Compare And Contrast The Theme Of Fate And Fate

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This literary paper will compare and contrast the theme of fate and free will that is found in the duels of Menelaus and Paris in Book 3 and the duel of Achilles and Hector in Book 22 of Homer’s The Iliad. The theme of free will in the duel between Paris and Menelaus defines the attempt to end the war in two-man combat, yet the theme of fate intervenes when Aphrodite saves Paris from death. However, the narrator in Homer’s poem undermines godly intervention by acknowledging that Zeus will not hold the men to their oath. In Book 22, the combat between Achilles and Hector is also part of the attempt to end the war with a duel through free will. However, the intervention of Athena wins the duel by returning Achilles’ spear after he has missed hector), which allows him to mortally …show more content…

In this manner, the comparable aspects of free will in these duels present a moment in which two men could end the war, yet the duel of Menelaus had receives of less godly intervention than did Achilles. The juxtaposition of free will and fate are important aspects of the limitations of gods and men in the context of the duel. In contrast to this man-made solution, the Gods intervene as a form of fate that continues the bloodshed and conflict between the two armies. In essence, the themes of fate and free will be compared and contrasted in the context of two-man combat in Book 3 and Book 22 of The Iliad by Homer. In book of Homer’s The Iliad, the theme of free will is a prominent theme in the context of two-man combat as a resolution to the war between the Trojans and the Achaeans. The duel between Menelaus and Paris is one example of the free will of men to decide the victor and the defeated through combat. In this context, it is important to understand the impact of two-man combat as a means to end the war and reduce the death of more soldiers over the love of Menelaus for Helen. This agreement is laid out by Menelaus, which expresses the free will of each

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