Iliad Blog Post Group B

The presence of divine intervention and the role of fate are themes that really struck me as we read the selected passages of the Iliad. Examples of divine intervention appear in the very beginning of book one when Chryse prays to Apollo to plague the Achaeans. Apollo answers his prayer and the Achaeans start to die of the disease. The presence of the Gods in the Iliad plays a major role in the plot progression. Athena also appears by Achilles size in book one and prevents him from killing Agamemnon. If the mortals were left to their own devices and the Gods didn't intervene with the plot then this piece of literature may have turned out much differently. The dream that Zeus sends to Agamemnon in book 2 is interpreted as a sign of fate, yet it is just a trick to harm the Achaeans. The interests of the Gods in the lives of the mortals are what drive the narrative forward. If Hera had not sent Athena to stop the Achaeans from sailing away, then there would most likely not be a story to tell.

The characterization of the Gods is another interesting aspect of their involvement with humans. Most notably, Zeus's personal agenda and feelings he has regarding the events on Earth seem strange. Why would Zeus, one of the most prominent Greek Gods be concerned with what is going on between Troy and the Achaeans on earth? The Gods acknowledge mortals as real people and have invested feelings for them. For example, the pity that Zeus feels for Hektor in book twenty-two seems misplaced. Zeus has gotten his way yet he cares about the well being for a man on the opposing side.
Fate is used as justification for the actions of every character in the Iliad. The Gods have the power to alter the fate of humans, yet the feelings they have regarding those they are controlling display that the Gods are not all powerful.

Comments

  1. AnonymousSeptember 17, 2018 at 1:39 PM

    I agree with your observation that Zeus' actions are Earth not wholly divine. As the god of thunder and the sky, Zeus should have more pressing issues to be worried about than a brawl between humans on Earth. Even though gods can morph themselves into humans and the divine and earthly worlds are very similar, they are still supposed to uphold divine charactersitics. Zeus lacks all these divine charactersitics, which concurs with your point that the gods are not all-powerful. Part of the fun of reading Greek mythology is trying to distinct between gods and humans, which Homer is making hard in the Iliad.

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  2. AnonymousSeptember 17, 2018 at 8:54 PM

    I also found this as an interesting topic and wrote about it in my post. Personally it makes me wonder if they intervene in everyone's lives, or just the lives of our great heroes. It's also interesting that the Gods have bias towards the mortal people rather than loving everyone equally, and it shows because in the books the Gods would get into quarrels with one another. It's obviously very different from the most popular religions in our era, but worthy of the comparison. The Gods played such a pivotal role in the epics so I'm glad you talked about it.

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