Priam in The Iliad

A detailed Summary of Priam in The Iliad


It is not uncommon when someone does you wrong, to want revenge. Some may argue that it is human nature; 'An eye for an eye' as the Old Testament says. However during times of war we feel as though the Golden Rule does not apply. I am sure that if a person killed someone I deeply loved, I would want to avenge that death. In the days of the Trojan war, Homer writes in the Iliad of an amazing King of Troy, Priam, and how even as his last son fell at the hands of Achilles, he bowed and kissed the hands of his murderer. This brought Achilles into a state of grieving for his own father and they wept together. If we all treated our enemies and those that did us wrong graciously, would it leave us vulnerable for more destruction, or benefit us as a whole in the end?

Understanding the story of the Iliad helps to bring the picture of these two men together. The war between the Trojans and the Acheans began when Paris, brother of Hector and son of Priam took Helen of Troy, wife of the King of Sparta. After 3 of his sons have been


If the response to terror and tragedy were love and mercy, how different would our world be? I think most would agree that responding with revenge only causes more fighting and destruction and does little to further the cause for peace our nation so greatly proclaims. We live in a society where children are taught that people of other nations are the 'bad guys' and that we must protect ourselves from them. I can remember thinking that all Germans were Nazi's and they should

killed, Priam decided to go and face

Achilles and bring back the body of his son, Hector. When Priam is led to Achilles by a servant, he immediately drops to his knees, held his hands and kissed them. He begs him to remember his father and how happy he must be that he is still alive. Priam literally wept and poured his heart out to Achilles, this man whose hands had killed his sons. The reaction of Achilles to all of this is just as baffling. He is so over come by the humbleness of Priam, he too begins to weep with him, for his father, and for him

Some common words found in the essay are:
Hector Priam, Hobbs Page, Troy Priam, Testament Bible, Golden Rule, , King Sparta, Helen Troy, Paris Hector, april hobbs, hobbs page, april hobbs page, April Hobbs, love mercy,

Approximate Word count = 698
Approximate Pages = 3 (250 words per page double spaced)

Category: English

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