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Importance of courage
Heroic description of hector
Xxii [the death of hector
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Throughout time people have looked up to heroes. Hero can be mighty fictional people who save a damsel in distress to just your everyday person who helps out another. Hector, killer of men, led the Trojan army as their greatest warrior. Pat Tillman was a man who left a successful football career behind in order to join the army. However he was later killed in combat with an official story saying that he was shot by an enemy, but it was later revealed that he was killed by friendly fire. In the epic poem The Iliad, Hector is seen as a brave and selfless hero and shares these traits with the modern-day hero Pat Tillman. The selfless hero Hector puts others needs in front of his own fights in order to protect what he loves. While Andromache, …show more content…
As Hector saw the anger that burned within Achilles as he walk towards him, “Hector began to shake in fear. His courage gone, he could no longer stand there. terrified , he started running” (Homer 22. 140). Hector should be this great hero who will fight to the death in order to protect his country, but some may see his fear as a weakness that makes him unqualified to be called a hero. However Hector reflected his bravery because to chose to stand and wait for Achilles, but he also realizes when fighting will end in his demise. Hector is not a god, he is not immortal, he is human and he does not want to go into a fight where he knows he will die because he cannot protect his country if he is dead. Previously in the war, Hector broke through the mighty Greeks defences he “ jumped inside the gates, no moving out to stop him could hold him back, expect the gods. From his eyes fire blazed” Homer (83). Hectors bravery helped him push through the Greeks defences even though there were people all around him trying to kill him. After this Hector acts as a model for the rest of the Trojan soldiers, inspiring them to push forward with Hector. After making the decision to join the Marines Tillman was “not sure where this new direction will take [his] life though [he is] positive it will include its share of sacrifices and difficulty, most of which falling squarely on Marie’s shoulders.” (Tillman 2). There are many strong people in the world, but only the brave few will be willing to step up where others would not. Heros are the people who will do what most others would not do in order to protect the greater good. Just as Tillman acted as a role model for everyone Hector showed the Trojan army that they could
The Iliad is an epic written by Homer around 750 BC. It tells the story of the struggles of the 10th year of the Trojan War. Hector, prince of Troy, is one of the main characters in this book and was killed by Achilles. The hero of The Iliad is Hector because although he isn't the most courageous soldier, his respect for others and dedication in battle makes him the hero of The Iliad.
Throughout the Iliad, heroic characters make decisions based on a specific set of principles, which are referred to as the “code of honor.” The heroic code that Homer presents to readers is easy to recognize because the heroic code is the cause for many of the events that take place, but many of the characters have different perceptions of how highly the code should be regarded. Hector, the greatest of the Trojan warriors, begins the poem as a model for a hero. His dedication and firm belief in the code of honor is described many times throughout the course of the Iliad. As a reward for heroic traits in battle, prizes were sometimes awarded to victors of war. In Book 1 Achilles receives Chryseis as a prize and a symbol of honor. Heroism had its rewards and its setbacks which ultimately was the backbone of the Illiad in the case of Achilles prize. Hector, arguably the greatest Trojan warrior or even the bravest of the Homeric heroes is very fierce and fights for what he believes is his destiny. In book VI Hector expresses his bravery when Andromache pleads with Hector not to fight when Hector says, “But I would die of shame to face the men of Troy and the Trojan woman trailing their long robes if I would shrink from battle now, a coward. Nor does the sprit urge me on that way. I’ve learned it all too well. To stand up bravely, always to fight in the front ranks of Trojan soldiers, winning my father great glory, glory for myself” (VI, 387).
"Andromache, dear one, why so desperate? Why so much grief for me? No man will hurl me down to Death, against my fate. And fate? No one alive has ever escaped it, neither brave man nor coward, I tell you it 's born with us the day that we are born. So please go home and tend to your own tasks, the distaff and the loom, and keep the women working hard as well. As for the fighting, men will see to that, all who were born in Troy but I most of all" (Homer 6. 579-589). These particular lines demonstrate Hectors ' loyalty to his family and how far he is willing to go for his family. He is willing to die for his family but before he does, he starts to ensure that his family remains safe. Family seems to a driving factor in Hectors ' life, which could be viewed as a negative thing. For him to drop everything in the world for his family, even risk his life for them could stab him in the back if he let it. For example, if his wife was in grave peril and he had to choose between the lives of his people during a war or her life, he would choose her life but a smart leader would choose the lives of his
“ My Hector. It is for him I have come to the Greek ships, to get him back from you. I’ve brought a fortune in ransom. Respect the gods, Achilles. Think of your own father, and pity me. I am more pitiable. I have born what no man who has walked this earth has ever yet borne. I have kissed the hand of the man who killed my son” ( Book 2...
Since the beginning of time there have always been great heroes in many different societies throughout the world. Heroes have many great qualities and characteristics about them that make the hero unique. Heroes stand out in society though there actions, abilities, and intellectual superiority. In literature, many characters possess these great skills. Many characters in stories want glory, fame, and ultimately to be remembered. These characters are attention grabbers to a reader. It makes the reader curious and wondering whether that character will succeed or fail. In the Iliad, such characters are seen in the story as the heroes or men of action. The Iliad is a work of literature about the war between the
Hector is the true hero of Homer's Iliad. Although Achilles and Hector are both leaders of men, Hector leads with a mature sense that gives his men reason to respect him. In turn, Hector respects his men which gives fulfillment to both parties. Hector is not a man to sit around and mull over strategies and ideas - Hector is a man of action. His men are inspired to fight because they see their captain fighting as well.
Throughout the text, major characters seem to be at constant battle with their different emotions. This inner conflict is mirrored by the everyday conflicts between the gods. Just as Zeus and Hera are constantly at odds with one another, so are the different sides of Achilles: his cultural responsibility, pride, honor, and revenge. No one is completely at peace with his or her conflicting emotions in The Iliad – and therefore, neither are the gods, who represent these emotions. Hector is a prime example of a human who finds himself torn between two forces: his love for his growing family, and his duty as a prince of Troy. He admits to Andromache that he worries about his own mortality, but emphasizes that “I would die of shame to face the men of Troy…if I would shrink from battle now, a coward.” (Homer 6: 523, 525). Hector’s deeply ingrained sense of honor and loyalty to home is clearly established in the beginning of the text. Therefore, when Zeus later grants Hector “power to kill and kill till you cut your way to the benched ships” (Homer 11: 241-242), it is not too much of a stretch to attribute Hector’s dodged perseverance to his upbringing and rigid sense of duty, rather than to the
...aving his wife and child, he’s forced to stand firm and lead his men into glory. We fantasize about being born into privilege and rarely think about the implication of that status. Hector is charged with uniting forces, communicating battle plans, rallying the forces during crucial moments of battle and self-sacrifice before dishonor. In a culture full of strife were the warriors is held with esteem and everyone else aspires to be remembered, Hector held strong. In this day and age we still have a semblance of that culture thriving through sports and military operations. But can we compare ourselves to a culture that lives in constant strife for notoriety? The answer to this in my opinion is no.
For example, Hector does not like to fight in battle, the only reason why he fights is because he is the only way Troy could ever win the war. However, Achilles loves the war. He even chose being a warrior over having a long life, something that Hector probably would not do. Achilles is drawn to war because of his anger. As I have previously stated, Hector is only fighting in the war because he has to fight for the city of Troy. Achilles on the other hand, does not have to fight for his city. This is because the Greeks are not being attacked. Also, Hector is human. Although his father is a wealthy king, he does not have any god- like powers. Achilles however, is a demi-god he is an exceptional warrior and great runner because of this. Also, because he is a demi-god he is only venerable in his heel. While Hector, being a human, is venerable everywhere. Lastly, Hector is not dictated by rage like Achilles. Even before their battle Hector showed respect towards Achilles. Hector did so by saying “With all the gods as witnesses, I swear: if Zeus gives me the victory over you, I will not dishonor your corps, only strip the armor and give the body back to the Greeks. Promise you’ll do the same.” (22. 281-285). Hector is the perfect foil for Achilles, everything Hector stands for and everything he is, is the polar opposite of
Anyway, this was the main reason Homer wrote the Iliad. The specific story of the Death of Hector shows tells the story of Hector, who wants to fight Achilles outside the city gates. He refuses his father’s request to come inside and be protected. In the end he is killed. This entire episode shows the way one should act.
In Homer’s Iliad, an extremely courageous and noble character is Hector, Prince of Troy. Hector does not want war, so his decision to lead the assault on the Achaean forces may seem strange. However, if there were a noble way out of the war, Hector might have taken it. “Without a noble escape, Hector is forced to fight”(Willcock 62).
In Homer’s The Iliad he tells of the battles and events during the time of a quarrel between King Agamemnon and the warrior Achilles. This was just a small portion of the Trojan War that had lasted ten years. The Iliad shares the ideas of the glory of war, military values over family life, and the impermanence of human life and its creation. One thing that Homer does is characterize the two different warriors Achilles and Hector. These two great warriors both show different kinds of traits that shape the character they become throughout the The Iliad. Achilles is the main hero in The Iliad, but Homer subliminally tries to persuade the reader that Hector is the true hero in this story.
“Happiness is not destination. It’s a state of being.”–Professor Coleman, Hector and the Search for Happiness. In the film “Hector and the Search for Happiness”, the journey of a psychiatrist named Hector is observed. Beginning with the first scene captivation takes place. Hector is flying a small airplane with a dog, while flying a man appears and causes trouble for Hector. From this point Hector continues to face obstacles and never cease to amaze you. Throughout the film you begin to ponder about your life and assess elements of it while observing Hector’s life. Do you know the meaning of happiness? Are you content with your life? Hector’s journey makes you question your state of happiness. After Hector’s journey is complete he learns sadness,
In the final points, I think Hector has the most to loose in the battlefield at Troy, because he was killed by Achilles in a horrible way, but Hector is win in the spirit mind because he have many people loving him and celebrated for his funeral as a true hero, his name remembered forever as a great warrior of trojan, and his death body was take back from Achilles by helping of the King of Gods, Zeus, who sent Iris come down to help Priam who is Hector father. Hector has a great family relationship, leadership image, and a superior warrior.
In the poem, Iliad, Achilles and Hector both show relative heroism in their own different ways. Achilles may have been the more popular hero, but Hector had great heroism as well. Each of these characters possess their own different strengths and weaknesses. These two characters both have pride as being one of their main weaknesses. Hector seems as if he would suit best in the modern world, but there are a few different reasons as to why the ancients may have chose Achilles. Hector and Achilles both lost a lot by letting their pride get in the way of their heroism. Both of these characters were their country’s best warrior. Achilles and Hector have very different personalities, and very different ways of approaching situations.