Achilles The War Prize - 882 Words

The sounds of the ocean waves strike the shores of Troy with recurring strength on this dark somber night. It is nine years since the beginning of the Trojan War. Philopeliades and Misopeliades crowd around a fire just outside one of the many Archaean camps along the shore of Troy, as the Trojan slave, Luvion fills their cups with wine passively listening to the discussion at hand. Earlier this day, Achilles called for an assembly of the entire army as he is concerned with the disorder of the Archaen camps. In doing this, Achilles upsets the order of protocol; only Agamemnon can decide to call an assembly. It was revealed the captive war prize Chryseis had prayed to Apollo for help as Agamemnon refused to surrender her to her father. The God Apollo, answering her prayer, laid devastation on the Archaens. Agamemnon insists that if he is forced to surrender Chryseis, his rightful war prize, then he must be repaid with Achilles war prize, Briseis. Appalled by this demand, Achilles ref uses to accept the indignity that he feels Agamemnon has made him undergo in front of all the soldiers and announces he will be withdrawing all of his Myrmidon troops from battle. Had Athena not intervened when Achilles initial reaction was to draw his sword to kill Agamemnon, events would have been much worse than just the withdrawal of the Myrmidons. Misopeliades begins â€Å"I still don’t get why he had to be all noble on his shining horse to defend the rugged girl. Why must he make matters worseShow MoreRelatedAchilles and Odyssey Compare and Contrast Essay1625 Words   |  7 PagesLarger-Than-Life Heroes: Achilles and Odysseus What are the main characteristics of a larger-than-life epic hero? An epic hero is a brave and powerful warrior who is motivated to fight both internal and external conflicts to achieve glory and ranks above a normal man. In Homer’s epic poems The Iliad and The Odyssey, Achilles and Odysseus are the well-known heroes. 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