The beginning of Book 5 emphasizes the making of Diomedes as the premier hero on the battle-field: “Pallas Athena, now gave to Diomedes / Tydeus’ son, the strength and courage / That would make him shine / Among the Greek and win him glory” (5.1-4). His transformation signals his aristeia, his account of glory. Diomedes with a touch of Pallas Athena and a hero for a father not only shines like the Dog Star, but on the battlefield appears above any side, any cause: “As for Diomedes, you could not tell / Which side he belonged to, Greek or Trojan, / as he boiled across the plain” (5.96-98). The simile that follows transforms Diomedes into a raging river that obliterates “many fine human works” (5.104). Along with this external power, Diomedes can now tell “god from man.” Athena has removes a “mist” from his eyes, and now a fuller existence appears before him. Athena states the key knowledge, “now you can tell god from man” (5.146). For Diomedes to achieve unique glory, he needs a fighting power above all others, he needs a literal and metaphorical transformation, and he needs a perception and reason beyond what normal humans can see and know. Is this to ensure that Diomedes does not fight the gods? Or knows which gods to fight? He will wound Aphrodite and Ares. He will give Apollo due distance. Diomedes will survive. What happens when a hero cannot find the gods?
When Patroclus appears in battle wearing Achilles’ armor he inspires dread, “The Trojans, when they saw Patroclus / Gleaming in his armor, fell apart, / Convinced that Achilles had come out at last” (16.285-287). This hero has been made the greatest of all warriors by the armor he wears and the misperception of the enemy; but this creation will not last. Patroclus will die because of what he cannot see, the god hidden, “did you feel it, Patroclus?—out of the mist, / Your death coming to meet you” (16.827-828). Achilles’ friend will not see Apollo, but will feel the divine force shatter him as it strikes his back. Patroclus shines in Achilles’ armor, but his fate remains hidden until the moment he is stunned and then killed. He has power above others, but does not have the perception or knowledge to protect his life. Up ahead in Greek tragedy, a situation like Patroclus’ will be called ironic and tragic; right now, it’s the paradox of shining but not seeing that results in death. The mist Athena removes from Diomedes eyes, covers Patroclus so that his fate fulfills itself; and with his death, the deaths of Achilles and Hector become sealed.
When Patroclus appears in battle wearing Achilles’ armor he inspires dread, “The Trojans, when they saw Patroclus / Gleaming in his armor, fell apart, / Convinced that Achilles had come out at last” (16.285-287). This hero has been made the greatest of all warriors by the armor he wears and the misperception of the enemy; but this creation will not last. Patroclus will die because of what he cannot see, the god hidden, “did you feel it, Patroclus?—out of the mist, / Your death coming to meet you” (16.827-828). Achilles’ friend will not see Apollo, but will feel the divine force shatter him as it strikes his back. Patroclus shines in Achilles’ armor, but his fate remains hidden until the moment he is stunned and then killed. He has power above others, but does not have the perception or knowledge to protect his life. Up ahead in Greek tragedy, a situation like Patroclus’ will be called ironic and tragic; right now, it’s the paradox of shining but not seeing that results in death. The mist Athena removes from Diomedes eyes, covers Patroclus so that his fate fulfills itself; and with his death, the deaths of Achilles and Hector become sealed.
What of Hector? What is concealed and revealed for him?
The Trojan hero may gain renown, may shine in battle-glory, but what he does not know, does not see will kill him. “Unhappy man,” Zeus muses, “you have no thought of death, Yet death is close” (17.199-200). When he puts on Achilles’ armor, Hector becomes a “gleaming image;” however, as with Partoclus, he will not see things accurately and believe a brother stands shoulder to shoulder with him against an enraged Achilles, only realizing too late that Apollo has left him and Athena deceived him—“Death is closing in / And there’s no escape” (22.328-329). As with Patroclus the play between light and dark, what is revealed and concealed becomes a matter of life and death. At times, these stakes are quite clear and a hero wants to clearly see even though they sense the darkness of death all around them. What if a hero calls out to the gods for light?
As the fight over Patroclus’ body continues, Menelaos rages against disappearing in darkness, when he cries out: “If only one of our men could get a message through, / Fast, to Achilles. I don’t think he’s heard / The bad news, that his best friend is dead. / But I can’t see any Greek who could do that job. / They’re all lost in dark mist, their horses too. / Father Zeus, deliver the Greeks from the dark. / Make the sky clear. Allow us to see with our eyes. / Destroy us in light, since destroy us you will” (17.659-662). The obliteration of death, the flight downward to Hades compels Menelaos to ask for clear sight, to ask to see death distinctly around him. If he is to be unmade, he wants all revealed. Menelaos asks for the knife’s edge between what is hidden and what is seen. Zeus grants this request. Menelaos will survive, despite his foreboding.
For Patroclus and Hector, the revealing sight arrives too late. For Achilles, it has been clear from early on what the revealing of his glory will mean. The high stakes of revealing and concealing for Achilles do not focus on his death, but instead, on how this warrior who so often appears above the human can become viewed as essentially and necessarily human. In my lecture this Monday, it is the very human nature of Achilles that must be revealed if the poem is to matter to anyone. It is not Achilles’ death we wait for, it is where he will become limited, where he will give in to the necessity of human ethics, human law. We want Achilles made a man.
As in the quote from Heraclitus “nature loves to hide,” the nature of the Iliad is accustomed to sending warrior after warrior down into darkness, unmaking who and what they are; and yet, the poem also lifts heroes into the light, so they can dazzle humans and gods and be revealed as those who are worthy for song. The tensions between the two, between disappearing as a shade into the underworld, and appearing as a star that blinds all who approach, makes the Iliad a long meditation on the reality and illusion of existence as we perceive the world around us as it makes and unmakes our lives.
—John Harvey
The Trojan hero may gain renown, may shine in battle-glory, but what he does not know, does not see will kill him. “Unhappy man,” Zeus muses, “you have no thought of death, Yet death is close” (17.199-200). When he puts on Achilles’ armor, Hector becomes a “gleaming image;” however, as with Partoclus, he will not see things accurately and believe a brother stands shoulder to shoulder with him against an enraged Achilles, only realizing too late that Apollo has left him and Athena deceived him—“Death is closing in / And there’s no escape” (22.328-329). As with Patroclus the play between light and dark, what is revealed and concealed becomes a matter of life and death. At times, these stakes are quite clear and a hero wants to clearly see even though they sense the darkness of death all around them. What if a hero calls out to the gods for light?
As the fight over Patroclus’ body continues, Menelaos rages against disappearing in darkness, when he cries out: “If only one of our men could get a message through, / Fast, to Achilles. I don’t think he’s heard / The bad news, that his best friend is dead. / But I can’t see any Greek who could do that job. / They’re all lost in dark mist, their horses too. / Father Zeus, deliver the Greeks from the dark. / Make the sky clear. Allow us to see with our eyes. / Destroy us in light, since destroy us you will” (17.659-662). The obliteration of death, the flight downward to Hades compels Menelaos to ask for clear sight, to ask to see death distinctly around him. If he is to be unmade, he wants all revealed. Menelaos asks for the knife’s edge between what is hidden and what is seen. Zeus grants this request. Menelaos will survive, despite his foreboding.
For Patroclus and Hector, the revealing sight arrives too late. For Achilles, it has been clear from early on what the revealing of his glory will mean. The high stakes of revealing and concealing for Achilles do not focus on his death, but instead, on how this warrior who so often appears above the human can become viewed as essentially and necessarily human. In my lecture this Monday, it is the very human nature of Achilles that must be revealed if the poem is to matter to anyone. It is not Achilles’ death we wait for, it is where he will become limited, where he will give in to the necessity of human ethics, human law. We want Achilles made a man.
As in the quote from Heraclitus “nature loves to hide,” the nature of the Iliad is accustomed to sending warrior after warrior down into darkness, unmaking who and what they are; and yet, the poem also lifts heroes into the light, so they can dazzle humans and gods and be revealed as those who are worthy for song. The tensions between the two, between disappearing as a shade into the underworld, and appearing as a star that blinds all who approach, makes the Iliad a long meditation on the reality and illusion of existence as we perceive the world around us as it makes and unmakes our lives.
—John Harvey
I would add that while, as Dr Harvey points out, for Achilles "it has been clear from early on what the revealing of his glory will mean," it has not been clear what deep, unendurable grief rests between the opening of the Iliad and its close for Achilles: the death of Patroclus. Achilles does not himself SEE that rending consequences of his request for honor from Zeus, until it is too late. Just after Achilles learns of the death of his beloved friend, he realizes this connection. He finally, and tragically, sees: "Mother, Zeus may have done all this for me," he tells Thetis, when she reminds him that Zeus has granted his prayers, "But how can I rejoice? My friend is dead, / Patroclus, my dearest friend of all. I loved him, / And I killed him" (Book 18, lines 83-86).
ReplyDeleteThe questions Dr. Harvey poses in his writing moves the reader to see the Iliad in a different light and to understand that every piece of literature can have many underlying meanings. His introduction presents the idea that life and death both center on being able to see reality through the mist. In the Iliad, this is quite true. The heroes who can see what they are facing and realize what is in reality seem to live longer and accomplish more during the war. Dr. Harvey's examples present evidence of his idea from various characters and their actions. I understood how the clarity of events could be so vital to survival. Furthermore, the average mortal, a common "warrior", does what he is told, not always knowing the reasoning, which keeps reality hidden and leads to his death. However, the heroes receive aid and stand out as leaders and movers. They are role models for the ordinary man and favorites of the gods.
ReplyDeleteThe questions Dr. Harvey poses in his writing moves the reader to see the Iliad in a different light and to understand that every piece of literature can have many underlying meanings. His introduction presents the idea that life and death both center on being able to see reality through the mist. In the Iliad, this is quite true. The heroes who can see what they are facing and realize what is in reality seem to live longer and accomplish more during the war. Dr. Harvey's examples present evidence of his idea from various characters and their actions. I understood how the clarity of events could be so vital to survival. Furthermore, the average mortal, a common "warrior", does what he is told, not always knowing the reasoning, which keeps reality hidden and leads to his death. However, the heroes receive aid and stand out as leaders and movers. They are role models for the ordinary man and favorites of the gods.
ReplyDeleteMany of the ideas Dr. Harvey includes in his posts are interesting because they force the reader to look at the Iliad at a different perspective. Harvey includes ideas such as light vs. dark, human vs. god, revealing vs. concealing, and creation vs. destruction to present his main argument about making/unmaking a human being. The structure of Harvey's argument is also unique because he includes several quotes to support each of his character analysis. Harvey creates a smooth transition between the beginning and ending of paragraphs by including rhetorical questions that propose and lead to new ideas.
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