Iliad: Civilized vs Barbaric

831 Words2 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: Achilles and Hector similarities and differences in the iliad

Deciphering the Iliad

There are many controversies involving the Iliad, but the most important is about the characters in the Iliad demonstrating barbaric and civilized behavior. Questions about this and the answers can be found by looking at Hektor, Paris and Achilles. Hektor represents the civilized being, always looking for a peaceful resolution to a problem. Achilles refuses to fight and somewhat resembles Paris, the civilized coward. Paris would stay back and relax while the battle raged outside. Hektor was always out on the frontlines doing all he could to help his army. Achilles, angered by Agamemnon, betrays his own side and tells Zeus to bring a plague on the Achaeans, causing them to almost be wiped out. This was a barbarous act.

In the beginning, when Paris is first introduced, one sees him as an average hero, he steps forward and yells a war-cry at the beginning of the epic. As soon as Paris sees Menelaos, he retreats in fear, it would have to take divine intervention to get him back to battle Menelaos, which eventually does happen. The duel begins and Menelaos throws his spear, it clearly is going to sink into Paris but he is shielded by Aphrodite, and taken off to his castle where he waits out the rest of the battle in comfort. He refuses to rejoin the battle and then one realizes what he truly is, a coward. Although Paris is a coward he has refined taste and is a civilized coward. The act of dueling is unrefined, uncivilized and barbarous.

Throughout the Iliad there is corruption, Paris staying back in his home as the

battle rages on, and Achilles does the same. Agamemnon is kidnapping people in the

midst of battle, this causes Achilles to quit and nearly wipe out all of the...

... middle of paper ...

... one of the worst things that happened in the history of the U.S, this represents one of Achilles acts, barbarous and offensive. The UN seems to resemble the acts of Hektor, trying to get Paris to hand over Helen but both refuse and the war rages on. We share very similar things to the ancient Greeks, our civilizations share the lust to create, to harness new technologies. We both share similar sports, we still have the Olympics, we strive for better cultural advancements. There is also corruption among us, recently the Iraqi prisoners were being tortured by us in unnecessary ways, the Greeks going on a rampage at Troy and slaughtering innocent civilians, like we do today. We learn many things from the ancient Greeks, and we have made many cultural, technological and even military achievements from them, the basis of our culture owes a great deal to the Greeks.

Show More
Related

  • Black Ships Before Troy Character Traits

    490 Words  | 1 Pages

    One example that proves Paris is a coward is when he runs away from the fight with Menelaus. This shows Paris is a coward because he started the fight with Menelaus then ran away like a scared puppy. It was Hector who finally convinced Paris to fight the Greek warrior, “But Paris, seeing who came against him, felt his heart shrink within him, from shame as much as fear, and fell back into the ranks of the Trojan host behind him.” (P. 26). A second example of his cowardliness is the countless times Paris is seen on the outskirts of the war. The only time Paris helped in the war is when he wounded some Greek warriors by shooting them with an arrow from the safety of the Trojan walls. Paris will sit and watch and never fight upfront like his brave brother Hector “…Paris, keeping as usual to the fringe of the battle…” (P. 59). Paris is too scared to fight in the war; he’s like a child running away from a clown.

    Read More

  • Quotes From The Iliad Achilles

    1571 Words  | 4 Pages

    From these lines we see that Achilles does not understand the importance of being a team and working together. He wants to be the boss and

    Read More

  • Personal Honor In The Iliad

    1034 Words  | 3 Pages

    The notion of personal honor is prevalent throughout the Iliad. The honor of every person in Homeric culture was important, but to the hero, his honor was paramount. He could not endure insults, and he felt that he had to protect his reputation — even unto death. The hero 's duty was to fight, and the only way he had of gaining glory and immortality was through heroic action on the battlefield; thus, he continually prepared his life for the life-and-death risks of battle. The Homeric hero believed that men had to stand together in battle; men had to respect each other; and they had to refrain from excessive cruelty. This last condition was critically important for the Homeric hero. He loathed deliberate acts of cruelty and injustice. If he were ready to kill a victim, he believed that he should do it quickly; he was not to mutilate him, as Achilles does with Hektor 's body. By following this code, a hero gained a sense of dignity and a reputation for honor that would ensure his place in the social memory of his community.

    Read More

  • Iliad and The Odyssey by Homer

    1703 Words  | 4 Pages

    The Iliad tells the story of the final weeks of the last year of the Trojan War, after nine long years of fighting between the Trojans and Achaeans (Greeks). The fighting first started with Paris of Troy taking Helen, the most beautiful women in the world, back to Troy and away from her husband King Menelaus of Sparta. Outraged, King Menelaus gathered the kings and armies of Greece, and set sail towards Troy, to wage war and take back Helen. Although the Greeks had brought massive forc...

    Read More

  • Central Values Of The Odyliad In Homer's The Iliad

    959 Words  | 2 Pages

    In The Iliad some central values of early Greek society are anger, honor, and love. The way The Iliad begins, with the "wrath of Achilles” sets the direction which the epic takes. Achilles anger is based of pride and honor.

    Read More

  • King Achilles: The Heroic Greek Hero

    641 Words  | 2 Pages

    In the beginning of the two men’s lives, Achilles, and Paris, they both were abandoned. “Paris or Alexander, in Greek mythology, son of Priam and Hecuba and brother of Hector” ("Paris, In Greek Mythology." 1), was just a been when Paris’s family got a prophecy saying that Paris will destroy Troy. He was

    Read More

  • Honor in the Iliad and Antigone

    991 Words  | 2 Pages

    Throughout the Iliad, Homer portraits the extent to which honor plays a role in the lives of Greeks and the manner in which they are willing to sacrifice in order to reach their goals. The Iliad is set during the Trojan War, a particularly long and bloody war, fought not over boundary disagreements, and not over political conflicts, and not to protect the nation. Rather, it was a war fought to defend the personal honor. The possession of women was important to a man’s standing and honor. Paris’ theft of Helen struck a huge blow to the honor of Menelaus and becomes the initial cause of the Trojan War. Consequently, Menelaus, the Spartan ruler, called upon his brother Agamemnon to gather the Greek forces to launch the war against Paris demanding the return of Helen and reinstating the honor for the king. The war lasted for ten years and cost innumerable Greeks’ lives and brought incurable pain upon their families. To Greek heroes, honor is more important than their life as much as that life would be meaningless without it, and they even willingly sacrifice their lives in order...

    Read More

  • Change In The Iliad

    1639 Words  | 4 Pages

    Change, in The Iliad, appears in many forms, but most originate from the actions of others. It is human nature for men to follow their will almost without any regard for those around them. This unwavering willpower brings change upon the weaker wills of other men. Faced with change, the weaker man’s path is altered either slightly or drastically. From this alteration, man is given choices or must make it himself. Through these experiences, they become more aware or more confused with what goes on around them. Regardless of whether they deal with it or not, they accept that change is inevitable and will continue forward. Knowing their lives are comparatively ephemeral to the immortals, they have the tendency of seizing the day. It almost sounds humbling when they say, “no man can turn aside nor escape…let us go on and win glory

    Read More

  • Pursuit Of Honor And Glory In The Iliad

    953 Words  | 2 Pages

    "The Iliad is a poem that celebrates the heroic values war imposes on its votaries (27)." Homer himself describes war as "bringing glory to man." War is a huge part of both the Achaeans and the Trojans' lives. Characters gain glory through their performances and bravery in battle. Furthermore, Homer persuades the reader that war is the glorious way to settle a dispute. For example, Hector and other Trojans scorn Paris for backing down from Menelaus. On the other hand, Achilles acquires glory by deferring the option of a long, peaceful life in order to fight and become an epic hero. The characters in The Iliad value honor and glory to such a degree that they are willing to give up life itself in order to possess it.

    Read More

  • Glory in the Iliad

    730 Words  | 2 Pages

    “Then the screaming and shouts of triumph rose up together, of men killing and men killed, and the ground ran blood.” From first examination the Iliad seems to be an epic founded on an idealized form of glory, the kind that young boys think about when they want to join the army. A place full of heroism and manliness where glory can be achieved with a few strokes of a sword and then you go home and everything is just lovely. Many people view the Iliad this way, based on it’s many vivid battle descriptions and apparent lack of remorse for the deaths that occur. This, however, is not how war is presented in the Iliad. Homer presents a very practical outlook on war countering the attainment of the glory with the reality of its price and the destruction it causes. He successfully does this by showing the value of the lives of each person that dies and, in a sense, mourning their passing, describing the terror and ugliness of war, and, through the characters of Achilleus and Hector, displaying the high price of glory.

    Read More

  • Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder In Homer's Iliad

    1064 Words  | 3 Pages

    In Book 21, Achilles kills a hostage at his mercy, whose life he has sparred in the past. By the end of Book 21, Achilles has killed so many Trojan’s that the river is clogged with the bodies of his victims. Achilles behaves without a care for human life, as well as his treatment toward Hector before and after he kills him. As stated in Blucher’s article, Achilles is found to go berserk, committing atrocities to both living and dead. This, for Shay, is the story of the Iliad and also as Shay goes on to demonstrate, the story of many Vietnam combat veterans”. (Blucher). Before their battle Hector begs Achilles to honor his corpse if he is killed in war, and Achilles refuse, saying, “Don’t try to cut any deals with me, Hector. Do lions make peace treaties with men? Do wolves and lambs agree to get along? No, they hate each other to the core, And that’s how it is between you and me, No talk of agreements until one of us Falls and gluts Ares with his blood” (Homer). His statement of intent to dishonor Hector’s corpse and to damage the body after his enemy’s death, shows that he had anger towards his superiors. The most disturbing portrayal from Achilles is his behavior, when Hector’s father Priam meets with him to ask for Hector’s body. This show Achilles’ anger is driven by rage towards other superior officers in the

    Read More

  • Revenge

    1798 Words  | 4 Pages

    Revenge in The Iliad it the main theme and drives men to do things that they would not normally do. The main example of this is Achilles wanting revenge on Agamemnon. The first book of the Iliad explains that Achilles wants revenge because Agamemnon is forced to return Chryseis, his war bride, to her father, and he decides to take Achilles war bride from him. According to “Some Thoughts about the Origins of ‘Greek Ethics’”, by Nicholas D. Smith, “Agamemnon’s unjust affront to Achilles leads to and extraordinarily deadly retaliation, the ultimate outcome of which is that multitudes of these men’s innocent allies are killed unnecessarily”(smith 10). This is out of character for Achilles, who would normally be the first man into battle, not sitting one out. By “rejecting even the most earnest and impressive entreaties Agamemnon offers, and increasingly making decisions which are rationally indefensible”, he shows how much his wanting of revenge has turned him into a madman (smith 10). His only desire is to get revenge for his loss. It takes the death of Patroclus, his dear friend, to bring him back to the war, which he has left.

    Read More

  • Paris the Cowardly Prince

    812 Words  | 2 Pages

    Though the Iliad made mention of extreme bravery; it also covers the opposite end of the scale: cowardliness. Paris, depicted at first as woman crazed, sex obsessed, and egotistic (he never leaves these descriptions), was also viewed as a coward as early as Book III. Paris, who fought bravely towards the end of the war, is a misunderstood Trojan who just wanted to have fun.

    Read More

  • Achilles: The Tragic Hero

    936 Words  | 2 Pages

    Achilles is introduced into The Iliad getting into a debacle with the leader of the Greek army, Agamemnon, during the last year of the Trojan War. Achilles starts a quarrel with Agamemnon because he has demanded possession of Achilles’ woman, Briseis, in consolation for having to give up his woman, Chryseis, so that the gods will end their plague upon the Greek soldiers. Achilles does all he can to get his loved one back, but he knows that nothing will waver Agamemnon’s decision. This is when Achil...

    Read More

  • Who was the Real Hero in Homer's The Iliad?

    914 Words  | 2 Pages

    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...

    Read More

More about Iliad: Civilized vs Barbaric

Open Document