What Is Achilles

“Sing, goddess, of Achilles ruinous anger which brought ten thousand pains to the Achaeans, and cast the souls of many stalwart heroes to Hades, and their bodies to the dogs and birds of prey.” Achilles was the central character and greatest warrior in Homer’s Iliad. This epic poem begins with a quarrel between Agamemnon and Achilles over a female that had been awarded to Achilles as a prize of honor. Agamemnon takes the woman and Achilles withdraws from fighting in a rage and remains withdrawn from war throughout the poem. Hector then kills Achilles’ best friend. He immediately resumes to fighting and kills Hector. Achilles plays a prominent role in the poem. He is considered the Greek’s most powerful warrior. He believes that his superiority …show more content…
This incident led to Achilles’ withdrawal from war. Knowing the struggle that would be upon his fellow friends, he ultimately held the decision on whether or not they would live or die. If he decided to rejoin the war, they would have a better chance at winning and their life would possibly be extended. However, if Achilles’ chose to remain out of war, the Achaeans did not stand a chance. It is his anger that keeps him from achieving the glory that he was born to achieve. Agamemnon soon realizes that he needs Achilles’ because Hector and the Trojan Army had been advancing and many of his fellow soldier’s lives had been lost. Agamemnon tries to persuade Achilles to rejoin the army by offering him riches, a woman, and other priceless possessions. However, Achilles lets his pride get in the way and he refuses to take up the offer with Agamemnon. He was then lectured by Ajax about his pride, but he still remained firm with his decision. By that time, Agamemnon and the Achaean army had realized that no type riches could repair pride. Yet again, Achilles held the fate of his fellow soldiers in his hand because the longer he abstained from war, the longer his fellow soldiers