battlefield illustrates this. His refusal to accept AgamemnonÊs generous settlement is another good example of his stubbornness. In book 9, Agamemnon sends an embassy, including some important heroes such as Odysseus and the giant Ajax 8 , offering countless treasures and territories in an effort to mend the rift between the two characters. In response, Achilles seems to undermine OdysseusÊ arguments that he should return to the fighting at least to save Greek lives if not to please Agamemnon by questioning the point of fighting itself. He stresses the hopelessness of life and the inevitability of death and Âhis fellow-Greeks cannot understand the depth of his feelingsÊ 9 . This is a good illustration of his singularity. AchillesÊ fury at AgamemnonÊs abduction of Briseis seems not to be caused merely by the damage done to his honour. He appears to have an unusually strong relationship with her even though she is just a spoil of war. He grieves for her absence, calls her his ÂbrideÊ and apparently loves her Âwith all [his] heartÊ, while there is no indication that slave- girls are treated similarly by any other hero. In addition, Achilles is shown to have a very close friendship with Patroclus, his second- in-command, so much so that his emotional connection to Patroclus Âseems to go beyond the norms of heroic comradeshipÊ 10 . In book 16, Achilles expresses a wish to sack Troy with Patroclus alone, preceded by DiomedesÊ similar wish in book 9 11 . However, the best illustrations of AchillesÊ love of Patroclus only come after PatroclusÊ death, in the last third of the poem. Patroclus is killed by Hector in book 16 after he obtains permission to wear AchillesÊ armour so that Âthe Trojans might take [Patroclus] for [Achilles]Ê. His death has 8 There are two Ajaxs in the Iliad: the larger Ajax, son of Telemon, who was strong and colossal in stature; and the smaller Ajax, son of Oileus, who was a good runner.
fighter and AthenaÊs help seems to remove some of the dignity and honour of HectorÊs death. As we can see from these examples, AchillesÊ divine connection appears to prove very useful in the poem and ensures that he occupies a position somewhere between gods and men. Other heroes receive divine favour at times in the Iliad. A good example is Diomedes who enjoys an aristeia 5 over the course of books 5 and 6 and who is allowed to excel when he and Odysseus infiltrate the Trojan camp during the night in book 10. In both cases Diomedes is given strength by Athena but he, along with the other heroes, does not have the same kind of relationship with a divine as Achilles has. One of the disadvantages of his having a divine mother is, as has already been alluded to, AchillesÊ knowledge of his fate. This is a very important aspect of his character which, as we learn from him in book 9, was revealed to him by his mother, Thetis. This is the choice for which Achilles is famous: either he will die young at Troy having won great glory or he will live a long life in his fatherland. The latter is made quite tempting compared with the case of Euchenor 6 but it seems clear in the Iliad that Achilles has chosen the former. Apart from Achilles and Euchenor, no one else in the Iliad knows their fate and it is something that gives Achilles a strange and unique perception of the world. Partly because of the knowledge of his fate, Achilles does not feel that he has to abide by the heroic code belonging to the major characters of the Iliad. This idea is sometimes referred to as a Âshame-cultureÊ, that is, Âthe primary source of morality in that society was what others said and thought about youÊ. 7 His very long absence from the 5 ÂA period in battle in which he shows himself to be ÂbestÊ (aristos) and fights with exceptional success.Ê Rutherford, Richard. 6 Euchenor is a Greek mentioned in the Iliad with a choice similar to that of Achilles: die at Troy or die at
9 Rutherford, Richard. 10 Rutherford, Richard.
11 After talk of desertion by Agamemnon, Diomedes declares that he will stay with his second-in-command, Sthenelus, even if all others leave.
home of a fatal plague. 7 Rutherford, Richard.
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