The characters in, Black Ships Before Troy, were diverse in their behaviors. Some displayed heroic qualities, while others exhibited flaws. Agamemnon is a character that demonstrated both heroic qualities and flaws. Agamemnon, on one hand, could be self-centered and hopeless. On the other hand, he can be very caring. Through analyzing these traits a deeper understanding about Agamemnon was discovered.
One of the flaws that Agamemnon displayed was self-centered. He sometimes only cares about himself and doesn’t care about his people. According to the text, it states “Though “the other leaders urged him to release” Chyrseis so that Apollo would take away the sickness from the camp, Agamemnon refused.” This tells me that Agamemnon is self-centered
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Sometimes in the novel, he decides to give up hope. For example, in the text, it states “Agamemnon decides that since Zeus is clearly on the side of the Trojans, that they should just leave the fight and go home.” This tells me that Agamemnon is hopeless because when he notice that Zeus was on the Trojan’s side he gives up most of his courage and hope. He decided that he doesn’t want to fight anymore. Agamemnon was also hopeless when he told his people “He told them in grim earnest this time, that since Zeus the Thunderer had set his face so utterly against them, he saw nothing for them but to burn their camp and launch their ships under cover of night and sail for their own land, giving up all thought of Helen and the conquering of Troy.” This explains to me that Agamemnon is doesn’t have any hope left. He wants to abandon the war, and go home since Zeus wasn’t on their side. He wants to burn their ships and sail back home. he wants to give up the thought of bringing Helen back to Greek and conquering Troy. He has no hope and is also pretty selfish. He gave up after all this fight and after so many lives are taken. By looking at the character traits of Agamemnon, a better understanding of him was uncovered throughout the
Agamemnon survived the ten year long Trojan War, even as other great warriors such as Achilleus fell. Tales of the war are widespread and it is described by both its veterans and non-participants in glorified terms. Agamemnon is often singled out for leadership and accomplishments. Demodokos sings of the “famous actions/ of men on that venture” and “that lord of men, Agamemnon” while performing for Odysseus on Alkinoos.(VIII, 73-74, 77). Agamemnon stands out as one of “the leaders of the bronze- armored Achaians” who fought at Troy and is recognized as a major hero of the war (IV,496).
Odysseus and Agamemnon are heroes who fought side by side to take down the city of Troy during the Trojan War. In Homer’s The Odyssey, why is Agamemnon slaughtered when he arrives home while Odysseus returns to find his loved ones still waiting for him? The reasons for the heroes’ differing fates are the nature of their homecoming and the loyalty of their wives.
The Greek interpretation of what makes a man “civilized” and what makes him “savage” is a recurring theme throughout the ancient epics, battle narratives, and dramas, including Aeschylus’ Agamemnon. In this first installment of The Oresteia, the chorus of Argive elders expresses keen outrage at the killing of Agamemnon, which suggests that they equate savagery with the madness they see in Clytemnestra: “just as your mind is maddened by the bloody deed, the blood-fleck in your eyes is clear to see” (1426-1427). In many places throughout the play, however, Clytemnestra proves that she does not fit the description of savage that is defined in Homer’s literature, for example and instead gives evidence that she is a very complex, rational woman. The chorus ignores the many admirable qualities of their queen —her skill at running the estate and her compassion for those who have suffered, among other things— simply because she is a woman. These qualities may not entirely excuse Clytemnestra from taking a life, but they combine to form a more noble picture of the queen than the chorus chooses to portray. Clytemnestra has relatable motives and displays empathy and respect for many different people, including the husband who she just killed, which sets her apart from the classical Greek definition of a savage —a designation forced on Clytemnestra by the chorus, but not necessarily to be believed.
Agamemnon is trying to bribe Achilles with gifts but Achilles is not hearing it. From these lines we see that Achilles is being somewhat selfish he is not willing to accept anything Agamemnon gives him regardless of how much it is even if what he gives him is more than what Agamemnon has himself. Achilles will not take anything from him until he is willing to pay for all the grief he has caused which is pretty much impossible to do. The gifts that Agamemnon will offer are not enough to satisfy Achilles it will not convince him to change his decision about the war or mean enough to him
The Agamemnon picks up with Agamemnon and Menelaus, sons to Atreus, who joined together in the war of Troy after Paris, son of Priam, seduced Helen, wife to Menelaus. Angered by his ruthless man-sacrifices in the war, Artemis required that Agamemnon take the life of his daughter Iphigeneia in order to save the army and fleet o...
It is revealed that the goddess of wild animals, Artemis, is angry, and the sacrifice of Iphigenia and the massacre of Troy are mentioned. Agamemnon was well aware of what he was getting into and began his worried oscillation between the love of his daughter and the love of his power, prestige, and country. His weakness of character is becoming more apparent, his ethics appear arbitrary.
...ders are unable to adequately rule their people. It is evident to me that a tyrant need not be a particularly evil or dangerous leader, but merely one who cares more about his own power and honor than the people he leads, who lets his pride and greed overwhelm his responsibilities to the city or society he has been entrusted with. Agamemnon never tortured or killed his own men, but his judgment in protecting his men was compromised by his desire to gain honor in the sight of others. Tyranny can be overwhelming or subtle, but the very hint of its existence is sure to cause disharmony in the government, leading to the unjust, and thus unhappy society that Plato described.
Agamemnon tries to use Achilles rage and fury to get him to give up and retreat back to the army he left. Even though Achilles felt rage and sorrow, he keeps to his word. He wants to obey Athena’s orders of to not fight back. Although he is sad, he will not let Agamemnon’s threat get to his
The first part of a trilogy, in Agamemnon a cyclical path of retributive justice is set in motion. * As his characters move through the play, the plot to murder Agamemnon is discussed, both as an evil and as a justified act. To Clytemnestra, her actions are decided on the day her daughter is sacrificed by her husband. “…the death he dealt/our house and the offspring of out loins,/Iphigeneia, girl of tears./Act for act, wound for wound!”Just as Agamemnon’s choice to sacrifice his daughter is forced on him by a perception of the gods’ desires, Clytemnestra feels she is driven to her actions by a “savage ancient spirit of revenge.” Her co-conspirator, Aegisthus, is claiming retribution for wrongs that were per...
In Aeschylus’ Agamemnon there are many different opinions about what kind of king and commander Agamemnon was. Some argued that he was good, while others dispute that his motives were wrong. Clytemnestra, Agamemnon’s wife, gained a strong hatred for him, after he sacrificed his own daughter so he could go to war. Many believe that this was not necessary and could have been overcome. The chorus seems to agree with this to an extent, and feels that Agamemnon could have prayed and requested that he not sacrifice his daughter.
When Agamemnon was put in command he dropped all the friends he didn’t need, and shut himself in. He got what he wanted, and didn’t care about those around him that may have helped him. In this way he wants to be thought superior, and wont associate with any lesser people. Menelaos tries to be the bigger person and tells Agamemnon not to kill his child for his sake, making it seem like he’s doing him a favor. Clytemnestra wants to be there for her daughter’s supposed wedding, She wants to be the one to raise the bridal torch, and plan the wedding, unaware that there is no marriage at all. Also, she gives Agamemnon a guilt trip about how he killed her last husband, and how she learned to love him and bore 3 children for him. She thinks it is cruel to take one of them away from her. Achilles finds out what is going on and says that since they have been treated very cruelly and to be proper he is going to make sure no harm comes to them. He does not want to be used in Agamemnon’s manipulations. Iphigeneia learns about the real reason she is sent for, and in the end says that she is ready to die for the people of Greece because they have turned to her for help.
There have been many conceptions to the meaning behind Greek Mythology. Anything that includes explanations to the seasons, reasons for natural phenomenon, and even disasters. Although, one major ideal that has blindsided is the egotistical pride of the Greek Empires. For centuries lust, and defiance have been the DNA that comprised the Greek timeline. The gods were not very pleased, and the humans have suffered the wrath of them very often. The lustful eye of man, and the defiance of the gods is what caused many problems for the Greeks. King Agamemnon is a prime example of both defiance and lust. He disrespected the fabled hero Achilles, and distraught the god Apollo. Little does Agamemnon realize that
The fact that the opening lines of the epic are about Achilles’ power and the people he has killed as a soldier on the Greek side show the huge importance given to him and his power. In his confrontation with Agamemnon regarding Chryseis, he tells Agamemnon that the Greek people want him to give Chryseis back to her father, the priest. This is an example of his great status among his people – he represents them, the one that lets Agamemnon hear their voice.
In Aeschylus’ The Agamemnon, Agamemnon and Clytemnestra have to make tough decisions throughout the play, decisions they believe are justified. The actions of Agamemnon and Clytemnestra are not justified because they are caused by their blinding hubris and desire for power. Agamemnon makes the choice to kill his daughter just so he could lead his troops to Troy. Clytemnestra kills her husband, not just for revenge, but for his position and power as king of Mycenae. They make selfish choices and do not believe they will be punished for them. By exposing their true motives, Aeschylus makes it clear they are not justified in their actions.
Through Agamemnon, Hector, Nestor, and Priams idiosyncratic characteristics they played crucial roles to the story. All warriors have different characteristics which helps make the story interesting and thrilling. Homer had many characters convey different attributes that compared and contrasted throughout all characters in the book. Homer defiantly succeeded in creating every character to have distinctive qualities throughout the book.