Jessica Tyler

LitHum C1001x
Prof. Dames
In chronicling the events of the Trojan War in The Illiad, Homer emphasizes one
of the most compelling factors of the human condition: mortality. This is depicted in a
passage from Book 21, in which Achilleus refuses to spare the life of Lykaon (a son of
Priam) on condition of a ransom, and brutally slays him. Through the use of dialogue,
omitted details, and imagery, Homer both explicitly and implicitly underlines the idea of
death as an inescapable and necessary part of a humans fate.
In the passage, an especially notable aspect of the dialogue was the biting scorn
and disrespect Achilleus directed toward his victim, Lykaon, both before and after he was
slain. The two characters strongly contrast each other in their views of death. To
Lykaon, his death is a slightly negotiable matter: he likely believes that speaking in
supplication (21. 98) and promising a ransom is a highly plausible way to evade his
demise. Achilleus, on the other hand, is highly aware of how inexorable death is. Not
only did his closest comrade, Patroklos, perish in combat but he also knows by prophecy
that if he continues to fight in Troy, his death is certain and imminent. As a result,
Achilleus views Lyakon as a poor fool (21. 99) for begging him to spare his life,
stating, there is not one who can escape death, if the gods send him against my
handsSo, friend, you die also. Why all the clamour about it? (21. 103-106)
Following his death, Achilleuss contempt for his victim is equally strong. He
kicks the slain body into the river, and addresses Lykaos: Lie there among the fish, who
will lick your blood away from your wound, and care nothing about you, nor will your
mother lay you on the death-bed and mourn over you (21. 122-124). Through his actions

and words, Achilleus completely dishonors Lykaos and takes away his right to be buried
and his right to be mourned by his family. According to Ancient Greek belief, this was
one of the worst things to befall upon a person after death, because his soul would be
unprepared for his journey to the underworld without a proper burial. The harsh attitude
Achilleus takes could imply that, on a larger scale, those humans who try to avoid death,
which will befall all individuals, are fools, and perhaps even dishonorable.
Achilleus speech is also telling due to the details about his fate that the audience
cannot discern. One quickly notices that Achilleus cannot declare the time of his death,
how he will die, or even his killer. And there shall be a dawn or an afternoon or a
noontime when some man in the fighting will take the life from me also either with a
spearcast or an arrow flown from the bowstring (21. 110-114). The juxtaposition
between the uncertainty in explaining the details of his death and the assertion of the
coming of his strong destiny seems especially out of place at first glance. Yet, perhaps,
the omitted details serve to emphasize that such details are trivial when placed next to the
relentless fact that death will take its course.
Homer employs vivid imagery when he portrays the slaying of Lykaon. While
most of The Iliad does not rely upon visual descriptions to a degree that one usually never
gets a sense of what the main characters look like, here, the description is painstakingly
written. Homer recounts the exact part of the body Lykaon is struck, as well as the depth
of the wound. The reader is left with a final image of Lykaon, as he dropped to the
ground, face downward, and lay at length, and the black blood flowed, and the ground
was soaked with it (21. 118-119). Throughout the entirety of The Iliad, Homer portrays
images of warfare and death using powerful visual techniques, whether through extended

simile or through imagery, as in this passage. In doing so, he places death on a pedestal:
by making it such a tangible occurrence, he makes the point that mortality is the most
real, inescapable aspect of the human condition.