Achilles: A Successful Leader?
Regardless of the morality of one’s actions, consequences and resulting adversity are felt by all who chose to follow. Without forgiveness, leaders allowed hatred and suffering to grow rampant in their communities. Hubris and indecision are factors that play into a leader’s ability to better the wellbeing of his apostles. In his ancient Greek epic poem, The Iliad, Homer illustrates the humanity of leaders, and how their negligence leads to their followers’ suffering. Achilles inability to forgive Hector for unknowingly killing Patroclus ultimately results in Achilles’ downfall. Overconfidence and tentativeness result in Achilles bringing suffering to the soldiers who follow him. Homer questions the effectiveness of leadership, and in turn, man’s ability to avoid conflict and torment. The intentions of someone has nothing to do with the effect that their actions have on those who surround him.
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Homer’s depicts how hatred and lack of forgiveness results in the downfall of leaders. Achilles cannot find the strength to forgive Hector; the resulting actions is one of hatred that contributes to the death of Achilles. Achilles anger turned into aggression; eventually, he became overconfident and choose to ignore his prophecy. “He said he would eat the corpse himself, but since he can't, he'll let the dogs do it, instead.” Athena attempted to tell Achilles his prophecy, that if he killed Hector, he would die too in battle. Achilles’ anger overpowered his reason and led him into a trap that guaranteed his death. Homer develops the hatred within Achilles’ character to show how hatred and being unable to absolve others for their wrongdoings can spur emotional outbursts that can defeat oneself. Ethics and morality play no role in how one’s endeavors can negatively affects those around
While Phoenix and Meleager seemed to have issues with their respective parents, Achilles has none of the same issues. Achilles has a loving mother as well as a father and Phoenix, a father figure. Achilles and Phoenix are so close that Phoenix claims, “I made you what you are, my godlike Achilles, And loved you from my heart” (Homer’s Iliad 9.498-499). In contrast, the relationships depicted through Phoenix’s story are filled with rage and promises of death. The importance of structuring symmetrical relationships when invoking an emotional argument is imperative, and this paradigm fails to pick appropriate examples. Though Achilles may feel pity, he isn’t able to wholeheartedly empathize with the narrative laid before him. Without empathy, there can be no universal bonds in which others can be held accountable for each other. The dearth of empathetic material in Phoenix’s speech is largely proportional to Achilles’ acute refusal as well as a broader representation of the tragedy of the Trojan war on the
The Odyssey, written by Homer, details the dismal voyage home of a Greek Hero, Odysseus; returning from the Trojan War. Plagued by bad luck; the gods hindered Odysseus’ return to Ithaca and in return, he was away from his homeland for twenty years. Odysseus was considered a Modern Greek hero. He was thoughtful, resourceful and respectful of the gods. If we compare Odysseus to Achilles, another Greek hero, most of their traits are similar, they shared in their sense of duty, courage and bravery. However, Achilles was more impulsive than Odysseus and did not contemplate the consequences of his actions. He was solely motivated by his need for vengeance. Even though Achilles had extraordinary strength and a close relationship with the gods, he still seemed less than heroic. He possessed all the abilities to be a great warrior and was portrayed as the greatest warrior in the Greek army yet his flaws constantly hindered his capability to act with decency and honour. He could not control his pride or rage which ultimately affected his actions. An example of this is when Achilles prayed to the gods that the Trojans would slaughter the Greeks because of the indecency shown to him by King Agamemnon. Part of him desired to live a long, easy life, but he knew that his personal fate forced him to choose between living a long life and his name forgotten after a few generations; or a short life, lived with honour and glory. Ultimately, Achilles was willing to sacrifice his life so that his name would be rememb...
He portraits Achilles as a mystical hero, a brave militant, with honorable qualities. To many this will be a great characteristic of a noble man, but his anger and pride becomes his downfault. Home starts the poem with, “Goddess, sing me the anger, of Achilles, Peleus’ son, that fatal anger that brought countless sorrows on the Greeks, and sent many valiant souls of warriors down to Hades, leaving their bodies as spoil for dogs and carrion birds: for thus was the will of Zeus brought to fulfilment. Sing of it from the moment when Agamemnon, Atreus’ son, that king of men, parted in wrath from noble Achilles (Homer Bk1).” An anger that took the life of many soldiers because of Achilles selfishness. Glen W. Most, explains that, “Homer does indeed tell of Achilles’ wrath – but he recounts not only, first, his wrath against Agamemnon, “which laid countless woes upon the Achaeans,” but also, second, his wrath against Hector after Hector has slain Patroclus (Most 50).” These examples of anger have not chance throughout generations. Anger, violence and war has always been a common felling, that it is a part of all men and these feelings can be seen from the poem of Home to World War 1 and from dictators planning war against another country to bullies harassing a childhood
The subject of Homer’s epic poem, the Iliad, is very clearly stated--it is “the rage of Peleus’ son Achilles.” The reader remains continually aware of the extent of Achilles’ rage, yet is never told the reason why Achilles remains angry and unreconciled. There is no definitive answer to this question. Achilles is not a static character. He is constantly changing; thus the question of why he remains angry solicits different answers at various stages throughout the poem. To find an answer, the reader must carefully examine Achilles’ ever-changing dilemma involving the concepts of mortality and honor. At its simplest, Achilles’ dilemma is that if he goes to war, he will die. But he will die with glory.
Achilles anger was a predominant theme in the Iliad. It led to Patrokolos, death, Hektor’s death and a great many other Trojan deaths. Achilles was a very powerful Greek warrior, he had many faults but one of his most prominent was his uncontrollable anger. Multiple times throughout the Iliad his anger had for reaching effects on the war and people around him. These effects were not usually favorable to anyone. There are three main occurrences that led Achilles’ anger down devastating paths. The first was when Agamemnon took Achilles’ girlfriend. When this happened, Achilles felt robbed because Brisies, his girlfriend, represented his might and the glory of his conquests. In the Greek culture, glory and honor were highly esteemed. This is why
...traint and show regard for others even during difficult times. Showing kindness and emotion to the enemy was once regarded by many as a weakness. However, Achilles is much more of a hero for showing his inner morality. George Eliot said there were many sides to a subject but it is up to the individual to truly examine others and find the inner good.
...battle that Achilles’ ego needed. However, Hector tried to do the right thing by offering the deceased be returned to their respective camps after the battle was over. It is at this point that Achilles is beyond the common courtesies of war and flat out denied Hector’s request. This action by Achilles shows his arrogance and the bloodlust that was truly in his heart rather than the courage that so many people claim that he had.
Homer presents war as a choice made by the gods, as though it were beyond mankind’s power to control. War is treated as a predestined event and is shaped heavily by the influences of the gods throughout the poem. When Achilles, for example, decides to take up arms to avenge Patroclus, it is only because Thetis prompts him to do so and bestows armor upon him. Additionally, when Agamemnon offers his last excuse for his conflict with Achilles, he says: “I am not to blame! Zeus and Fate and the fury stalking through the night, They are the ones who drove the savage madness in my heart, That day in assembly when I seized Achilles' prize— On my own authority, true, but what could I do?
Simone Weil argues that the way Homer presents war and the use of force in the Iliad, in all of its brutality, violence, and bitterness bathes the work in the light of love and justice (pg 25). The point Weil is making is that by depicting the suffering of all of these men regardless of their side, or strength Homer equalizes them in a “condition common to all men”(pg 25). Because Homer equalizes them the reader can feel empathy, or at least compassion for all of the men. However while Weil is correct about how Homer’s descriptions of war and force reveal justice and love, she is wrong in thinking that justice and love are mere “accents” to the Iliad, and progress through the story “without ever becoming noticeable”(pg 25). Homer not only reveals this underlying idea to the reader through his tone and even handedness, but also through Achilles’ journey. By the end of the Iliad Achilles understands justice and love in much the same way that the reader does.
Overall, it has been seen that Achilles meets the major requirements of a tragic hero. He is more admirable than the average person. He also has a fatal flaw that leads to his own undoing. However, unlike the normal tragic hero, Achilles is able to address his own flaw and prevent his downfall from spiralling to the point where his life ends tragically. Ultimately, Achilles is an almost-tragic hero who saves himself from tragedy. Ultimately, The Iliad is an almost-tragedy with hope, where the audience can see the tragic ending that had been narrowly avoided.
The Iliad, the Greek epic documented by Homer that describes the battles and events of the ten year siege on Troy by the Greek army. Both Trojans and Greeks had their fair share of heroes and warriors, but none could match the skill and strength of the swift runner, Achilles. Achilles had the attributes of a perfect warrior with his god-like speed and combat abilities. However, even though he was Greek’s greatest warrior, he still possessed several flaws that made him fit the role of the Tragic Hero impeccably. Defined by Aristotle, a Tragic Hero is someone who possesses a high status of nobility and greatness, but must have imperfections so that mere mortals cannot relate to the hero. Lastly, the Tragic Hero’s downfall must be partially their own fault through personal choice rather than by an evil act, while also appearing to be not entirely deserved of their unfortunate fate. Achilles is a true Tragic Hero because he withholds all of these traits. Achilles proves to be a good man that puts his loved ones first, reveals his tragic flaws of pride and anger, shows dynamic qualities as a character when his flaws are challenged, and has a moment of clarity at the end of his rage. Achilles truly exemplifies the qualities of a Tragic Hero.
The Iliad may be seen as an account of the circumstances that irrevocably alter the life of one man: Achilles, one of the greatest warriors. Throughout the course of the poem Achilles goes through many ordeals that change his character immensely. Starting with his quarrel with Agamemnon and withdrawal from battle, to the death of Patroklos, and with the slaying of Hektor. Achilles emotions and actions decide the fate of many warriors on both sides. Achilles struggles with anger, honor, pride, loyalty and love make the poem more that just a gruesome war story.
...h Agamemnon and wishes that ‘strife could die from the lives of gods and men’… Not to avenge Patroclus by killing Hector would be a renunciation of all that he stands for and has lived by”. Even though “sorrow fell on Achilles like a cloud” (216), he went back out to the battlefield and killed Hector. It took a great deal of bravery for Achilles to face the man who killed his best friend but Achilles, being the hero that he was, got back into battle and killed him because he couldn’t let Patroclus’ death go unavenged.
Homer makes it clear that Achilles is a man mainly driven by his hunger for glory. Achilles has all the traits of a superhuman from his strength to his incredible ability to fight on the battlefield. Even with these great abilities, it is hard for many readers to perceive him as a hero because of the way he acts. Homer takes this brief time period out of this whole ten-year war just to demonstrate how Achilles cannot control himself when he goes into a rage. In todays world Achilles would not last long as a soldier in any army because he would be court marshaled for insubordination. Achilles ye...
Here Homer’s audience sees the full breadth of Achilles’ military excellence, which was extensively elluded to, especially when he has his vengeful showdown with Hector, Patroclus’ murderer. Achilles, famed to be magnificent runner, chases after Hector all through the city of Troy. Tirelessly, Achilles hunts down Hector, no matter where he goes. In fact, Hector is only able to ward off Achilles for so long because Apollo decides to help him, however, when Zeus uses his golden scales and it is seen that Hector must die at the hand of Achilles, Apollo leaves the Trojan prince to die by the vengeful hands of Achilles. Understanding the desperate situation in which he is in, Hector begs for his life.