Get to grips with Homer’s Iliad in five minute chunks in this blog series! If you’re an A Level Classics or Ancient History student, each post is a five-minute summary of some of the main topics you will need for your exams. For university-level scholars or independent researchers, we’ve included clickable links to useful literature, primary sources and canonical scholarship you’ll need to know.
In this post, learn about heroes in Homer’s Iliad!
Jean Joseph Taillason’s Achilles Displaying the Body of Hector at the Feet of Patroclus
How to be a Hero
Not just anyone could be a hero in Homer’s epics: in general, a hero must be of noble birth. Quite often this means that Homer refers to heroes using a patronymic (the name of the father). For example, Achilles is referred to as “Pelleus”; Diomedes is “Son of Tydeus”; Odysseus “Son of Laertes.” “Atreides” is a patronymic form of Atreus which refers to one of his sons (Agamemnon or Menelaus).
Some heroes have one divine parent. For instance, Achilles is the son of sea-nymph Thetis; Sarpedon is the son of Zeus. However, heroes must be mortal – gods are immortal, so they cannot prove themselves by risking their immortality.
Heroes also attract the attention of the gods and have epithets which reflect their heroic qualities: Achilles is “swift-footed”; Agamemnon is “wide-ruling”; Menelaus is “master of the war cry”; Hector is “of the glinting helmet”; Patroclus is “great-hearted” and Odysseus is “resourceful,” “much-enduring” or “godlike.”
Having said this, heroes are not perfect. In fact, they are often deeply flawed. Homer reveals Achilles’ dual nature early on in the epic: “…his heart was torn between two courses…[he] thrust his way through the crowd…deep in this inward conflict.”
Appearance and Eloquence
Heroes must certainly look the part. Homer gives extensive descriptions of the physical appearance of his heroes. A hero’s armour, also, is very important and is a reflection of their greatness. Achilles’ armour is made by the Hephaestus, god of fire, and only Achilles can lift his spear.
We get to know a lot about heroes’ appearances from the comments of other characters. In Book Three, Priam notices that Odysseus “is shorter than King Agamemnon by a head, but broader in the shoulders and the chest…He reminds me of a fleecy ram bringing a great flock of white sheep to heal.”
Agostino Masucci’s The Argument Between Ajax and Odysseus Over Achilles’ Armour
However, looks aren’t everything. Helen identifies Odysseus as being “of nimble wits.” Priam’s counsellor Antenor notes that “Menelaus with his broad shoulders overtopped the whole company; but Odysseus was the more imposing of the two when both were seated…Menelaus spoke fluently, not at great length, but very clearly…”
Eloquence is much prized in a hero. When Odysseus takes the floor, “You would have taken him for a sulky fellow and no better than a fool. But when that great voice of his came booming from his chest, and the words poured out of his lips like flakes of winter snow, there was no man alive who could compete with Odysseus. When we looked at him then, we were no longer misled by appearances.”
Time and Kleos
Kleos derives from the Greek verb “to hear” and means a hero’s fame or reputation. This was incredibly important to a Greek hero – worth losing one’s life for.
Achilles describes his choice between kleos and obscurity in Book Nine: “If I stay here and play my part in the siege of Troy, there is no home-coming for me, though I shall win undying fame. But if I go home to my own country, my good name will be lost, though I shall have a long life, and shall be spared an early death.”
Charles-Antoine Coypel’s Fury of Achilles
Timê is a form of recognition, particularly the bestowing of gifts upon the hero. That’s why Agamemnon is so insistent that he should be compensated for the loss of Chryseis – and why Achilles is equally insistent that having Briseis taken away from him is an outrageous insult!
Without the expectation of time, the plot of the Iliad could not have unfolded the way it did. Achilles expects recognition and in a moment of bitterness tells Odysseus, “Cowards and brave men are equally respected; and death comes alike to one who has done nothing and one who has toiled hard.”
Courage
Above all, heroes must exhibit courage. We see this explored in the contrast between Hector’s character and his cowardly brother Paris. Paris is shown to be a coward in battle: “his heart failed him completely and he slipped back into friendly ranks in terror for his life…with pale cheeks and trembling limbs.”
Hector has no patience for this, calling him a “pretty boy” and asking why he was ever born. From Hector’s point of view, the Greeks must be laughing at the Trojans “…when they see us make a champion of a prince for his good looks, forgetting that he has no strength of mind, no courage.
Paris acknowledges that Hector is right, although he qualifies, “…there is something you must not reproach me for – the lovely gifts I have from Golden Aphrodite. The precious gifts that the gods lavish on a man unasked are not to be despised…”
Angelica Kauffmann’s Hector Reproving Paris
Perhaps not, but we are left feeling that Paris’ justification is a weak one. Courage is a non-negotiable aspect of a Homeric hero.
When Agamemnon wants to quit the war, saying that Zeus has dealt him a crushing blow, Diomedes (King of Argos) objects: “…has not Zeus in his wisdom withheld some gifts from you? He gave you the imperial sceptre and the homage it brings with it but not the courage to wield it – and courage is the secret of power.”
In our next post, learn about the gods’ meddling with the humans of Homer’s Iliad!
For A Level Students
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