¶ … Achilles' speech Agamemnon's embassy Book 9 " Illiad" it Achilles reflects codes behavior heroes The Right to Pride

The Trojan War was fought for a variety of reasons, the most fundamental of which was because Helen was abducted from Sparta and delivered to Paris of Troy. Yet for many of the individual combatants, and particularly for those who were regarded as heroes, the war was fought for far more personal and lasting reasons. As many of the heroes within this epic indicate via their speech and actions, the Trojan War was ultimately a chance for glory everlasting, and the opportunity to claim a renown and fame for deeds done and opponents conquered that would not present itself for quite some time, if ever again. Achilles, the hero of the epic and one of its most unequivocal champions, personified this desire for glory that drove most of the heroes in the conflict, for the vast duration of novel. Yet book nine finds him sullen, bitter, and ambivalent about the fate of his fellow Greeks due Agamemnon's insult that irreparably crushed his pride (which was intrinsically related to the glory he once desired). An analysis of the speech he gives to Agamemnon's embassy in this book demonstrates that Achilles has now disavowed the heroic need for glory because he believes that glory is no longer attainable due to Agamemnon's actions.

In that respect, there are many facets of Achilles' speech that are contrary to the mores of glory and fame that motivate many of the other heroes such as Odysseus and Hector. However, the key to interpreting these statements correctly is in understanding the fact that they are all principally fueled by the shame and disrespect Achilles still feels from Agamemnon's insult, which involved, among other things, Agamemnon's dispossession of Briseis, who Achilles greatly desired if not loved. The following quotation, in which Achilles has refused Agamemnon's...

Tell him openly all that I say…shameless as he is. Yet not shameless enough to look me in the face! I shall neither help by my advice or effort, so utterly has he cheated me and wronged me (Homer).
Ultimately, what Agamemnon has cheated Achilles of is far more than a mere woman. By issuing an insult to the warrior of this degree of severity, Agamemnon has despoiled Achilles of his right to honor, and to any attempts at the glory which Achilles originally sought and which many of the other heroes still seek. What Agamemnon took from Achilles was his ability to achieve what he originally embarked on this mission to achieve -- glory.

Once the reader has understood that Achilles feels that Agamemnon has robbed him of the right to call himself a hero, of the honor and good standing required to actually be a hero, the rest of Achilles' speech to Agamemnon's contingent is well elucidated. The gifts that Agamemnon has offered Achilles are meaningless to the latter, for the simple fact that they will not repair the insult he feels at the dishonor incurred from Agamemnon's stripping him of his valor. This fact is suitably demonstrated in the following quotation, in which Achilles emphasizes to Agamemnon's contingent how useless Their leaders gifts are to him. "As for his gifts they are hateful in my eyes, and not worth a hair…not if he gave me as many gifts as the grains of sand or motes of dust, could he persuade. First he must pay me fully in kind for this shame that stings my heart" (Homer). This quotation indicates just how greatly the effects of Agamemnon's insult reverberate within…