Mark Armour
Geography and History
October 31 [oOoOo… Spooky!] 2016
Word length: 818 words
Week 5
Topic: Consider Who Was the Better Man, Achilles or Hector?
War can be a painful time for all. Those who go to war are attacked not only physically, but mentally. The constant stress, combined with the possibility of losing one’s friends and family, most definitely takes its toll on soldiers in any war. The Iliad by Homer is about one of the most famous wars in history. In the story, the Trojan prince Paris kidnaps the Greek princess Helen and brings her to the city of Troy, famed to be the strongest city of the time. The Greeks respond by laying siege to the city in a war that lasts nine years. The warriors on both sides must face both their enemies …show more content…
Achilles is a Greek prince and warrior who assists the father of Helen, Menelaus. Two commendable traits of Achilles that we see are that he honors the gods and tries to make peace between the gods and the Greeks. Achilles is seen early on in the story to have argued in favor of honoring the gods, and he even opposes the Greek king Menelaus, who had angered the God Apollo by taking the daughter of Apollo’s priest. Achilles even gives up his own maiden he had stolen as a prize so Menelaus can return his maiden to the priest (Colum, 57). The Greek warrior also sacrifices himself for his countrymen, even though he knows that he will die (Colum, 93). There are several commendable choices made by the Greek warrior …show more content…
Hector is the brother of Paris and, like Achilles, is one of the best warriors of Troy. One of Hector’s most apparent traits is that he is patriotic, and he fights for his country even if he disagrees with his brother’s actions. A less apparent element of his personality is that he shows love to his family, and makes sure their needs are taken care of before going out to battle (Colum, 100). Also, Hecter has a good sense of honor, and proposes fair agreements before doing battle with Achilles (Colum, 103). The Iliad shows us that Hector is an honorable character who makes good moral choices.
Although the characters in The Iliad can make commendable choices on some occasions, they are not without their flaws, and Achilles is no exception. Several times, Achilles is on the verge of attacking the Greek king in frustration in the beginning of the story (Colum, 58) and later he overreacts and withdraws himself from the war when Menelaus takes his maiden.(why is this flawed?) He also rejects Homer’s fair agreement not to desecrate the other man’s body after their battle. Achilles’ choices have several faults in The
Geography and History
October 31 [oOoOo… Spooky!] 2016
Word length: 818 words
Week 5
Topic: Consider Who Was the Better Man, Achilles or Hector?
War can be a painful time for all. Those who go to war are attacked not only physically, but mentally. The constant stress, combined with the possibility of losing one’s friends and family, most definitely takes its toll on soldiers in any war. The Iliad by Homer is about one of the most famous wars in history. In the story, the Trojan prince Paris kidnaps the Greek princess Helen and brings her to the city of Troy, famed to be the strongest city of the time. The Greeks respond by laying siege to the city in a war that lasts nine years. The warriors on both sides must face both their enemies …show more content…
Achilles is a Greek prince and warrior who assists the father of Helen, Menelaus. Two commendable traits of Achilles that we see are that he honors the gods and tries to make peace between the gods and the Greeks. Achilles is seen early on in the story to have argued in favor of honoring the gods, and he even opposes the Greek king Menelaus, who had angered the God Apollo by taking the daughter of Apollo’s priest. Achilles even gives up his own maiden he had stolen as a prize so Menelaus can return his maiden to the priest (Colum, 57). The Greek warrior also sacrifices himself for his countrymen, even though he knows that he will die (Colum, 93). There are several commendable choices made by the Greek warrior …show more content…
Hector is the brother of Paris and, like Achilles, is one of the best warriors of Troy. One of Hector’s most apparent traits is that he is patriotic, and he fights for his country even if he disagrees with his brother’s actions. A less apparent element of his personality is that he shows love to his family, and makes sure their needs are taken care of before going out to battle (Colum, 100). Also, Hecter has a good sense of honor, and proposes fair agreements before doing battle with Achilles (Colum, 103). The Iliad shows us that Hector is an honorable character who makes good moral choices.
Although the characters in The Iliad can make commendable choices on some occasions, they are not without their flaws, and Achilles is no exception. Several times, Achilles is on the verge of attacking the Greek king in frustration in the beginning of the story (Colum, 58) and later he overreacts and withdraws himself from the war when Menelaus takes his maiden.(why is this flawed?) He also rejects Homer’s fair agreement not to desecrate the other man’s body after their battle. Achilles’ choices have several faults in The