Monday, September 15, 2014

Discuss the ironies implicit in the following lines of The Iliad: 9.409-419.

I take it you are referring to the section
where Achilles discusses the prophecy that his mother, Thetis, made about his life. In
this section we see the irony of the life of the famed warrior Achilles. He is renowned
for his strength and valour, but according to his mother, he has a choice to make. He
can either stay fighting against Troy, which will ensure his death. However, ironically,
this death will mean that his "glory will never die." The alternative is to return home,
leaving the battle, and have a long life but one that will be ultimately forgotten as
his "fame will die" instead of his body. It is ironic that Achilles can only choose
between eternal fame or a long life, and cannot have
both.


However, we can also detect another note of irony in
his counsel to his fellow soldiers to return home, because of his belief that Zeus will
prevent any successful attack:


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You’ll not attain your goal, 
steep
Ilion, because far-seeing Zeus 
shields that city with his
hand.



Of course, we know that
this is not the case and that Zeus will allow Troy to fall and give the Greeks victory.

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