Iliad Essay Topics

Theme Of The Iliad
Themes found in the Iliad
The Iliad is one of the greatest and earliest works of Greek literature beautifully written by Homer.
The poem was set at the last year of the Trojan War prior the fall of Troy, that was indeed ten years
long. Moreover, the focus of this poem is a conflict that rose among Agamemnon, king of Mycenae
and commander–in–chief of the allied Greeks, and Achilles, the greatest warrior, rather than the
events and battles that occurred in the Trojan Warbetween the Greeks and Trojans. Throughout the
Iliad, the conflict rose due to numerous issues regarding pride, honor and power. This epic poem
was written in a distinguished manner that made it easier for the readers to identify the important
themes of the poem. For...show more content...
Achilles went through a second stage of rage towards the end of the epic poem in Book eighteen
when the death of his closest friend, Patroclus, happens. When Achilles says, "Then let me die
now. I was no help to him when he was killed out there. He died far from home, and he needed me
to protect him. But now, since I'm not going home...I stand alone in the whole Greek army when
it comes to war; though some do speak better" (Norton 286) at this point in the poem, Achilles is
now enraged at Hector for destroying his closest friendship. Also, at this second stage I believe
Achilles is most likely mad at himself as well, because he feels guilty that he was not there for
Patroclus when he needed to be, to protect him from Hector and all danger. In revenge, Achilles
slayed and killed Hector and drags him around the walls of Troy, creating sorrow and terror in Priam.
Throughout the Iliad one sees many strong ties of love and friendship among the characters.
Parental love is one of them and it is an important force. The love of a mother like Thetis towards
her son, Achilles, that in fact causes her to ask Zeus for the huge favor of glorifying Achilles
because she knows that his life is coming to an end shortly. Thetis love forAchilles is so strong since
Achilles' birth, that she tried to make him immortal by dipping him in the
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War In The Iliad Essay
An underlying theme within Homer's Iliad is the tragedy of war. Despite war at this time being
glorified and a way to gain fame, in the Iliad, in paragraph 520–525 on page 311, the sadness of the
aftermath of war is very apparent. An unknowing Andromache has a hot bath drawn for her
husband, which she is expecting to return. Instead, she is made aware of his death and is torn
apart. "Black night swept over her eyes. She reeled backward, gasping, and her veil and glittering
headbands flew off, and the diadem golden Aphrodite gave her on that day when tall–helmed Hector
led her from her father's house in marriage, and now her womenfolk were around her, Hector's
sisters and brother's wives, holding her as she raved madly for death, until she

Iliad Research Paper
Good afternoon fellow archaeologists. Over the course of five years, I have been researching,
investigating and excavating the archaeological site at Hissarlik, which is believed to be the
location of ancient Troy. Troy was the location of the most well–known literature in Ancient Greek
history, Homer's Iliad. The Iliad recounts the final fifty three days of the ten year conflict between
the Greeks and Trojans, otherwise known as the Trojan War. Recently, debates have fired up on
whether Homer's Iliad accurately depicts factual evidence on a combat that occurred, or if it was just
a fictional narrative composed for entertainment purposes. Archaeologists have taken this debate into
account when excavating at the site of Troy and have attempted

Iliad Reflection
The past few weeks of Texts and Critics has been devoted to studying books that focus on main
characters facing tough decisions. For example, The Ones Who Walk Away from Omelas by
Ursula LeGuin, focuses on the inhabitants of Omelas making the decision of whether they want to
continue on the path they are on, accepting the town they live in relies on torturing a child to
function, or to fight for the child or just leave. So, in other words, these residents are deciding to
stay comfortable and safe or to push their comfort zone and create change for themselves or others.
Based on these decisions presented to the class by these stories, the class was tasked with writing
their own story in which characters must make tough choices.
The idea of this project was kind of off–putting to me originally because I am not very competent at
creative writing. However, it had to be done. The process started with finding a topic to write
about. I found Homer's use of the gods in The Iliad very interesting and knew I wanted to use some
kind of deity within my story. Additionally, Ithought it would be very interesting to use my story as
a metaphor for a dilemma that is heavily present in today's society in order to possibly allow for an
easier writing process. The dilemma I chose to use was whether or not it was ethically proper for
medical intervention in preventing death. As one could probably tell from the ending of the story, I
believe that humans using medicine to intervene with the

The Iliad Synthesis Essay
The Deeper Meaning Behind the Dozen The number 12 was central to Greek stories and Mythos.
Examples of this are the 12 main deities, and Hercules' 12 tasks. This number was also deeply
relevant to the plot of the Iliad, and appears at almost every major plot point. The first appearance is
the number of days until Zeus will return to Mount Olympus and Thetis can approach him with
Achilles' plea (1.449)–and the last is the number of days until they will resume war after the return
of Hector's body to his people (24.717). This gives the book another level of closure and symmetry,
with the same amount of time passing as the story begins and ends. Twelve of an object is
frequently used in connection with the gods as well as with the dead,

Questions On ' The Iliad '
Allie Chatas
Prof. McQuade
ENG 280
February 9 2017
Take Home Exam 2: The Iliad
Short Essay 1: "The Iliad" is not an antiwar epic, yet contains critique of war and the cultural values
surrounding the war. This can be shown through the development of Achilles and Hector as lead
warriors of the opposing sides of the Trojan war. Achilles is a liminal figure because of his half god,
half mortal status. He is placed as a central character who questions all the main values of the
Greek society they live in. Achilles ponders the paradox at the center of Greek culture which is
kleos. He realizes that you can either live a long, yet boring life, or you have the opportunity to
achieve kleos achieving honor and glory, yet you will die early in...show more content...
Hector is the ideal human, struck with sometimes conflicting feelings of love, pride, and fear. The
end of book 6 in "The Iliad" shows Hectors love for his wife and child. He takes his helmet off
when his son is afraid of him, reassuring him that everything is okay, which shows him as a loving
father. He is also a loving husband that is having trouble coming to terms with his mortality. When
his wife worries about this he embraces her, "trying to reassure her, repeating her name:
'Andromache, dear one, why so desperate? Why so much grief for me? No man will hurl me down
to Death against my fate. And fate? No one alive has ever escaped it, neither brave man nor
coward'" (6.579–583). Hectors actions here are not cowardly, but they're human. What human can
face their own death and the death of their loved ones? He knows that Troy is going to fall, but he
also knows that he's trapped in fate and that this is what must be done. Human's carry the burden of
knowing their mortality awaits them and Hector continues to fight for honor despite this making
him the ideal human. Hector's pride makes him a great warrior, yet it can also get him into trouble.
It is natural for a human to do things out of pride. Hector, like anyone else, can become blind from
his hubris which eventually gets him into trouble. After Achilles battles the river and wins, Hector is
waiting for him at the gates of his village. Hector starts to

Essay on The Iliad
The Iliad
Central to any study of the humanities is the human condition – our nature, which has historically
shown that it is equally capable of both good and evil deeds – and the problem that arises from it;
specifically, why do humans suffer? Many philosophies and religions have their own account for this
aspect of humanity, and we find that what the accounts have in common is each explains the human
condition in terms that are similar to how that institution of thought explains the true nature of reality.
Homer's The Iliad is an extravagant account of the Trojan War which describes many behavioral
similarities between the gods and people. The name of Book 14: "Hera Outflanks Zeus" epitomizes
the...show more content...
"...Apollo knocked the helmet off his head and under his horse's hooves it tumbled... / Disaster
seized him–his fine legs buckling–he stood there, senseless... / Hector... came rushing into him right
across the lines and rammed his spearshaft home, stabbing deep in the bowels..." (Homer, 438–439)
Patroclus' death is devastating to the Achaean armies' morale and, more central to the story, it further
disrupts Achilles' already unbalanced sophrosyne. The torment that Achilles endures here epitomizes
the human condition.
After reading Homer's text, we realize that while it contains fine poetic history it is in fact about
the human condition and how it affects people, Achilles primarily. The reality for people in the
world of The Iliad is that they live under many gods, and that they can not please all of them;
indeed, the gods are at odds with each other and to support one means to upset another. While the
ideal condition for the Greeks is to possess sophrosyne, in reality there are too many uncontrollable
external pressures to do so. Just as the gods who influence men are not harmonious, therefore, we
find this quality also in the explanation of the human condition for Greek cultures.
In the case of Christianity, we first consider how the human condition appears in The Book of Job,
an exemplary text in this instance which tells the story of Job, a pious, righteous man who is
relentlessly tormented by God. In several rounds of discussion

Iliad Essay
"The Iliad", an epic tale told by the famous Greek author Homer, is focused primarily
on the Trojan War between the Greeks, or Argives, and the Trojans. This war was filled with
bloody battles and a massive loss of life. Homer tells stories about a duration of time during this
fighting, and not the entire war. He uses his story–telling abilities to focus the audience on the garish
and sometimes mundane drudgery of war. Due to his removal from the actual time of these battles,
his stories may be embellished or not completely accurate descriptions of what did or did not happen.
Overall, however, the Iliad is believed to be mostly true.
Homer was born, most likely, in the 8th Century B.C. He is widely believed to be the best and...show
more content...
Most of the clues as to ancient Greek life come as no surprise. It is not surprising to find that the
Greeks recognized the Moon during this period:
" the massive shield flashing far and wide like a full round moon " (p. 500, 422)
Nor is it shocking to hear of lions in Greece at this time:
" like a great bearded lion the dogs and field hands drive back " (p.446, 126–127)
However, even though these similes sometimes may seem unimportant or even redundant, every
situation they are used in is different. A lion may be just another lion, but no two conflicts that they
describe are exactly alike. Homer uses this thought to convey the energy, and even at times beauty, of
his fighting scenes.
The one main theme of the plot to The Iliad is its raging battle. So, most of the similes throughout
the book are about warfare. Battles are compared to things such as animals, weather, or even fire. In
consideration, these three things are actually connected by their inherent naturalness. Animals,
weather, and fire are all parts of what we refer to as "nature". By evaluating Homer's
similes with "nature" included, we today can see what ancient Greek
"nature" may have been like.
First of all, most of the similes from The Iliad are comparing something to an animal. Several
animals that are mentioned throughout the book are,

Theme Of Religion In The Iliad
Homer clearly and precisely depicts the religion and the ethics of the Achean and Trojan societies in
The Iliad. In The Iliad, the Greeks and Trojans struggled to adhere to the codes of religion and
ethics, of their society. The Iliad is an epic poem dedicated to the pursuit of honour and name
immortality through fame by humans who were inevitably mortal. During the time of the Trojan war,
religion played an important role in the societies. Sacrifice, prayer, and rituals were all equally
significant, and the superiority of the gods and the fates above humans was a standard of society.
The gods were sacred deities to whom one had to bestow honour and respect. Within the society,
honour, glory, and fame were desperately sought by warriors striving...show more content...
Men showed physical greatness and honour in everything. In war time, they were to be great
soldiers; in peace time, great athletes. The Greeks promoted honour, bravery, courage, and nobility.
Throughout the Iliad, by Homer, one of the most important aspects of society was warfare. In fact,
not only were the ongoing wars at the center of the plot and action in the text, but warfare itself
was one of the strongest social forces detectable. For men who shun the warrior culture or for
some reason do not fully engage with it, they face being criticizism. Being a coward or declining
an opportunity to engage in war or battles in the society portrayed in the Iliad was one of the worst
possible ways for any male to be as it goes against much of what notions of masculinity is defined
by. Generally speaking, throughout the text there were a range of events and interactions between
characters that reveal the expectations of this masculine warrior culture and these passages also
reflect the importance of adhering to these societal expectations. In Greek culture, the notions of
masculinity and bravery, along with the idea of fatalism (in terms of how men will eventually die,
so they should be brave and fight with all their strength and power),shaped several encounters and
events in the text and defined several characters as either "weak" or

What Is Conflict In The Iliad
We are trapped in a world of conflict. We'll never have peace without conflict around the corner,
and vice versa. The only difference between where there is war from where there is harmony is
that the people there decided to use their fists, and weapons, and the wrong words to settle their
problems. Conflict is so deeply rooted in our nature that it's a part of every single one of us, and
it's not even something we developed over the years. It's always been a part of us, we have
innumerable pieces from the past that show us how prone we humans are to create strife. One of the
most famous pieces of literature that show us this was an epic from the Greeks, called the Iliad.
The Iliad is set during the Trojan War, but the conflict in this story isn't between the Akhaians and
the Trojans, but between Agamemnon, the leader of the Greek army, and Akhilleus, the army's
finest warrior. The entire fight was caused by their stubbornness and pride. It all started when they
sacked a nearby city and took several women as prizes. One of the women, Khryseis, was given to
Agamemnon. Her father, Khryses, wanted her back and offered an enormous amount to him just to
get his daughter back. But since Agamemnon saw her as a prize to him for...show more content...
It isn't about forcing the idea that you're right, it's about finding a way to both agree on something
peacefully. In Book One, we don't see Akhilleus and Agamemnon agree on anything, they give in.
That's another thing with conflict, resolution does not necessarily mean everything is fixed and
everyone is happy, sometimes it just means the problem is solved. We have to remember that
stubbornness and arrogance will never fix things, and that listening and compromising is always
better than standing your ground and causing more

Iliad Essay
The Iliad and The Odyssey are two epic poems with both similar and different styles to the structure
of the poems, as well as each poem having the same gods incorporated into the stories intervening
with the day to day lives of the mortals.
Greek poetry before Homer was all composed orally; therefore it is assumed that Homer's works
are the first written works of art (Joachim Latacz, page 15). Scholars who have spent extensive time
researching the origin of Homer's work cannot verify a specific time the Iliad and the Odyssey were
written (Latacz, 24). Many who have tried, usually run into a dead end, but it seems most have came
to the conclusion that the poems were produced in the late eighteenth century (Latacz , 59).
There are several...show more content...
There are two obvious structure similarities in each of the stories. The first structure similarity is that
Homer made each of the poems twenty–four books long. The second similarity is that each story
begins with a short prologue.
Prevalent in each poem is the presence of gods. In both The Iliad and The Odyssey, gods are a
fixture within the stories and are shown congregating on Mount Olympus or in some way
interacting with the mortals. The gods are also showing favoritism and hatred in each the poems.
Favoritism by the gods is shown quite often in the Iliad. For example, in book two Zeus carries out
Thetis's wish to grant Achilles prayer to her. Zeus helps the Trojans in the battle by coming to
Agamemnon in a dream during book two and tricking him into attacking the city of Troy's walls in
a full on attack (The Iliad, 1–15). An example of pure hatred comes throughout the poem from
Athena who is consistently helping the Achaean forces in battle. In The Odyssey favoritism is less
noticeable throughout. Most all the gods during the poem want to see Odysseus return to Ithaca,
which is shown by their agreement to make Calypso release him from her island (The Odyssey,
31–180). The most noted of the gods helping Odysseus is Athena. She is very active in helping
Odysseus survive. Hatred in the Odyssey is shown by mainly one god throughout, Poseidon.
Throughout the poem he does all he can to delay Odysseus from returning to his

The Iliad Essay
The Iliad
The Iliad tells the story of the Trojan War, which lasted 10 years. The Grecians eventually won the
war, but the outcome could have very easily shifted due to a quarrel between King Agamemnon
and Achilles. Pride and anger is what the two men were fighting about. This story is a very good
example of how those two simple emotions can lead to tragedy.
Agamemnon was King of Argos. He was also the chief king among the Grecians. He was angry
because his brother, King Menelaus of Sparta, had his wife, Helen, stolen by Paris of Troy. He called
all the Kings of Greece and Isles of Greece to come together and make war upon the Trojans and
bring Helen back. Among the many was Achilles.
Achilles was the son of Thetis, a sea nymph. He...show more content...
King Agamemnon angrily stated that he did not want to give up his prize, for then he would be the
only Grecians without one. Yet, because he would rather his people live, he would return the girl if
she was replaced with another.
Achilles told him that all the prizes had been awarded. But if Agamemnon was to return the girl,
the gods would be in their favor and they would win the war. When they won they would replace
Chrysies three or four times. Agamemnon would not hear of this. His pride would not allow for
himself to have less then the next man. He said that he would send the girl back, but she would
have to be replaced or he would come after Achilles' or Ajax's or Ulysses'.
This angered Achilles, and thus began the quarrel that almost cost the Grecians the war. "You are
steeped in insolence and lust of gain," said Achilles. He also called him a "wine bibber" and "with
the face of a dog and heart of a hind." He spat out that he never receives such a large share or as
good a prize of that of Agamemnon, even though he is the one doing most of the fighting. "We
have followed you, Sir Insolence, for your pleasure not ours," he stated, "and now you threaten to
take my prize which I have been awarded!" Then he went on to say that he should return home for
he would not stay here to be dishonored by an insolent fool.
Agamemnon was furious that Achilles would speak to

The Iliad And The Odyssey
In The Iliad and The Odyssey, Homer has different portrayals of the roles that women play in each
epic. These differences are so striking that some readers have even argued that there is a
possibility that a woman could have created The Odyssey, modeled after Homer's Iliad. In The
Iliad we see women represented as war prizes and slaves, vulnerabilities to men, and in positions of
limited power. In The Odyssey however, we see women capturing men and keeping them as prizes,
rising from a status of limited power to dominating their household, and breaking free of the
constraints of the "typical" household woman stereotype. We even see them making their own
decisions and challenging their husbands. By comparing and contrasting these epic women...show
more content...
When she is taken, Achilleus's first reaction is a bit surprising. He doesn't fight, or cuss, or make
any commotion. Instead he weeps. The reactions that both men have after they lose their women
further drives Homer's point of women being a weakness to powerful men. This and back and fourth
bargaining of women further relates women to objects rather than as people. The men treat them
more or less like sex slaves/mistresses and use them to establish their dominance. In The Iliad,
Homer seems to have the view that women can be taken from their homelands and aren't allowed to
object. That's just how war works. The next woman we see is Helen. Homer uses her character to
represent women as a sort of evil. When the chiefs of the city see Helen they instantly begin to
whisper amongst themselves.
Surely there is no blame on Trojans and strong–grieved Achaians if for long time they suffer hardship
for a woman like this one.
Terrible is the likeness of her face to immortal goddesses.
Still, though she be such, let her go away in the ships, lest she be left behind, a grief to us and our
children...
(Id. 3.156–160)
In this passage, I couldn't help but think of the similarities between Helen and another mythological
woman, Pandora. Both women are a beautiful evil. They both unleashed horrors and sorrows in their
own way. Pandora unleashed them onto the world as a

The Iliad Essay
Divine Intervention is a "direct and obvious intervention by a god or goddess in the affairs of
humans". In various myths such as the Iliad, the Epic of Gilgamesh, and Herakles, divine
intervention was called upon in order to restrain a hero's destructive or too powerful forces. Although
the divine intervention was used to impair different heroes, the purpose to constrain was the same in
all the narratives.
Homer's The Iliad: Book XX features a battle between the Trojans and Achaians, shortly after
Patroklus' death (Lattimore Book XVI), where the gods must intervene in order to restrain
Achilleus' destructive nature that becomes amplified due to the grief and wrath as a result of the
loss of his cousin/lover. The divine foresaw an early...show more content...
It plays a main role in the beginning with the creation of Enkidu, the middle with Ishtar, and the end
with the destruction of Enkidu. The gods first intervene when Gilgamesh's subjects call for help to
them for the sake of the young women oppressed by the "lord's right". The Great Mother Goddess
creates Enkidu to stand up against Gilgmesh to stop his destructive nature that has terrorized his city
(Dalley 39–50). Gilgamesh domesticates Enkidu and they create a friendship which turns Gilgamesh
less destructive towards his citizens, thus limiting his destructive power and also focusing the
remaining towards monsters; but together they make some wrong choices and their destructive
natures are portrayed during the Cedar Forest incident and the killing of the bull of heaven (Dalley
83,102). For retribution of killing the bull that Ishtar had sent due to her rejection, Enkidu is
destroyed by the gods; warning Gilgamesh that he isn't exempt from this fate if he continues being
uncontrollable and tyrannical (Dalley 120–125).
Euripides' tragedy, Herakles, consistently portrays divine intervention as if it's a direct challenge
between a divine figure, Hera, and a hero, Herakles. Hera's hatred for Herakles stems from his
parentage, Alcmene and Zues (Hera's husband), making Herakles an offspring created by his
unfaithfulness towards her (Sleigh 12). Hera also dislikes the fact that he has godly

Iliad Essay Topics

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