious.
First, she is a loving and faithful companion to her husband. Andromache really isn't exaggerating when she says that Hector is everything to her. He's not just her husband, but her protector, a father, and a beloved companion all rolled into one.
Second, Andromache is obedient to her husband at all times. Though in this era of greater equality between the sexes, we might wince at the very suggestion that women should always be obedient to their husbands, in ancient Greece, it was a different story. Female obedience to men was taken for granted and was an important social value to which all women were expected to adhere at all times.
Andromache embodies this attitude, as she never fails to do what Hector asks her to do, such as when he asks her to prepare him a bath.
Finally, Andromache is precious in that she is a loving mother. Amidst all the bloodshed and carnage of war, Andromache's touching interactions with her beloved son, Astyanax, provide a welcome respite from all the slaughter taking place outside the walls of Troy.
Further Reading
Hector's own words in Book VI demonstrate how precious Andromache is to him:
And yet no dire presage so wounds my mind, My mother's death, the ruin of my kind, [123]...
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Not Priam's hoary hairs defiled with gore, Not all my brothers gasping on the shore; As thine, Andromache! Thy griefs I dread: I see thee trembling, weeping, captive led!
Here, he expresses his dread fear that something terrible could happen to her in the event of his death, such as being taken prisoner (which is indeed her fate). In his mind, leaving her to her fate disturbs him more than losing his mother, his father, Priam, or his Trojan brothers. Implicit in this quotation is that their marriage was more than strategic; Hector truly loved Andromache.
In return, Andromache expresses her love and devotion to Hector, when in Book VI she expresses:
"Yet while my Hector still survives, I see My father, mother, brethren, all, in thee: Alas! my parents, brothers, kindred, all Once more will perish, if my Hector fall..."
It is clear that she puts her marriage and love for Hector ahead of her love for the rest of her family. To have a wife that is more than a function of a political marriage and the producer of an heir makes her precious to Hector.
Lastly, in this male-dominated cultural context, women were often the spoils of war; one needs only to consider the importance of Helen, the wife of Sparta's king, Menelaus, whose abduction sparked the Trojan War. Women were chattel, and in this way Andromache was precious, not just to her husband, but also to his enemies. After the Trojan war and Hector's death, Andromache was given to Neoptolemus as his concubine, and she gave birth to his son. Women in this culture were objectified, and Andromache was no exception to this truth, but Homer does convince the reader that her value to Hector was more than that of chattel.
She is precious to Hector because he loves her. She is the mother of his son who is still just a baby. She is not like the other women who are hiding in their houses or praying at the temple to "the awful goddess Minerva". She is out on the wall watching for her husband and the events of the battle.
She knows what Achilles is capable of doing since it was Achilles who killed her own father in the battle with the Cilicians. Andromache begs Hector to stay in the city with her and lead the battle from the safety of the walls. He attempts to comfort her by telling her that when his time comes, no one can stop it, but he would die just the same.
This scene in the Iliad serves to humanize Hector as we see the joy he takes in seeing his son Astyanax and his wife. Their love is elevated to the same level as the rage that pervades the epic. At this moment in the epic of the Iliad, nothing can touch the genuine love that this family represents. It is for this, the ideal love and family, that Hector must go out and fight.
Mention three things that would make a woman precious. Why is Andromache called the "precious wife" of Hector in the Iliad?
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, because her father is dead, like a father to her. In Book six, Hector is moved by her appeal to him to stay away from the fighting so he won't be killed, though he tells he cannot do that. When she hugs him and smiles through her tears, he tries to comfort and reassure her as he faces battle. This is a tender moment of marital affection:
she [Andromache] took him [Hector] to her fragrant bosom, smiling through her tears; and her husband was touched with pity at sight of her, And he stroked her with his hand, and spake to her, saying: "Dear wife, in no wise, I pray thee, grieve overmuch at heart; no man beyond my fate shall send me forth to Hades."
A wife like Andromache is also precious to her husband because she is obedient. She does for Hector what he asks her to do, such as preparing a bath for him in Book 22.
Finally, being a good mother was of prime importance in that culture, and Andromache is loving to their son, Astyanax. In Book 6, the small child is with the couple on the ramparts. Hector hands the child from the servant to Andromache, showing his trust for her mothering, and both react tenderly when Astyanax cries in fear because he doesn't recognize Hector in his plumed helmet.
Mention three things that would make a woman precious. Why is Andromache called the "precious wife" of Hector in the Iliad?
- The first thing would be the husband's feelings toward her.
- The second thing would be the value he places in her as his wife.
- The third thing would be the value he places in her abilities as his adviser and companion.
- The fourth thing would be the confidence he has in her abilities to govern his home and rear his children.
The idea that Hector sees his wife as precious seems to surprise most readers, but women were thought of as very nearly equal to their male peers in Greek society.
Andromache is Hector's confidant and most trusted adviser. He literally can "be real" in the presence of his wife while he must put on the "prince" face when he is out in public or the "hero" face when he is out on the battle-field. In front of Andromache, he simply is a man. There is nothing more precious than the ability to be yourself in front of someone whom you trust with your life.
Examine the significance of Andromache being called Hector's "precious wife."
In book VI of the Iliad, Hector says goodbye to Andromache and his infant son, Astyanax, as he heads off into battle. Andromache is an exemplary woman in her society, being a dutiful and caring wife to Hector. For example, she weaves him a cloak and prepares a bath for him as he has asked her as she awaits his return from battle (tragically, he will be killed). She is also a loving mother to Astyanax, which Hector acknowledges as he takes the very young child from the servant and hands him to Andromache.
But "precious" means more than simply that Andromache is a dutiful wife: it means that Hector loves her. This heightens the agony at his having to go into battle and risk death. Although he feels he has no choice—as he says to her, being a warrior is all he knows—the story here reveals the price of warfare. Homer shows us Hector, Andromache, and Astyanax as a family. In a tender moment, when Astyanax cries in fear over seeing his father in a metal helmet with a waving plume, Hector and Andromache laugh, but then Hector takes off the helmet and shows that he is more than a heroic fighter: he is a loving husband and father.
Homer thus critiques the warrior society that he also depicts as heroic: the cost of war is real and heavy, tearing a husband from his precious wife and leaving his beloved alone in the world after his death (her young son is also killed), reduced to a spoil of war.
Examine the significance of Andromache being called Hector's "precious wife."
Andromache is referred to as Hector's "precious wife" because of the position she holds in his heart. Hector is singular in his missions as both husband and warrior. He understands his responsibility to Troy. Yet, he is equally cognizant of his loyalty to his wife. He is devoted to her and their son. His words before he goes on the battlefield is representative of this. Andromache is a devoted wife, one who recognizes what her husband must do, even if it comes at a significant cost to herself and her son. She stands by her husband, even at great pain to herself. She demonstrates her "precious" quality in such unwavering commitment.
Hector reveres his wife. It is for this reason that she is "precious" to him. He never strays in his devotion to her. In a setting where so many men are flippant with their commitments, thinking of themselves over others, and where the Gods, themselves, reveal theseves to be divergent in their wants, Hector stands alone. He is driven by his love for Troy and the love he has for his wife. Both are "precious." Both motivate him. Both stand in opposition to one another and place him in a brutal position of having to choose between equally "precious" but ultimately incompatible courses of action.
In the Iliad, why does Homer call Andromache Hector's "precious wife"?
Homer uses epithets to tell us something about his characters, be it personal qualities—such as "fleet-footed Achilles"—or their functions within society—e.g. "Hector, breaker of horses." He also uses these epithets to pad out the line, to make the rhythm of the verse flow more smoothly when spoken out loud. The Iliad, like Homer's other masterpiece, The Odyssey, was originally intended to be sung, and the poet's copious use of epithets greatly enhances their musical qualities.
In the case of Andromache, the epithet "precious" is an example of foreshadowing. Hector knows what will happen if the Trojans should lose their bitter war against the Achaeans. All the men will be killed, and their wives and children sold into slavery. That being the case, one could argue that Andromache is precious in much the same way as an antique vase is precious: vulnerable to being broken. That would certainly seem to be the best interpretation of Hector's understanding of the word, as can be seen in the terrifying vision he recounts in Book VI of The Iliad:
"Thy griefs I dread: I see thee trembling, weeping, captive led!"
Hector's seen the future and it chills him to the bone. He sees his beloved, nay precious, Andromache, being led away in chains, a sex slave of the victorious Achaeans.
In the Iliad, why does Homer call Andromache Hector's "precious wife"?
Homer does right in calling Andromache a "precious wife." She is precious to Hektor. One of the most powerful elements in Homer's Iliad is that Hektor is an amazingly talented and gifted soldier, one in whom Troy places a rightful amount of faith and respect. Yet, as abundant in arete as Hektor is, he is torn in his desire to remain with Andromache and their son, Astyanax. In Book VI, Homer shows Hektor to be literally torn between desire and duty in what he wants to do and what he has to do. In such a predicament, Andromache is indeed, precious to him. Additionally, Andromache's character makes her precious. In a setting where women are either shown to be deceptive, such as Helen, or completely wrathful, like Hera, Andromache is noble and honorable, completely devoted to her husband and supportive even though she never ranks above Troy in his eyes. It is for this reason that she acquires even more of a precious status, in that Hektor reveres his wife, though he fully understands that he will never be able to be choose her over the needs of Troy. It is in these lights that Homer's characterization of her as a "precious wife" is quite honorable and well meaning, indeed.