Achilleus: Beast or Hero?

It is abundantly clear that Achilleus is ruled by very strong emotions, particularly those of anger and sorrow. Achilleus is often seen as a childish figure that is the same brutish character throughout the entire book. However, this essay will prove that not only does Achilleus change, but he redeems himself and his honor through the mercy he shows to Priam. The claim will be proven through two main points and will refute a common misconception. The first point is the main interaction with Priam resulting in the return of the body of Hector. Point two is that Achilleus’s mercy lasts longer than the convenient time that a grieving person could forgive and thus proves the virtue of Achilleus when it comes to his word and his honoring of his duty to hospitality. Lastly, a response will be made to the argument that Achilleus shows his immaturity and brutality through his response to the death of Patroklos and the subsequent treatment of the body of Hektor.  

Achilleus is a very thought-provoking character. His story is often viewed as a warning story about what can happen if one values honor too much. He is generally viewed in a negative light and seen as a vain, brutish, and immature “hero”. From a brief overview of The Iliad, it certainly seems right that Achilleus is all of the accused things; he selfishly abstains from fighting because of the theft of his prize from war, his allowing of Patroklos into battle with Achilleus’s own armor, and his shameful treatment of the great Hector’s body. However, in the addition of one of the final scenes of the story, Achilleus shows something that had not been seen up till that point: mercy. That scene shows a side of Achilleus that proves his redemption and his emotional maturity. We see the beginning of this maturation with his realization in book 24 that desecrating Hektor’s body further will neither make the situation better nor help his sorrow after “the games broke up/…only Achilleus/ wept still as he remembered his beloved companion” (The Iliad, 497). Achilleus cannot childishly distract himself from the fact that his friend is gone. It is evident with Achilleus’s maturation that he has two large forces working on him, the force of the untamed warrior and that of the son of a father. Both forces are not represented equally, which is natural in war, particularly in one as senseless as the Trojan War. His untamed warrior is most clearly stated in his vicious dealing with the Trojans in battle and the treatment of Hector’s body after. However, his nature as a son is often overlooked. In the interaction with Priam, the father of Hector appeals to the commonality of being a son by pleading with Achilleus to “remember your father, one who/ is of years like mine, and on the door-still of sorrowful age” (The Iliad, 510). A senseless murderer is not going to respond to this statement by giving the body of his greatest enemy back to his people. However, Achilleus shows his emotional maturity and gives the body back. Achilleus is even willing to give up the body despite believing that Patroklos would be angry with him if he did when saying “be not angry with me Patroklos, if you discover, /…that I gave back great Hektor/ to his loved father” (The Iliad, 513). We see from this interaction that Achilleus’s human or son side wins out, and the body is given back through his understanding of his sonship. Understanding one’s unique as well as universal sonship is a great virtue that Achilleus shows in his encounter with Priam. Achilleus responds with pity to both the points that he himself is a son and that he can understand and empathize with Priam once he looks at it from the perspective of his own father once Achilleus himself will be brought home dead. Being able to look past one’s own anger and blindness to see another’s perspective in light of your own is a virtue that is certainly worth emulating.  

If one were to look at the story and tell whether it was likely that Achilleus would keep his promise to allow the full twelve days of morning for Hector to occur and not to attack during that time, one would assert the negative most likely. However, Achilleus respects the agreement unlike several other agreements over the course of the story, including the story of the spy Dolon and Odysseus. Relatively speaking then, Achilleus is honorable when it comes to his word. However, the clearest pointer to his virtue is his respect for the rules of hospitality. Achilleus not only allows Priam to speak about his proposition after sneaking over enemy lines but also grants his request; but most impressively, Achilleus allows Priam to dine and sleep in his abode. This is certainly not the behavior of a wicked murderer. Not only that, but also relative to the rest of the story, which grounds itself upon the abuse of the rules of hospitality with the theft of Helen from Menelaus by Paris. One might contend that Priam fears for his life and flees as soon as everyone is asleep, but that is due to his fear of Agamemnon as “Achilleus has left you/ unharmed” (The Iliad, 515). Achilleus shows not only that his sonship side wins again but also that his sense of honor and hospitality do not die despite war and the murder of his beloved Patroklos.  

One objection that someone might have is that Achilleus is so brutal to Hektor’s body that he could not have reformed so soon after. Certainly, Achilleus is beyond human when dealing with Hektor’s body, which cannot be right regardless of moral code. The context is very important; however, when dealing with this story, not that in any way does context make his actions less cruel. Achilleus’s honor is severely mistreated when his prize, that he earned, was taken by a lesser man, but his superior, nonetheless. To add to that, Achilleus knows with certainty that he will not survive this war due to fate. Finally, Achilleus makes a poor decision and allows his friend Patroklos to take his armor which accounts for his death. Achilleus is a very pitiable character minus his bestial cruelty. With that being said, Achilleus’s reaction to the death of Patroklos, extreme as it was, underlines his humanness and the extent of his love and loyalty to his friends. If Achilleus was merely a beast, he would not have such sorrow for the death of his friend. Achilleus’s reaction also points to a character arc that is attempting to make Achilleus a hero despite his many flaws. Achilleus is no Christfigure, to be certain, but his suffering that leads to eventual mercy points to a change in character. Without all the trials and mistakes, Achilleus would not have the opportunity to show the mercy that he does to Priam. The great mark of a true hero is the ability to overcome trials and come out the victor having gained insight into yourself.   

In conclusion, Achilleus is a hero who shows his heroic traits through his choice to choose mercy when dealing with Priam, through honoring his agreement and allowing a whole twelve days of burial for his mortal enemy, and through his overall character arc which required brutality to culminate in mercy. Achilleus shows great improvement of character through the above-mentioned virtues and has improved as a result of his trials.                         

Works Cited:   

Homer, The Iliad, translated by Richmond Latimore, The University of Chicago Press, 2011, Chicago and London