Achilles
Kylix: Achilles killing Penthesilia,
Creator: Penthesilea Painter, ca. 475-450 B.
Title: Kylix: Achilles killing Penthesilia
Date: c.455 B.C
Location: Attike (Greece)
Lupe Valtierra-Prieto
In the painting Kylix Achilles is depicted killing Penthesilia. Upon first glance this image can be seen as ruthless. Achilles is a complex character that deserves careful examination or one can fall into the trap of only seeing him one dimensionally. He is often portrayed in Greek mythology as full of wrath. Despite this he was still venerated and worshiped as a god. Achilles humanity can be seen in his mortal human condition including his weakness, the Achilles heel. But more importantly we can also see his humanistic side via his actions and in this painting Kylix where he is killing Penthesilia. In this essay I will compare and contrast how this painting depicts Achilles and how he shows up in Greek mythology.
In the painting Kylix we observe Penthesilia in a vulnerable position as Achilles hovers over her. It is interesting to note that no one in the painting is wearing shoes. It is my contention that this is intentional and the Achilles heel is a metaphor for weakness, a trait we all as humans share. No one is perfect. Achilles’ left heel hovers over the woman on the right that appears to have fallen over gracefully perhaps as a sign of surrender. Upon closer examination we can see Achilles sharing a moment of connection with Penthesilia at the time of her death. This scene is reminiscent of Achilles ' depiction in Homer’s Iliad.
In the “The Wrath of Achilles' ' we can see another empathic side of Achilles which helps us better understand this painting. Achilles quarrels with Agamemnon over honor and honor is very important. Agamemnon was asked to give up his prized possession, a captive woman named Chryseis, he does so reluctantly but to save face Agamemnon then proceeds to take Achilles' prized possession, Briseis, a captive woman. Achilles is faced with many experiences where he must be wrathful to ensure his honor. That is the human condition, sometimes we must do things we don’t want to do to ensure our honor.
As described in Homer’s the Iliad “With his hands he [Priam] took hold of Achilles’ knees and kissed his hands, hands terrible and man-killing, which had killed many of Priam’s sons.” In his desperation to bury his son, Priam is willing to kiss the hands that killed not just Hector but many of his children. Priam implores Achilles to think of his own father, and the two sit and weep together –Priam for Hector, Achilles for Peleus and Patroclus – and in a moment of profound pathos, these dire enemies share the same experience and a common humanity” (La Fond 09:51-11:06).
Achilles shares with us a window into the beliefs and thoughts of the Greeks at the time and what their concept of life was. Life is complex and our actions don’t always encompass all of who we are, they are merely snippets in time of things we had to do with what we knew at the time.
La Fond, Marie. “Coming Down to Earth: Heroes in Myth” Greek and Roman Mythology. University of Washington, July 2023, Canvas.uw.edu/courses/1643084/pages/lesson-7-video-lectures?module_item_id=18539229. Accessed 31 July 2023.
Achilles in the Odyssey
Book XI of the Odyssey, Volume 1. Homer; George E. Dimock A. T. Murray (Translator)
The focus is on Achilles in the underworld, when Odysseus comes across him while seeking out Teiresias. Above is a krater of Odysseus waiting to consult with Teiresias (c. 380 BC)
Minh Allan Dao
In Homer's Odyssey, the tale of the hero Odysseus' difficult journey home following 2 decades spent participating in the Trojan War highlighted his famed intellect, ingenuity, and endurance. Naturally, Odysseus stumbles across many interesting characters of Greek antiquity along his travels. While seeking the wisdom of Tiresias in the underworld, Odysseus comes across Achilles, who is there following his death in the Trojan war. Interestingly, Achilles' appearance out of the many Greek deaths in the Trojan war is likely a deliberate choice given the contrast of the characters. They had quarreled over taking over Troy, either in Achilles’ brute force manner (biē) or with Odysseus' wisdom, or mētis (La Fond 01:05-02:05). With Odysseus presently seeking wisdom, it is poignant that meeting Achilles becomes a moment of reflection rather than the typical focus on a hero's exploits, sacrifices, and story. Homer's choice to introduce Achilles in a contrasting manner with Odysseus (especially as the latter is alive) helps us evaluate heroics, reinforce our understanding of Odysseus' journey home and to his wife, and show the level playing field that is death.
We reconsider the value of heroics on one's life, especially when considering how it can lead to it being cut short. The true nature of heroics is revealed by the lasting impact of personal sacrifice, such as Achilles’ tragic end in war. Relating to the aforementioned quarrel, this could be an argument for the heroics of wisdom over strength, as the former is more self-preserving and is still leading to great kleos and an opportunity for nostos for Odysseus. In La Fond's lecture on the afterlife, reading Burkert's Greek Religion reveals how one's psyche leaves one's body and is what goes to the underworld. So as a spirit, Achilles' great strength has been long unusable, unlike how Odysseus still has the strength to come home, where his wife Penelope is under pressure to remarry and thereby forsake Odysseus and his property. She is forced to maintain a nightly ruse to ward off the suitors to faithfully bide her time (Morford et al. 527). The key idea here is that such love is arguably worth more than the fame or riches that heroics could offer. Especially as physical riches and pleasures of the flesh are lost upon death, what we cherish most is ultimately what we strive to have as normal humans (like intimacy), not things that may come and go easily from heroics of the abnormal.
Achilles is great reinforcement of Odysseus' motivation to journey home, reminding the reader about the important things in life. Greek myths consistently have lessons about humanity, and Achilles' despondence despite his legacy shows that what we wish for may not be what it seems, and thus we should appreciate what we have. In Odysseus' case, while indeed frustrating that he is still not home, his wife's loyalty has become incredibly clear; distance continues to make the heart grow fonder, Odysseus continues to gain kleos in his travels, and unlike many other great heroes of the Trojan war, he is still alive and seeking out his loved ones, unlike Achilles who can only hear indirectly about his son (Homer, Odyssey 11.504–538).
Achilles is highly representative of the level playing field of death. What Achilles wishes for (to be alive, even if to be a poor servant) is what the common man can achieve or already does; the latter may not realize it, wishing for eternal glory instead that has the former disillusioned. Odysseus is quickly shut down by Achilles while expressing the latter's godly status with the Argives as to proclaim a glorious afterlife (Homer, Odyssey 11.486–504). Although Achilles left a legacy and enjoyed unique riches and skills while alive, he is now in the same rather dreary place that everyone else ends in. Such past memories are perhaps even painful now that they are forever gone. Thus Odysseus, whom has survived many trials, will one day find himself alongside Achilles. This is more reason for us to cheer Odysseus towards home sooner than later, for us to appreciate our own livelihoods, and indicates that divine favor and intervention from the gods has highly mixed results, in both how the heroism they encourage and the grudges they hold (in Poseidon's case) threaten people from pursuing a normal life that they might’ve truly wanted.
Works Cited
Homer, et al. The Odyssey. Vol. 1, Harvard University Press, 1995.
La Fond, Marie. “Homeward Bound: The Odyssey.” Greek and Roman Myth. University of Washington, June 2021, canvas.uw.edu/courses/1643084/pages/lesson-8-video-lectures?module_item_id=18539236. Accessed 2 August 2023.
La Fond, Marie. “I’ll See You in Hell: The Underworld and the Afterlife” Greek and Roman Myth. University of Washington, June 2021, canvas.uw.edu/courses/1643084/pages/lesson-6-video-lectures?module_item_id=18539222. Accessed 2 August 2023.
Morford, Mark, et al. Classical Mythology. 11th ed., Oxford UP, 2019.