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Essay by eliot
Homer’s “The Iliad” translated by Samuel Butler, is an epic poem surrounding the Trojan War. This work is roughly three thousand years old, written circa 750 BCE. It follows Achilles, the greatest warrior of his generation, and his unfortunate downfall. One of the main themes of this literature is how the most dangerous thing is to love. Achilles destroys himself over the death of Patroclus when he ruins his appearance, kills Hector dishonorably, and dies without a care for his life.
Ever since Achilles was a child, his closest companion was Patroclus, an exile. The two grew up together and trained together, mentored by Chiron, a centaur who specializes in medicine. Patroclus is referred to as Achilles’ “beloved'' several times in the Iliad and vice versa.It is popularly interpreted that they were lovers, and I admit I adore this theory. The evidence is promising. However, there are other possibilities. In book 16 of the Iliad, Achilles says that he wishes all the Greeks and Trojans would perish so that it could just be the two of them. In book 18, Achilles says that he loves Patroclus as his own life. In book 23, the ghost of Patroclus begs Achilles to be buried with him so that their souls will never be apart. Finally, in book 23, Achilles sets his own locks of hair upon Patroclus’ corpse during the funeral. Regardless, Achilles loves Patroclus, whether platonically or romantically. In the war, Achilles has captured a slave woman by the name of Briseis. Agamemnon, leader of the Greek forces, has taken a priest of Apollo’s daughter Chryseis. When he refuses to give her back, Apollo, god of the sun and disease, plagues the army as punishment. When Agamemnon finally gives back the girl, he takes Briseis as a substitute. This leads Achilles to throw a tantrum and neglect the war entirely. His stubbornness lengthens the battle to ten years.
Finally, fed up with the nonsense Patroclus tells Achilles he will fight in his armor to scare the Trojans away. Achilles tells him only to push them back, not to go further, and not to fight them. Caught up in freedom and greatness, Patroclus goes too far and dies to Hector’s blade. When Achilles finds out what has happened, he “filled both hands with dust from off the ground and poured it over his head, disfiguring his comely face and letting the refuse settle over his shirt so fair and new. He flung himself down all huge and hugely at full length and tore his hair with his hands.” Here Achilles is so overwhelmed with grief and despair that he covers himself in soot, ruining his appearance, which he values dearly.
Achilles is so torn, heartbroken, and blinded by the shadow of death that it is implied he wants to follow Patroclus down to the house of Hades. “Antilochus bent over him the while, weeping and holding both his hands as he lay groaning, for he feared that he might plunge a knife into his own throat.” Antilochus takes Achilles’ hands out of fear that he will slit his own throat. He restrains him to keep him alive because the emotion that Achilles is suffering through is too much for him to handle by himself. Achilles blames himself, for he told him not to fight but to merely push them back.
“Achilles gave a loud cry, and his mother heard him as she was sitting in the depths of the sea by the old man her father, wheron she screamed, and all the goddesses, daughters of Nereus that dwelt at the bottom of the sea, came gathering round her.” The cry that Achilles lets out after seeing his lover’s corpse is so loud and so heart-wrenching that at the bottom of the sea, his mother weeps with him.
When Achilles can finally breathe again, he storms into battle, chasing down Hector. He kills everyone in his path. Achilles is not bloodthirsty but grieving. When he finds Hector, he murders him. Achilles ties Hector’s body to his chariot and drags him around the Trojan walls. Once back at the Greek camps, he pulls him in the dirt around Patroclus’ corpse. At this point, his love for him has burned his reputation to the ground. Achilles, grieving his lover, has done unspeakable things. He is hollowed; all he can feel is anger and sadness. When the time comes for the war to proceed, Achilles no longer cares for his own life. The one person that he lived for has perished, leaving him without meaning. He does reckless things because of this, putting himself in danger time and time again. The only thing he desperately needed was gone. With this, he continues into battle. Finally, though he lacks aim, Paris sends an arrow flying down into Achilles’ foot, killing him. The arrow aided by Apollo shoots straight through his heel, and he falls.
Achilles is dead because he cared for Patroclus. His demise sent him into a rampage slaughtering everyone in his way. His Achilles’ heel was never his pride; it was his love for Patroclus that killed him in the end.
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