Got a question about the Iliad and the Odyssey.

[MrFun]

Am I correct that Homer concluded the Iliad with Hector's death at the hands of Achilles?

If so, why would Homer conclude the Iliad with Hector's death, instead of with the ultimate, final fall of Troy with Odysseus' Trojan Horse?

[Nostromo]

Ask him, he's doing a US book tour right now.

[chequita guevara]

Because it was a poem, not the story of the Trojan war. Remember, the Illiad starts with the Greeks already encamped around Troy late in the war. Achilles has withdrawn from combat over a dispute with Agamemnon over a slave girl. That's where it begins.

[GePap]

The Illiad is all about the rage of Achilles- that is the point of the story. His rage starts when Agamemnon (sp) cheats him of his Honor, it increases when his actions to spite the Greeks lead to the death of his beloved cousin, and are satisfied when he kills Hector and then delivers the body to Priam.

[MrFun]

thanks, Che and GePap

[Sava]

[MrFun]

OMG!!!!!

Achilles is making baby Jesus cry.

[monolith94]

Because... that's the climax of the story?

It is a tragedy - the tragedy of two men, as it often goes. Achilles decides to pursue glory, and he knows that this decision will cost him his life. Still, he goes after Hector in pursuit of vain and absurd retribution. Hector is stuck in just about the ****tiest position ever. Seriously, he's one of my favorite characters of all time. The whole thing with him praying to the gods to let his son grow up to be even greater than him is just so goddamn heartbreaking, especially when you consider Euripides' The Trojan Women.

[MrFun]

Originally posted by monolith94
Because... that's the climax of the story?

It is a tragedy - the tragedy of two men, as it often goes. Achilles decides to pursue glory, and he knows that this decision will cost him his life. Still, he goes after Hector in pursuit of vain and absurd retribution. Hector is stuck in just about the ****tiest position ever. Seriously, he's one of my favorite characters of all time. The whole thing with him praying to the gods to let his son grow up to be even greater than him is just so goddamn heartbreaking, especially when you consider Euripides' The Trojan Women.

I'm sure the fall of Troy could have been a good climax, but Che and GePap already explained why Homer probably didn't choose that route.

[Sava]

[Patroklos]

I don't know, I was killed in the act before the death of Hector.

****ing Achilleus, could have gone out himself but noooooo, had to have is pissing contest with the A-man.

[MrFun]

Originally posted by Patroklos
I don't know, I was killed in the act before the death of Hector.

****ing Achilleus, could have gone out himself but noooooo, had to have is pissing contest with the A-man.

But look, you have risen from the dead!

[GePap]

I agree with Mono that Hector was a far better man, if not a more heroic man, than Achilles.

Thank the gods that bastard got what he deserved at the end.

[MrFun]

I sympathized more with Hector myself, as well.

[chequita guevara]

Originally posted by GePap
Thank the gods that bastard got what he deserved at the end.

That's the thing about Greek stories. They always get what they deserved, in the end, unless it's a tragedy. God I love ancient Greek literature