The Illiad and Its Heroes

The Iliad, Its Characters and the Code of Honor

Within the ancient text of The Iliad, heroes define and mold their character through decisions based on a set of principles, which are referred to as the “Code of Honor.” The heroic code which Homer presents to the reader is an underlying cause for many of the events which occur, but many of the characters differ on their perceptions and the gravity of the code. Achilles actions often find him going “against the grain” of the code of honor. His actions lie in stark contrast with those of Hector, a true hero and my hero, who strives to follow and live the code of honor, despite its consequences.
Hector, the greatest of the Trojan warriors, begins the poem as the model of a Homeric hero and living the code of honor. His dedication and strict belief in the code of honor is illustrated many times throughout the course of The Iliad. An instance in which we see Hector’s strict belief in the code of honor takes place during his return home in the sixth book. Hector returns to Troy in order to have the queen and the other women make a sacrifice to Athena, hoping she will assist the Trojans in the war. After arranging this act he visits Paris, with the intention of convincing him to fight. Visibly upset, Hector scolds Paris, telling him, “The people are dying around the city and around the steep wall as they fight hard; it is for you that this war with its clamor has flared up about our city. You yourself would fight with another whom you saw anywhere hanging back from the hateful encounter,” (VI. 327). Paris agrees that he has dishonored himself, and tells Hector he will return with him to fight.
Hector then searches for Andromache, who is standing by the walls outlining the battlefield with Astanax, their son. When Andromache pleads with Hector to stay home and cease fighting, Hector refuses, telling her that he would be ashamed in front of the Trojans if he were to withdraw himself from the war. Hector then tells Andromache that the thought of her being dragged off by the Achains troubles him, but he is relieved by the knowledge that she will be looked at as “the wife of Hector, who was ever the bravest fighter of the Trojans, breakers of horses, in the days when they fought about Ilion,” (VI. 460). This causes Andromache to shed tears. On the one hand, she understands Hector’s beliefs and deep sense of morality, but on the other feels it is just as honorable to stay home and care for one’s family. This is a second place in which Hector feels torn between two conflicting responsibilities. And yet Hector once again show that he will live according to the code of honor despite the consequences. Hector shows how a true hero lives.
A character’s social status was mainly based upon his performance in the battlefield. Achilles is a figure who believes strongly in social order, but questions the idea of fighting for glory. When Aias and Odysseus are sent by Agamemnon to plead with Achilles’ to fight for the Greeks, Achilles denies them, saying “There was no gratitude given for fighting incessantly forever against your enemies. Fate is the same for the man who holds back, the same if he fights hard” (IX. 316). This statement shows that Achilles is an individual, and does not conform to the ideas of the others. Achilles is portrayed as a fatalist, believing that there is no point in fighting, because the end is the same for everyone. In book nine, when Agamemnon admits he is wrong and offers gifts, Achilles still refuses to join his army in battle. He does not see Agamemnon’s gifts as a reconciliation attempt, but rather as an insult. Achilles believes that Agamemnon’s offerings are selfish and boastful, and he denies them to in order to show Agamemnon that his loyalty cannot be bought.
Later in the poem, Achilles revenges Patroclus’ death by killing Hector. It is customary and proper to return the body to its home so it can be given a proper burial, and it is against the code of honor to perform acts of excessive cruelty. Achilles is so distraught by the death of Patroclus that he contradicts both of these conditions. First, he refuses to return Hector’s body to the Trojans, and second, proceeds to drag it behind his carriage by the ankles. Achilles’ deliberate mutilation of Hector’s body shows the reader that he does not hold the code of honor in high regard.
The characters in The Iliad base many of their actions on the code of honor. The warriors believe that the most dishonorable thing someone can do is refrain from fighting with his fellow soldiers, whereas Achilles disagrees. Although a code of honor is present in The Iliad, many of the characters interpret and maintain it in different ways. Achilles and Hector offer vastly different and contrasting interpretations of living a code of honor. Hector is a true hero throughout The Iliad while Achilles fails to live up to the code.

Works Cited

Butler, Samuel, trans. The Iliad. The Internet Classics Archive | The Iliad by Homer. Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 2009. Web. 12 Sept. 2012. .

Cited: Butler, Samuel, trans. The Iliad. The Internet Classics Archive | The Iliad by Homer. Massachusetts Institute of Technology, 2009. Web. 12 Sept. 2012. .