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Recommended: Analysis of iliad
An Epic Love Triangle For years, Greek literature has transitioned from ancient scrolls, to school textbooks, and oftentimes to the big screen. Stories about Oedipus, Hercules, and the Titans have been told throughout the years captivating generation after generation. These classics never go out of style. Greek mythological characters make for perfect movie stars; however, Hollywood doesn’t always stick to the script when portraying these legendary figures or their glorified stories. The tale of the Trojan War, is one of the most profound works of art, written by Homer, in his poem the Iliad. In 2004 this monumental story was transformed into a feature film under the direction of Wolfgang Petersen. Troy, the movie, is a very inaccurate depiction of the Homeric epic, The Iliad; especially, when it comes to the romantic relationship involving Helen, Pairs and Menelaus. Sure, the characters and the outcome of the war are the same, but the way in which the story is told happens to be dramatically different. The plot of the movie differentiates so much from the original poem that the film is ultimately a lackluster version of the Iliad. The movie makes so many changes to the twisted tale of love between …show more content…
In the poem the Iliad, Aphrodite helps Paris kidnap Helen by offering Helen’s hand to Paris, during his judgment. Although the Judgment of Paris happens prior to the Iliad, there is no mention of Aphrodite in the movie, Troy at all. Excluding the Goddess of Love from the movie, takes away the intensity of the love connection between Paris and Helen. Stephen Scully (in Winkler, p. 120) cites “the absence of divine machinery is one of the reasons (together with the film’s mundane dialogue) why Troy fails to achieve epic greatness.” This union was created by a Goddess, making it supernatural, they loved each other so much, that the young lovers started a
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.
Ingri and Edgar Parin D’alaure’s. Book of Greek Myths. New York: Bantam Dowbleday Dell Publishing Group, 1962.
The heroic ideals are found to be the main concept the authors wanted to show in both
Both the Women of Troy and the Iliad are great works of Greek literature that emphasize different aspects of war. While both these works deal with the Trojan War, their perspectives and emphasis are very different. Whereas in the Iliad, the focus is the war and the glory of the warriors, the Woman of Troy highlights the aftermath of the war. While the Iliad projects the women in the highest reverence, the Women of Troy dehumanizes them. The Iliad is about bravery and higher virtues of mankind, the Women of Troy is about the lecherous nature of mankind who preys upon the helpless and the weak.
The Iliad by Homer is an epic poem separated in different books or chapters that shows a fictionalized account of the Trojan War. Book 6: Hector Returns to Troy is the specific portion of the poem that is being covered in this essay. Hector from the Iliad shows a very clear aspect of his personality, a strong sense of loyalty and tenderness for his loved ones and also his people by being on the front lines during the war and showing his people he is willing to fight with them and essentially sacrificing himself for his family. Hector even knows his forgiveness towards his brother, Paris even though Paris is the main reason the Trojan War is in existence.
The Iliad by the infamous poet Homer is a good example of how the Greek’s have helped mould todays version of cinematic storytelling and heroic figures going on an adventure. Written circa 8th century BC it is based in the Bronze age around 1200 BC nine years after the start of the Trojan war. The eighth century BC was a time where Greece started to prosper once more and writers such as Homer transformed the oral tales and myths into poetry which created standard versions of these stories. Homer was arguably the most important of these poets as the Iliad and the sequel the Odyssey, properly established a world of the Olympian Gods and the Trojan war(1) which reinforced the beliefs of the Greeks that the Gods often were often involved with mortal life and in some cases walked the earth like man did.***********************
To those who already knew the stories of the Trojan War heroes (which all of the original Greek audience of the epic would),
When making an adaptation there are several questions one has to answer, “What has to be changed so a modern audience can “relate” to a story like The Iliad?” and “Do we as the media creators try to tackle the epic story that is The Iliad or instead focus on one of the background stories?” This is what Madeline Miller the author of The Song of Achilles chose to do, she focused on the relationship between Achilles and Patroclus. Miller approaches the story from the sidelines by using Patroclus, Achilles companion and in Miller’s adaptation, lover. Despite deities and fate, despite prophecies and strategies, Miller focuses her novel on a human relationship and although this adaptation has an audience with different expectations and values it
The suspected start of the war- over the abduction of Helen, Queen of Sparta- was caused entirely by a godly conflict over who was the most beautiful- Hera, Athena, and Aphrodite. Paris, son of King Priam of Troy, was selected to judge. He chose Aphro...
The ethical values reflected in the Iliad should be taken seriously because they are not only plausible, but also congruent with the time and place. Homer is narrating tales of a society where men expect to fight and likely die in battle, where courage is demanded of all men, and where honor and glory are seen as steps toward achieving excellence. What makes the Iliad a masterpiece of Western civilization is not just the stirring story, but most of all Homer’s even-handed portrayal of the Homeric world, for the Trojans are never depicted as being less than the Greeks. The Greeks, even their greatest military heroes, are seen as flawed human beings. In conclusion, what Homer presents in the Iliad is a worldview rather than the local perspective of a distant war. In the end, Homer seems to be saying that all men may aspire to virtue.
When discussing literature, most people would say that The Iliad is the first great tragedy. In literature, a tragedy is defined as a work in which the main character or protagonist encounters extreme loss, pain, and/or sadness. Perhaps one of the most memorable and absolutely tragic deaths that really crushes the main character, Achilleus, in this story is the death of Patroklos, Achilleus’ closest friend and ally. Toward the end of the epic, as the Achaians are being pushed back hard by the Trojan army, Patroklos dons Achilleus’ armor and goes to battle in his stead. And in a disastrous turn of events, Apollo, Euphorbos, and Hektor all have a hand in Patroklos’ death. So, we ask this question: who is responsible for the death of Patroklos?
The Iliad by Homer, was set nine years into the Trojan War. The war started because Paris, prince of Troy, took Helen from Menelaus. As a result of this, the Greeks and Trojans ended their long peace. Helen’s husband, Menelaus and his brother Agamemnon declared war on Troy determined to bring Helen back. The Greeks settle on the Trojan beach which marked the beginning of the war. Because of this war, innocent Trojans lost their homes, husbands, sons, and their loved ones. Brother of Paris, Hector, died in combat. The war took away thousands of lives. Mothers of sons wept in sorrow. Helen was the main cause of the
In the movie Troy and in its source, the Iliad written and portrayed by homer, there are three powerful states, Troy Greece and Sparta. The story begins with the Prince of Troy, Paris seducing the Queen of Sparta, Helena, and the King of Sparta, Menelous becomes enraged, so he asks his brother, the King of Greece, Agememnon to help him. The Agememnon sees this as an opportunity to control Troy and obliges. They gather their allies and send thousands of fleets to Troy. The Trojan War in the movie lasts several weeks in the movie and a decade in the book. The Trojans are defeated when the Greeks send a horse filled with men and Troy accepts it in its gates, and the Greeks successfully invade Troy, burning it down in flames. The story of the Iliad takes place in 1194 B.C – 1184 B.C and was written in 760B.C – 710B.C.
Films have always been used to bring out various cultural artifacts and traditions. Through film, it would be easier for one to point out the culture in which one or the main character belongs to. The Iliad and Troy remains to be amongst the most renowned literal and film pieces that have been read, viewed and appreciated throughout history. Just as is the film Troy, which is based on the epic, The Iliad, Gladiator is a 2000 British–American epic historical drama film directed by Ridley Scott. The Gladiator features the character of Crowe, a fictional character, who is very loyal to Roman general Maximus Decimus Meridius. Crowe is betrayed when Commodus, a very ambitious son to the then the emperor Marcus Aurelius takes over power after killing his father.
Homer in his time painted a picture of male kings, soldiers, and heroes objectifying and owning women as their due spoils of leadership and/or conquests in games or war. In the Iliad the glory of the men in battle and games and individual fame were the main topics. There was an idea that a code of men existed which must be followed and if it were, that even immortality itself might be won. Contrastingly, in the Odyssey, women remained lovely and feminine yet were cast in to powerful roles both as goddesses and mortals. These goddesses held the life of Odysseus in their hands and his mortal wife Penelope held his future in her hands as she protected their home (Ahrensdorf 589). Penelope is cast in a “to the manner born” depiction in that Homer tells us she is the wife of a king, mother of a prince, and daughter of a king (Fagles 256/ book XIX). The king that was Penelope’s father was King of Sparta, Icarius the fastest runner of his time and only let Odysseus marry her because of losing a footrace to him.