Achilles Vs Agamemnon

“Spite -- the urge to punish, hurt, humiliate or harass another, even when one gains no obvious benefit and may well pay a cost.” (Angier, 2014, p. 1, para. 3) In the epic poem The Iliad by Homer there are numerous allegories that revolve around the actions and consequences that men take in hopes to gain honour and glory. Two primary characters that do this are Achilles the greatest warrior of the ancient world, and Agamemnon the king of Mycenae. In The Iliad Achilles and Agamemnon are both fuelled by spite and blinded by stubbornness which causes them to suffer the consequences of their own actions. The quarrel between Achilles and Agamemnon is sparked in Book 1 of The Iliad, Homer illustrates the detrimental impact their actions have on them
Although there are different variations of the story, the main idea is that Helen the wife of Menelaus (brother of Agamemnon) was taken by Paris (prince of Troy) as his bride. Achilles was one of the warriors who was opposed to the Trojan War. Warriors are known to be experienced soldiers who follow orders and fight on behalf of a nation, usually for a cause that is beneficial to the populace so to obtain peace or gain interest for the entire nation/empire. Achilles was not a traditional warrior, he was educated, well-spoken, brave, had excellent military skill, and possessed honour and pride for himself. With all his strengths his actions were still indicative of his stubbornness and spitefulness (World History in Context, p. 2). He did not shy away from vocalizing his beliefs, in Book 1 of The Iliad Achilles is the first person to express that Chryseis should be returned to her father, while not being fearful of Agamemnon’s reaction, “...you give the girl back to the god. The army / Will repay you three and four times over - when and if Zeus allows us to rip Troy down to its foundations” (Homer, p.5 , para. 2). This excerpt shows the immense amount of bravery and confidence Achilles possess to be able to so easily stand up against the warlord Agamemnon. However Agamemnon is not in agreement with him and refuses to go without a concubine of his own. Although Achilles is angered by the demand of Agamemnon that Briseis should be replaced with Chryseis he does not fight to keep her, instead he vows him or his Myrmidons were not to take part in the Trojan War onward. Throughout The Iliad Achilles is described on many instances as a godlike and has close ties to the gods and goddesses. When Agamemnon demands Briseis be taken from Achilles’s hut he is deeply angered and reaches for his sword. The only reason he does not let his anger take over him is because Athena (goddess of logic and