Yiting Xu
Yx2392
Literature Humanities
Professor Steve Baker
October 5th, 2016
The Façade of Glory: An Analysis of Lattimore’s Iliad “But now this is a dismal death I am doomed to be caught in, / trapped in a big river as if I were a boy and a swineherd / swept away by a torrent when he tries to cross in a rainstorm.” (Iliad, 21.281-83). Achilleus’ concern with drowning in the river is not death, for he is prepared to die the minute he decides to fight Hektor and choose his second destiny. He is worried, instead, about how he dies—in the river like a herdsman, or on the battlefield like a hero. Homer characterizes war as “where men win glory” (Iliad, 7.113). Achilleus’ disdain for dying like an ordinary man shows that glory from war, even accompanied by death, is more preferable than a long, average life. This reveals that glory is one of the fundamental values of the ancient Greek society. …show more content…
“Hektor led them / raging straight forward like a great rolling stone from a rock face / that a river swollen with winter rain has wrenched from its socket / and with immense washing broken the hold of the unwilling rock face…” (Iliad, 13.136-39). This is one of Hektor’s best moments in battle. He leads the Trojan army towards the Achaians’ home camp after destroying their wall, and with amazing strength and leadership reaches the waterfront. Homer uses simile to compare Hektor to the unstoppable rolling stone, to show his valor and power as a warrior, evoking wonder in the reader’s heart to become someone as strong and invincible as Hektor. Like how he describes Hektor, Homer also uses similes of tough and fierce animals like lions and boars to describe the incredible power of war heroes. With similes that stir up admiration in the reader’s mind, the purpose of Homer’s Iliad seems to be celebrating and praising war for
Yx2392
Literature Humanities
Professor Steve Baker
October 5th, 2016
The Façade of Glory: An Analysis of Lattimore’s Iliad “But now this is a dismal death I am doomed to be caught in, / trapped in a big river as if I were a boy and a swineherd / swept away by a torrent when he tries to cross in a rainstorm.” (Iliad, 21.281-83). Achilleus’ concern with drowning in the river is not death, for he is prepared to die the minute he decides to fight Hektor and choose his second destiny. He is worried, instead, about how he dies—in the river like a herdsman, or on the battlefield like a hero. Homer characterizes war as “where men win glory” (Iliad, 7.113). Achilleus’ disdain for dying like an ordinary man shows that glory from war, even accompanied by death, is more preferable than a long, average life. This reveals that glory is one of the fundamental values of the ancient Greek society. …show more content…
“Hektor led them / raging straight forward like a great rolling stone from a rock face / that a river swollen with winter rain has wrenched from its socket / and with immense washing broken the hold of the unwilling rock face…” (Iliad, 13.136-39). This is one of Hektor’s best moments in battle. He leads the Trojan army towards the Achaians’ home camp after destroying their wall, and with amazing strength and leadership reaches the waterfront. Homer uses simile to compare Hektor to the unstoppable rolling stone, to show his valor and power as a warrior, evoking wonder in the reader’s heart to become someone as strong and invincible as Hektor. Like how he describes Hektor, Homer also uses similes of tough and fierce animals like lions and boars to describe the incredible power of war heroes. With similes that stir up admiration in the reader’s mind, the purpose of Homer’s Iliad seems to be celebrating and praising war for