The Iliad

Poetry | Homer

Who would you consider the protagonist of “The Iliad?”

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Who would you consider the protagonist of The Iliad Give reasons NU The Iliad BCE written by Homer c - BCE is one of the greatest epics The whole story moves around the wrath of Achilles He is the central figure and his actions shape the war Thus Achilles is the true protagonist Wrath of Achilles The poem begins with the anger of Achilles Homer sings The rage of Achilles sing it now goddess His wrath against Agamemnon shapes the war He withdraws from fighting and prays for Trojan success His anger is the subject and controls the action Without him the war takes another form Achilles rage is the main reason for the Greeks' suffering This central role of his wrath proves him to be the main hero Death of Patroclus The turning point of the poem is Patroclus death Patroclus fights wearing the armour of Achilles Hector kills

him in battle Achilles feels deep grief and cries loudly His sorrow changes his mind He ends his quarrel with Agamemnon He returns to battle only for revenge Killing of Hector The climax of the epic is the fight between Achilles and Hector Hector is brave but fated to die Achilles kills him with the help of Athena He then drags Hector s body in cruel anger Change of Heart The end of the poem shows a change in Achilles Priam Hector s father begs for his son s body Achilles remembers his own father and feels pity Have pity on me remember your father He gives back Hector s body with mercy This shows another side of Achilles His humanity softens his wrath In The Iliad Achilles is the clear protagonist His wrath grief revenge and mercy control the story The story begins with his anger and ends with his pity This full circle proves Achilles as the central protagonist of the epic

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