Hector's Irony

Improved Essays
In book 22 of the Iliad, the narrator presents the audience with a fight between Achilles and Hector. This gobbet concentrates on Zeus placing death on both Achilles and Hector, ultimately deciding their fate. Now that Zeus has decided Hector will die, with help from Athena, the Iliad doesn’t end in a victory, and the audience sees Achilles true character with his brutal actions towards Hectors dead body. The imagery of horses and running is used to connect the epithets of Achilles and Hector. When they are chasing each other around in circles, this shows the irony of how swift-footed Achilles, and horse-taming Hector, can’t defeat one another. In addition, Hector’s running also symbolizes his true nature. Hector is running because he is

Related Documents

  • Improved Essays

    Using intertext, Catullus refers to Homer’s The Iliad using descriptors such as ‘free from fear’, ‘swift’ and valiant’ to create the expectation that Achilles will be depicted as a glorious hero. However this is undermined by violent imagery which emphasises visual elements such as blood, death and fire. In traditional Roman literary descriptions of warfare, extending pity or clemency towards the defeated was seen as virtuous, but this is subverted by Achilles’ ruthless actions (Hope, V.M. 2007). This subversion of traditional expectations is continued through a simile where he is likened to a reaper cutting down Trojans without mercy.…

    • 525 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    In the poem it shows us how his dear friend Patroclus dies which leaves Achilles to undergo a dramatic change throughout the book. At the end Achilles had put aside his childish ways and became a man to fulfill his duties as a fellow warrior. Achilles character be redeemable or fatal? In The Iliad, Hector’s…

    • 622 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Achilles abuses Hector’s body, dragging it around his dead companion’s tomb. The differences between heroes are not existed in their end only. Their personalities were quite different. Even Hector is the best general of the Troy, he is just a person, not a demigod like…

    • 1204 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Hector strives to be courageous, in opposition to Achilles, who strives to have glory. As Hector leaves his wife knowing he will not return, he shows great courage saying, “but I could not show my face before the men or the women of Troy if I skulk like a coward out of the way” as he marches to his death (82). Homer sings that Achilles does not hunger for food, but instead hungers for glory, for when Patroclos fights in Achilles’ armor, Achilles’ tells Patroclos, “you may win honour and glory for me” (189). Even the courage in Hector, “Zeus increases in men or diminishes, according to his will, for he is lord of all”(240). Regardless of what strive the heroes, Hector and Achilles’ temper controls their actions and hardens their hearts.…

    • 1372 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    So the Trojan begins to run not only from Achilles but the brutal death that he feels coming upon him. Hector, running all through the terrain slashing and juking his way through the clutches of Achilles thinks for a moment that he has Achilles beat but the great Achilles is too swift and quick to be fooled by…

    • 1409 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Role Of Honor In The Iliad

    • 1105 Words
    • 5 Pages

    Homer uses Achilles’ discussion with Patroclus in The Iliad to ridicule fighting for honor; by equating Achilles’ grudge against Agamemnon with the larger purpose of the Trojan War, Homer casts war, glory, and honor in a light that both exposes their vacuity and proves their uselessness. Homer parallels the Achaeans’ conflict against the Trojans to win back Helen to Achilles’ struggle with Agamemnon over Briseis to argue that the reasons for war often do not justify the act itself. The Iliad opens by simultaneously presenting the contention between Agamemnon and Achilles alongside the slow conclusion of the Trojan War, drawing clear parallels between the two clashes. Just as…

    • 1105 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    The quoted passage from Book Twenty-one of The Iliad is an excerpt of Achilles’ speech in rejection to Trojan prince Lykaon’s plea for life when he has finally resumed in the war. In this passage, Achilles contrasts the former and present way in which he treats the Trojans and states the reason of his change. By doing a close-reading of this passage, I hope to address the major shift in Achilles’ outlook on fate and death that is reflected in his change of attitude towards the Trojans. The first six lines really stand out in illustrating the significance of Patroklos’ death for it marks both Achilles’ return to battle and the change in his treatment of the enemies from “it was the way of my heart’s choice to be sparing of the Trojans”…

    • 840 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Great Essays

    In the epic poem, the Iliad written by Homer, several characters taking part in the warfare between the Achaeans and the Trojans are portrayed as embodying the heroic code of courage, physical strength, leadership, arete of value of honour, and the acceptance of fate. The heroic code is illustrated by the actions of the Trojan prince, Hector and the Achaeans strongest warrior, Achilles. Both of these characters display the Greek’s image of a hero, and can also let the reader discern what the society admires, looks up to and aspires to in its heroes. There are also characters who fail to be heroic, such as the Trojan “vivid and beautiful” prince, Paris. These characters in the Iliad illustrate the qualities that Ancient Greek society values.…

    • 1570 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Great Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Furthermore, a key factor for inspiration is the ability to relate to the personages you are trying to inspire. However, the gods are only able to relate through deception. Instead of humbling themselves and forming a connection with mortals, they change their appearance to a family member or companion in order to become more relatable. During the onslaught of Patroclus, Hector debates with himself on whether or not to retreat in order to save the lives of his men. As he was contemplating, Apollo appears in the form of Hector’s uncle, Asius, and convinces him to fight Patroclus (436).…

    • 866 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Superior Essays

    From the very beginning of Homer's the Iliad, Achilles is depicted as vindictive, prideful, and trifling. As the book advances, the picture of Achilles as a resentful youngster is improved significantly. Towards the end of the epic, Achilles displays qualities that are viewed as courageous even in today's time. When his reliable and trusted companion Patroclus passes on, Achilles experiences an extreme change in character. When he goes up against the genuine repulsiveness of death, Achilles sets aside his juvenile approaches to satisfy his obligation to his companion, his countrymen, and his inner voice.…

    • 1125 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Superior Essays
  • Improved Essays

    The story in the Iliad is about a war. Heroes on both sides are seen committing horrific acts. For example, Achilles’ rage leads to the start of the Trojan war in which many people die. He is unable to set aside his rage for the common good. He also disrespects Hector’s body by dragging it around the walls of Troy and refusing to return it to his family.…

    • 1626 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Homer wrote The Iliad as a means to demonstrate what happened during the final year of the Trojan War. In the poem, Homer presents Achilles in several distinctive ways, causing the reader’s feelings to shift back and forth. How does Homer really want readers to feel about Achilles? There are several mixed feelings about Achilles and how readers should feel about the character. In the beginning of the poem readers may feel sympathetic toward Achilles after his argument with King Agamemnon, but those feelings may change when reading how Achilles unleashes his rage during battle against the Trojan soldiers and fights a river god.…

    • 1173 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Traditionally, heroes in myths have some of the same elements in the structure of their stories. In each odyssey, a person needs to experience or live through specific actions and ordeals until he becomes whole as a hero. In the epic poem, The Iliad by Homer, the main character Achilles journeys through stages of a Hero’s Journey, as defined by Joseph Campbell, including his dream of relinquishing his role as a warrior, his feud with Agamemnon, and how he resolves the loss of his closest friend until he evolves into a hero. Initially, two elements that generally occur at the beginning of-of an epic journey are “The World of the Common Day” and “The Refusal of The Call.”…

    • 906 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    He kills Achilles’s apprentice Patroclus, who is a tough warrior in his own right. Even though Hector does run during his final battle with Achilles, he eventually stops running and fights till his death. He decides this fate earlier in the war and stays to his word, “If Achilles really has risen up again and wants to come out, he’ll find it tough going, for I will be there. I, for one, am not retreating. Maybe he’ll win, maybe I will.…

    • 748 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    In the Iliad, we are introduced to many great warriors, kings, women, and gods. Of all these characters, Achilles is the greatest and most complex figure to appear in the story. He was the most physically capable Greek at the time and feared all across the Aegean. On the other hand, he is plagued with numerous character flaws that may prevent readers from recognizing him as a true hero. Despite these flaws, Achilles manages to retain the attention and interest of the reader.…

    • 1018 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays