Grief In The Iliad

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The personal, social and cultural concept of grief is explored in Homers Book 24 of The Iliad, Ransom by Malouf and Petersen’s depiction of Troy. Patroclus’ death triggers Achilles into an immense stage of grief. In all three adaptations, this moment and the moments following allow the authors and director to show Achilles at his worst, showing him as ‘savage’, ‘wild’ and ‘barbaric’, qualities associated with animals and primitive creatures, displaying him in an almost unhuman form. In Book 24 of The Iliad this is shown using subtle language, while in the film ‘Troy’ it is represented a whole lot more abruptly, and Malouf showing it by highlighting Achilles absences.

Following Patroclus’ death, Homer detaches Achilles from human values, the use of the conjunction “But” at the beginning of sentences separates him from humanity, showing …show more content…
In the beginning of Book 24 of the Iliad, ‘each man’ indulges in ‘food’ and ‘sleep’, the basic human necessities for life. “But” Achilles does not, he is removing himself from human needs to ‘keep on grieving for his friend’. Petersen uses a panorama shot, looking down on Achilles from the walls of Troy. There is no music or sound, nor anyone else, just Achilles screaming Hector name. The sparseness of the scene places Achilles as separate to the action which occurred before, thus showing Achilles isolation: while grieving he has detached himself from humanity. Whereas in Ransom, after he has killed Hector, Achilles ‘soul changes colour’, is ‘without passion’, ‘without pity’, and now ‘Himself like a dead man’ he ‘feels nothing’. During his intense grief, Achilles has not only killed hector, but killed himself, ‘his spirit set off on its own downward path’. Troy and Ransom take the ideology that a man is isolated during grief from the original text of the Iliad.

The personal concept of grief, is similar between The Iliad and Ransom, but is shown more thoroughly
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