A particularly gripping scenery of the Iliad is the intricate relationships between the gods and the mortals, and further, whether a character’s way out in the war is the result of fate or free will. The more or less interesting god/mortal relationship to me is the cardinal between Athena and Achilles.
Athena, the goddess of wisdom and warfare[1], has an intense dislike for the Trojans stemming from the deluxe apple debacle involving Paris. The gods were invited to a wedding, except for Eris, the goddess of discord who makes an uninvited appearance at the wedding feast[2]. The well-fixed apple, inscribed “for the most beautiful,” is claimed by three goddesses: Hera, Athena, and Aphrodite[3]. Paris is chosen to decide who the golden apple belongs to, each goddess promises gifts: “Hera said that she would institute him royal power, Athena promised him that he would have victory in war, and Aphrodite told him that if he chose her, she would give him the most beautiful woman in the world, Helen, queen of Sparta, as his wife.[4]” Paris chose to give the golden apple to Aphrodite[5]. “He anger Athena and Hera–both goddesses[6].
” Because of that offense, Athena (and Hera) schemed against Troy and during the Trojan state of war aids Achilles as much as she can.
Achilles is the son of Peleus and the sea-nymph Thetis. tall and stubborn, he is easily offended and quick to rage. The Iliad begins with Agamemnon spurning Apollo’s priest[7] and refusing to payoff Chrysies[8], and Achilles agrees to return Chrysies to appease the gods but says to Agamemnon:
“Since Apollo insists on taking my Chrysies, I’ll send her back in my own ships with my crew. But I, I will be there in person at your tents to take Briseis in all her beauty, your own prize—so you can learn just how much greater I am than you and the next man up may funk from matching...If you want to get a full essay, order it on our website: Orderessay
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