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The Iliad, a la Shmoop. We all have heroes, fictional and real, that

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we look up to, and we all have our reasons for preferring one hero over another.

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Some people like Batman, others like Superman.

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Some people think Kirk is the better captain, while others swear it's Picard.

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Ancient Greece was a land rife with heroes.

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While Disney would have you believe that Hercules was the ultimate gladiator, if you're looking

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for the real men of the Hellenic peninsula, you need look no further than Homer's epic

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poem, the Iliad.

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The Iliad takes a look at about 10 days of the Trojan WarÉ and focuses on the character

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of AchillesÉ and his anger management problem.

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What is it about this guy that makes him so important he gets an entire epic poem written

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about him? Now, you've probably heard the story of how

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Achilles' mom, Thetis, attempted to make her son immortal by dipping him in the river Styx.

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She would have succeeded, too, if only she'd put the heel she was holding into the water

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along with the rest of her son.

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However, that part of his story isn't even mentioned in the Iliad.

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Besides, it's not like Achilles even needed a swim in the Styx Ð he was born with advantages

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that we mortals can only dream of.

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First off, Achilles' mom was a goddess. Pretty cool, right? He didn't have to eat his Wheaties

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in order to grow up big and strongÉ

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Éhe was automatically mighty, and more powerful than any mere human, by virtue of hisÉ genealogy.

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Achilles' ties to Mount Olympus also meant he could ring up Zeus whenever he wanted and

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ask for a favor.

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ÒAssist the Trojans, Zeusy,Ó Achilles said, and BAM! It was done.

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Not that it turned out well for anyone, including Achilles' bestie, Patroklos[1] << PAT-tro-kluss>>,

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but you know...connections. It's nice to have them.

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Or maybe what made Achilles such a big hero was his prophesied fate.

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Unlike the rest of us, who wander through life hoping we end up rich, famous, and happy,

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Achilles knew he was destined for buckets of glory...as long as he died young.

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If Achilles made it home from Troy, however, he would die old, fat, and without glory.

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That's a toughie. Something else that set Achilles apart from

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all the other Greek heroes was that, even if you took away his goddess mom and the prophecy

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about his destinyÉ

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Éhe was still an amazing warrior...and crazy to boot. Can't forget that part.

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You see, Achilles had the ego of a Kardashian and the emotional maturity of an eight-year-old.

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When Agamemnon threatened to break up Achilles and our hero's girlfriend Briseis <<bruh-see-iss>>,

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the only way that Achilles could get back at Agamemnon was to ask Zeus to help out the

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Trojans[2]É and to stop fighting in the war himself.

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Then, when Achilles' BFF, Patroklos, goes to that big agora<<aa-guh-ruh>> in the sky,

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Achilles loses it. He starts killing guys left and right.

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Oh, you're waving a white flag? You're dead. Oh, you're begging for your life? Dead.

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So, um, maybe not such a hero after all.[3] At least not in the way we think of a hero

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today. What do you think?

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Hero?

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Éor zero? Shmoop amongst yourselves.

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[1]Emphasis on the Pat (PAT-tro-kluss) [2]Um, and he stops fighting in the war. That's

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the whole point. [3]This kind of glosses over the fact that

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the definition of hero in ancient Greece was different than todayÉ

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