The characters of Hamlet and Achilles, even though from very different time periods, encompass many of the same themes and characteristics. These two characters have many close comparisons, but upon closer inspection they differ on a grand scale. This is immanently due mainly to the time period and culture that each character was submersed in and how each character was supposed to act and to extenuate the main essence of the individual culture. Achilles was considered one of, if not, greatest warrior of the Trojan War in Homer’s Iliad. What made Achilles such an honorable hero was the fact that he fought for his own pride, not the desire to conquer the war.
If he keeps fighting he would die and be famous and almost and be known as a great warrior. While Achilles is deciding what to do Zeus sent Patroclus, Achilles best friend, back into battle and he died at the by Hector. Achilles is mad. He went back to fight very angry. Achilles did not go for his glory this time.
The Odyssey In the epic poem, The Odyssey, by the Greek poet Homer, the main character, Odysseus, shows signs of heroism. The poem tells the story of Odysseus, a war hero from Ithaca and his journey to redress himself. Throughout the story, Odysseus proves himself to be the hero through his masterful skills, breathtaking strength, and quick thinking. To finally redress himself, he needed wisdom from several of gods. However, Odysseus has good traits that an epic hero has, but he also have bad traits too, such as, being overconfident and angering gods.
Also, he fought in many wars with such bravery to prove himself worthy and determined to be known as “The Great”. Finally, the impact and effect he left on his kingdom and he people of his kingdom after the death of Alexander The Great. Here are how alexander was and still should be considered The Great. Macedonia, the kingdom that alexander had power to had that time where it was once weak. Alexander The Great took over the kingdom and raised it to become one of the most powerful empires which wasn’t easy.
Morale The morale of the Greek soldiers in comparison to the Persians contributed to their victory. The Greek soldiers were fighting with patriotism for the freedom of Greece. Athens was sacked and burned by the Persians after the battle of Marathon. As a result, many of the soldiers had a direct emotional attachment to their fighting and role in the war. This gave them an edge over the Persians who were fighting for their leaders, without any emotional attachment to the cause of fighting.
Mika Greene John Holloran & Art Ward Humanities 9 December 2010 Pride and Arrogance The epic Iliad, written by Homer and translated by Robert Fitzgerald, is a story of anger, grief and pride. The characters Hektor and Akhilleus are both very honorable leaders in the Trojan war, one might argue that they are the reasons for the swaying of the battle. But what happens when one is held to such a high standard and built up with so much glory? Many of the soldiers in the Iliad, it seems, are so driven to achieve glory and sometimes arrogant with glory already obtained that they make foolish decisions to get more. Hektor is one of the Trojan’s leading fighters.
She is eager to break the rules of Thebes for her own brother. Issues: Whether Kreon has the power to rule Thebes, both Antigone and Kreon show hubris. Previous History: Kreon does not follow the principles, he acts upon ugly biases. Antigone is headstrong who rather die for what she believes
Achilles is the greatest warrior that the Achaians have but his pride is hurt deeply when Agamemnon take away his war prize. This is the first instance in which a reader may feel bad for Achilles because of his King’s action. In the epic, it states how Achilles refused to enter battle with Agamemnon because of how upset and angry he was over this stab at his pride. This removal from battle is a crucial element in the plot. Achilles also doesn’t quite understand the normal behavior of his society.
In the story of the Aeneid by Virgil we see the continuation of the Iliad by Homer through the eyes of a Trojan warrior. Each of these stories focus around a particular warrior and their journey to becoming great heroes. While these two stories are similar because of this, the heroes depicted vary in many ways. The types of heroes that we see in these stories are unlike in the fact the qualities required by the hero in each story are different. The easiest difference between the heroes is that Homer's hero, Achilles, is a self-centered warrior, while Virgil's hero, Aeneas, is obedient warrior.
Achilles flaw that is that he is revengeful and full of wrath. Hector is noble, but his flaw is that he is proud. In Virgil’s Aeneid, Aeneas is the epic hero in this poem. He is a fearless warrior and a great leader to his men. Aeneas has many characteristics that were highly valued by the Romans during this time period.