Achilles

Who: Greek hero of Homer’sIliad

What: Fatal flaw – anger; lover/friend Patroclus killed by Hector, prince of Troy; kills Hector; drags body, finally returns to Trojan king; Odysseus meets him in underworld; would rather have life than glory (death in war). 

Where: Troy; Trojan War

Significance: Contrast with Odysseus: ruthlessness versus cunning; hero only receives glory, not both like Odysseus; de-emphasizes the heroic sacrifice of death in battle.  Similarities between Achilles/Patroclus relationship and Gilgamesh/Enkidu. 

Pg. 101-102 in Norton