Glory Is Someone's Failure In The Iliad

Kate Hatch
Mr. Smith
Ancient Literature
15 February 2013
Someone’s Glory is Another’s Failure
“Defeat is not the worst of failures. Not to have tried is the true failure.” In The Iliad, the audience is told of the brutal Trojan War and how the Trojans were destroyed in the tenth year. Nonchalantly, the Greeks celebrated and won prizes, while Troy was burned to the ground, leaving the remaining stragglers to run away under the leadership of Aeneas. Focused on the Trojans’ journey to the founding of Rome, The Aeneid portrays the good aspects of the Trojan life compared to the battling Greeks as shown in The Iliad. Although, in The Iliad, the Greeks uphold their morals with pride, the Trojans write their abysmal opinion about the Greeks in
The Aeneid as shown through views of arête, lack of piety, and the disrespect of the dead.
Only focusing on the council aspect of arête, versus the battle portion, is the way the Trojans outwardly express their distaste of cleverness for which Greek warriors consider themselves great.
The Greeks are proud of smart people and see the gift that intellect provides. “‘Son of Laertes, I delight to hear your council!’ . . . Odysseus, cool tactician, tried to calm him” (Homer 494, 495). Odysseus, otherwise known as Ulyssus, makes battle strategies that are a great advantage in war, especially if the army is lacking in vicious warriors and needs tactics. Undoubtedly, if two Greeks are in line for a prize, the one with skillful strategies would be victorious. On the other hand, the Trojans do not believe the Greeks tactics to be anything but deception. “‘A gift from the Danaans, and no ruse? Is that Ulysses’ way as you have known him?” (Virgil 35). Not a single Trojan could say that any Greek, especially Odysseus, would not come without a clever trick. If anyone was unfortunate enough to have guiles up his sleeve, he would be considered almost in the rank of a cheater or not a proficient fighter. Arête in council is not a high quality in a man based on the Trojans’ standards, while the Greeks view it as highly
acceptable.
In relation to piety, both enemies are guilty of breaking this unspoken vow of reverence, but the Greeks are far worse. To disregard fate prophesied at a famous warrior’s death is to disregard the gods’ ultimate authority over a person. “But glorious Hector taunted Patroclus’ body, dead as he was, ‘Why Patroclus—why prophecy my doom, my sudden death? Who knows?—Achilles the son of sleek-haired Thetis may outrace me—struck by my spear first—and gasp away his life!’” (Homer 440). The Trojans show no respect to the gods in how they disparage their gift of knowing a little piece of the future. Many Trojans are shown as arrogant and disrespectful by Homer, but Virgil presents the Greeks as the lowest form of disregard to the gods. “[Pyrrhus said] ‘Now die.’ To the alter step itself he dragged [Priam] trembling, slipping in the pooled blood of his son, . . . The sword flashed in his right; up to the hilt he thrust it in his body” (Virgil 52). Completely defiant and utterly unnecessary, Pyrrhus, a Greek and Achilles’ son, kills Priam, the king of Troy, on a holy alter. This act shows little reverence to the gods and spits insults in their faces, even though it is not something audible. Although both groups show complete lack of piety, the Greeks are presented as far inferior to the Trojans.
A third way the Trojans portray the Greeks poorly is in unnecessary disrespect of the enemy’s dead. When Achilles finally avenges his friend Patroclus’ death, he decides to to cruelly humiliate the late Hector’s death. “So [Achilles] triumphed and now he was bent on outrage, on shaming noble Hector” (Homer 554). Any Greek would celebrate over such a remarkable accomplishment in killing so great a warrior. To gain more glory and respect, a Greek would definitely try to elongate the festivities of a well renowned victory. But on the other hand, the Trojans saw this Grecian act as utterly crude and impolite. Brutally and intentionally, Achilles drags the poor Hector around the city. “And there was Hector, dragged around Troy walls three times, and there for gold Achilles sold him, bloodless and lifeless. Now indeed Aeneas heaved a mighty sigh from deep within him” (Virgil 21). Death is not a funny game in Trojan culture; there is reason to live and something for which to fight. Making life seem invaluable by dragging a body, gnashing a corpse, is not a positive characteristic to have in the eyes of the Trojan people. The Greeks are put in an unfortunate, but true light by the Trojans on the humiliation of the enemy’s dead.
Through lack of piety on both sides, arête, and disrespect of the dead, the Trojans try to show how the morals of the Greeks were not proper. Excellence in council is a great advantage to the Greeks, but the Trojans do not see it that way. This form of undercover battle is considered trickery to the men of Troy. In both cultures, though, they show lack of piety to the gods and fate. Each culture tries to point out the fault in the other, causing major hypocrisy in both groups. A brutal way to die is not as dreadful as terrible treatment of the body after the person dies. The Trojans point out this grotesqueness as a big flaw in Greek culture. If Virgil is so set on pointing out Greek flaws, does anyone wonder if Homer did the same with the Trojans?

Works Cited
Homer. The Iliad. Trans. Robert Fagles. New York: Viking, 1990. Print.
Virgil. The Aenied. Trans. Robert Fitzgerald. New York: Random House, 1983. Print.
George Edward Woodberry. BrainyQuote. Xplore Inc, 10 February 2013. Web. 11 February 2013.