The Role Of Hektor In The Iliad Of Homer

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Greek Excellence and the Hero The hero of an epic poem repeatedly endures many trials that can prove his ability to be worthy of the title hero. In the passage 6.440-481 in The Iliad of Homer, Hektor's heroism is tested, especially when he faces the choice of returning to battle or staying with his family. When analyzing what drives Hektor to return to the battlefield and what makes him a hero, it is obvious that the "Greek educational ideal" known as areté greatly influences him (Western Civilization: A Brief History, Perry, 43). While Homer reveals the mindset of Hektor in this passage, he also criticizes the role of the hero, and possibly the notion of Greek excellence, in Hektor's motivation to fight. Though Hektor is a courageous …show more content…

Hektor wants his wife to be proud of his warrior life when he says that Andromache will be known as "the wife of Hektor, who was ever the bravest fighter of the Trojans" (The Iliad of Homer 6.460 trans. Lattimore). When Hektor bids farewell to his young son, Astyanax, clothed in his shining war gear with gleaming helmet, Astyanax cries with fright at the sight of his father. A moment later, a rare depiction of Hektor as a "beloved father" is shown as he plays with his son (6.470). Hektor then prays to the gods for his son in line 476, and does not address the emotional well being of Astyanax, but instead, prays for his son's future to hold a greater glory than his own and for him to "rule strongly over Ilion" (6.478). Hektor wants him to have the areté that he has acquired, and shows how significant this attribute will be for his son's survival as a warrior and ruler when he talks of Astyanax "bring[ing] home the blooded spoils, and delight[ing] the heart of his mother" (6.481). This scene emphasizes how Hektor's affection for his son is carried out through his areté as he prays for an optimistic future for his …show more content…

Hektor wants to do what his society considers the right thing by fighting in the war, and he does so only because of the honor required in the Greek excellence. In the course of the story, Hektor does not believe in Paris' quarrel and does not like to fight even though his areté drives him into battle. Hektor does not want to be called a coward, but this is inevitably the weakness within him. Paris comments on this long before Hektor's encounter with his wife, and says, "surely now the flowing-haired Achaians laugh at us, thinking you are our bravest champion, only because your looks are handsome, but there is no strength in your heart, no courage" (3.43-45). Homer seems to convey to the audience that Greek masculinity and a warrior's aggression leads to nothing but a tragic end. Hektor could have liquidated the war, but his weakness prevents this. Homer shows that the nobility of mind and action that he has only leads Hektor and the family his fights for the reality of being

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