Achilles VS Hector

I am sure that many or some of us have had that one person who we look at and think to ourselves, "Gee, I wish I had that." or "Gee, I wish I was that person." This happens for a number of possible reasons but most likely, in my opinion, it happens because we wish to possess those certain qualites of that particular person or we wish to own what they have, belongings-wise. In The Iliad written by Homer, it is clear to us that what Achilles lacks, Hector has and what Hector lacks, Achilles has.

Although they are both the strongest warriors in their army, Achilles and Hector are the embodiment

of two very different concepts. On one hand, we have Achilles. Achilles was born with the desire for fame and glory. That is who Achilles is; that is in his blood. There was a time where Achilles thinks to himself if he should stay out of the battle and live a long, boring life in his city or go back and fight for the Achaeans and achieve eternal glory. As we know, Achilles ultimately chooses the latter, making him the embodiment of kleos.

Now on the other hand, we have Hector. Hector is looked up to, he is loved by his people and he has a place where he belongs. Not only that but he is a father to a son, a husband to Andromache, and a son to parents that are there for him physically. In the book where Hector heads back to Troy, his mother says to him, " 'My child- why have you left the bitter fighting, why have you come home? Look how they wear you out, the sons of Achaea-curse them-battling round our walls!' "(6. 302-304). This demontrates his mother's love for him. It goes without saying that Hector is also adored by his people. His people does not complain about him like many people complain about Achilles. No, they respect him. Hector embodies everything else that Achilles does not have.

Achilles craves to have what Hector has, a place for him in his city. To the Achaeans, Achilles is just a very powerful and valuable warrior. Since Achilles is half god and half human, he does not really have a rightful place anywhere. He lacks having a parent who is there for him because, as we already know, his mother is Thetis, a god. Achilles does not have a lover. Despite Achille's claims of "loving" Breseis, we can see that Achilles only view her as a prize, as an object. Hector, too, craves what Achilles has. Achilles has rage which drives him to go to war ruthlessly. It drives him to victory. Hector wishes to possess the qualities of Achilles and Achillies wishes to have the personal possessions of Hector.

Perhaps Achilles is not only fighting the Trojan war, but also a war within himself: To fight, or not to fight, Kleos or time.

Word count: 506

Works Cited

Homer. The Iliad. Trans. Robert Fagles. NY: Penguin Books, 1990.

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