The Iliad

From the book Iliad, the Greek, and Trojan armies are, again, as they attempted to do in Book 3, sitting down in peace in order to allow two of their respective heroes to fight over Helen in hand-to-hand combat As also evident in Book 3, both sides are happy to stop fighting and will do so at any opportunity. But looming over the scene in Book 7, we see that "Athene and Apollo lord of the silver bow also sat down, in the form of vultures on a tall oak sacred to Zeus who drives the storm-cloud. They enjoyed the sight of all these warriors sitting there, rank upon rank, rippling with shields, helmets, and spears." (116) Write a well-organized essay of 4-5 pages in which you, first, explain why the armies are so ready to stop fighting in both Books 3 and 7, giving examples from the text. How are the two circumstances similar? How are they different? Then, using the Athene and Apollo's 'vulture disguise' as your pivotal point, go on to explain how the gods figure, at the beginning of Book 4 and of Book 7, in these scenes of 'peace'. Why would Athene and Apollo be shown as vultures? What does this tell us about the gods' attitude toward humans and toward war in general? Conclude by explaining how human 'free will' functions in these scene in relation to the 'will of the gods'    

Sample Solution