Differences Between Agamemnon And Achilles

Agamemnon and Achilles’ “war” between each other in Book One shows a contrast in character between the two. Agamemnon seems to be a cowardly, rage-filled, self-serving, arrogant, and, to be frank, just an all-around asshole, while Achilles is portrayed as a much more honorable, heroic, a godlike warrior, and righteous man. Agamemnon throws a temper tantrum when he finds out that the decision he made to disregard the priest’s begging for his daughter has come back to bite him in the ass. After Achilles found out that Agamemnon was at fault for the plague that was assaulting the Achaean forces, he went to him and asked him to resolve the situation. Agamemnon then told Achilles that if he could not have his prize, then he would take Achilles’ …show more content…
The gods themselves are fairly untrustworthy in some ways, but very trustworthy in other ways. On one hand, when people pray to the gods, the gods, depending on which one, to be fair, will usually try and help the worshipper in some way or the other. But other times, the Gods can be mischievous, and can further advance some of the awful things that happen in the Iliad. For example, when Chryses prays to Apollo in Book One for help regarding the capture of his daughter, and the dishonor done unto him. Apollo answers by sending a plague on the Achaeans. But, on the other hand, Athena disguises herself as a soldier, and tells Pendarus to fire on Menelaus, but, after having the shot fired, deflects it to only wound Menelaus. This shows that humans and human life means little to nothing to Athena, and probably to most other gods as well. Griffin said: “The gods… show their superiority to man…” I find myself siding with what he says as the …show more content…
He goes on to argue that no price that Agamemnon offers is worth Achilles’ life. He then reveals a prophecy that he was told. That if he were to stay in Troy, he would live a short, but glorious life. But, if he were to leave, he’d live a long, glory-less life. He chose the longer-lived option, urging others to do the same. This is very closely related to Martin’s existential question posed in his introduction. Achilles knows that if he is to stay in Troy, he’ll die. He has the knowledge that he would die soon, and he chooses to say: “Screw that.” I’m sure that many people faced with the same situation would do the same thing. Most of the social structure visible in the Iliad are soldiers, honorable people, upper class rulers, and the gods themselves. The soldiers are fighting for their rulers, and are mostly honor-bound to their duties. If they feel that they cannot fulfil their duties and/or their ruler dies/is incapacitated, they no longer stay and fight/do said duties. The honorable ones will stay and fight for their honor/glory. Achilles’ idea of preferring to live now, even though he is a godlike warrior, would challenge the social norms of the men he fought with and served under. It’s more akin to those who rule; those who want to save their own skin and save themselves first, and others