Iliad 21, 22, 23, 24
Iliad 21
The endgame has been written and is being played out. There is no more room for mercy or goodwill that may have come earlier, at least, in the eyes of mortals. For now Achilles brings death and destruction whereever he goes. Though the gods continue to mettle. The clash of the elements, fire and water suggest dialectical tensions in the heirarchies of the gods that mirror the tensions between individuals and between states. Achilles seems to have the stronger gods on his side in this battle.
Iliad 22
Hector knows he is no match for Achilles, but even as he thinks about it, he decides to run away. They run 3 times around the city. Their doom has been decided by the fates, and then resigned to by the gods. Hector's death is brutal. Achilles spares him no mercy, even in death. Achilles seems to be almost inhuman, purely consumed by rage. Helen blames the fates for the destiny of herself and Hector, and mourns the future of her child. I was really struck by the lack of restraint shown by Achilles when he seemed able to restrain himself so much earlier on, but I guess he was already resigned to dying and so he didn't fear the consequences anymore of his actions.
It was creepy how Zeus laughed and was having a ball during all of the battles.
Iliad 23
The funeral games provide a nice bit of relief for the tired and mournful Acheans. Even Achilles seems to lighten up some. The gods continue to mettle, however, even in the games, just as they did in war. It seems that watching men compete and seek to dominate is entertainment, whether it be in sport or war. Yet, it seems that in war, sometimes it goes deeper, at least when they have familial connections to the humans or see things as dishonorable, in Poseidon's case. It was nice to see the characters acting as they normally would. Nestor was given a cup in honor of his oldness and talked about when he was a young athlete. There was even some humor in this chapter, which most of the book has been devoid of, except for some darker humor.
Iliad 24
The gods remain concerned with the fates of men. In this case, they are concerned about Hector's body and Achille's grief; although they disagree on what's more important. Ultimately, even Achilles is moved to pity Priam and give the body back for ransom. Priam is not too trusting though, and leaves in the night so they may have Hector's funeral. The last chapter was one of the most human, moving scenes in the whole book for both the Trojans and the Acheans.
The endgame has been written and is being played out. There is no more room for mercy or goodwill that may have come earlier, at least, in the eyes of mortals. For now Achilles brings death and destruction whereever he goes. Though the gods continue to mettle. The clash of the elements, fire and water suggest dialectical tensions in the heirarchies of the gods that mirror the tensions between individuals and between states. Achilles seems to have the stronger gods on his side in this battle.
Iliad 22
Hector knows he is no match for Achilles, but even as he thinks about it, he decides to run away. They run 3 times around the city. Their doom has been decided by the fates, and then resigned to by the gods. Hector's death is brutal. Achilles spares him no mercy, even in death. Achilles seems to be almost inhuman, purely consumed by rage. Helen blames the fates for the destiny of herself and Hector, and mourns the future of her child. I was really struck by the lack of restraint shown by Achilles when he seemed able to restrain himself so much earlier on, but I guess he was already resigned to dying and so he didn't fear the consequences anymore of his actions.
It was creepy how Zeus laughed and was having a ball during all of the battles.
Iliad 23
The funeral games provide a nice bit of relief for the tired and mournful Acheans. Even Achilles seems to lighten up some. The gods continue to mettle, however, even in the games, just as they did in war. It seems that watching men compete and seek to dominate is entertainment, whether it be in sport or war. Yet, it seems that in war, sometimes it goes deeper, at least when they have familial connections to the humans or see things as dishonorable, in Poseidon's case. It was nice to see the characters acting as they normally would. Nestor was given a cup in honor of his oldness and talked about when he was a young athlete. There was even some humor in this chapter, which most of the book has been devoid of, except for some darker humor.
Iliad 24
The gods remain concerned with the fates of men. In this case, they are concerned about Hector's body and Achille's grief; although they disagree on what's more important. Ultimately, even Achilles is moved to pity Priam and give the body back for ransom. Priam is not too trusting though, and leaves in the night so they may have Hector's funeral. The last chapter was one of the most human, moving scenes in the whole book for both the Trojans and the Acheans.
posted by DCZX at 10:18 AM
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