Friday, November 18, 2011

Coment on the relationship between Helen and Hector in Homer's Iliad.

I think that there is a very interesting dynamic between
Hector and Helen.  Both of them represent opposite ends of the source of action. 
Helen's presence in the drama is the result of Paris' desire, while Hector's presence is
animated by the ethical duty that one has to nation.  In both, we see the opposing
forces of action that constitute the tragic condition that Homer articulates.  This
vision pits individuals in equally desirable, but ultimately incompatible courses of
action.  The collision between desire and duty is where tragedy happens in Homer's
drama.  This relationship guides both characters.  Hector disapproves of how Helen has
entered Troy, while Helen understands that Hector is on a different moral and ethical
level than his brother, who left with another man's wife to satiate his own desires. 
Hector is on an ethical level that might have him not particularly relate well to Helen,
but also one that compels him to understand that regardless of his feelings towards her,
his primary responsibility is to defend Troy, its citizens, and its
soldiers.

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