The Fate of Achilles


Achilles

"For my mother the goddess, silver-footed Thetis, tells me that twofold fates are bearing me toward the doom of death: if I abide here and play my part in the siege of Troy, then lost is my home-return, but my renown shall be imperishable; but if I return home to my dear native lane, lost is my glorious renown, yet shall my life long endure, neither shall the doom of death come soon upon me."
-Achilles to Odysseus, Homer, Iliad (9.410)

Poor Hector.  He was one of my favorite warriors.

I'd like to tell you a little more about Achilles, the Hero of the Greeks. 
He was special. Why you ask?  Well, he could have very well been my son, son of Zeus. 
Remember Thetis?  Thetis was a sea nymph, a goddess in her own right.  She was lovely and
I loved her very much.  If you recall, I ordered her to marry Peleus because
of a prophecy that said her son would become greater than his father. 
It was the wedding of Thetis and Peleus that started this whole ordeal. 

Thetis and Peleus had a son. His name was Achilles.  Thetis wished to make Achilles immortal. 
In order to do this, she dipped Achilles in the river Styx, a river that made everything
it touched invulnerable. She held him by the ankle, though, so his heel was not exposed to the river. 
Soon after, Thetis left Achilles and Peleus.  Peleus sent Achilles to be taught and raised by the centaur
Chiron.  Chiron was the teacher of other great Greeks including Peleus, Hercules, Jason and Ajax.



Thetis dipping Achilles in the waters of the river Styx


So how did Achilles get involved with the Trojan War? A soothsayer told of a prophecy that
Troy could not fall unless Achilles fought with the Greek army.  Thetis disguised the young Achilles as a
girl to save him from joining the army.  Thetis knew that Achilles would die in Troy by the arrows
of Apollo, unless she hid him.  Despite her attempts to hide Achilles, he was eventually
found by Odysseus.  Achilles was given two choices: go to Troy, fight, die, and be famous
forever; or go home and never be known to anyone.  Achilles went willingly with Odysseus.

Achilles was a skilled warrior.  His fighting style became legendary. Achilles became
the inspiration for the Greek soldiers.  They knew as long as Achilles fought for the Greeks,
they would win the war.  When the Greeks arrived at Troy, he was well known and feared. 
Achilles was more than willing to fight for the Greeks but did not like the king
who led the armies, King Agamemnon. 

When the Greeks raided Apollo's temple and took the priest's daughter, Apollo inflicted a
plague upon the Greek army.  Agamemnon was forced to return the girl and
took Achilles' concubine Briseis to replace her.  Achilles was outraged and refused to fight.
He asked Thetis to speak to me on his behalf. He asked that the Trojans win many battles
in his absence.  I gladly granted his wish. 

The turning point for Achilles was when his friend Patroclus took Achilles' armor
and fought in a battle against Prince Hector.  Patroclus died in this battle and the
armor was taken by Hector.  Achilles was deeply saddened by the death of his friend. 
Of all of the men who fought next to Achilles, Patroclus was the closest to Achilles. Achilles was
so distraught by the death of Patroclus that he would not let the Greeks hold a
funeral for his friend.  Achilles fasted in his grief for Patroclus.  Achilles quickly
turned the sadness into rage and sought out the Trojan Prince to avenge
his friend's death.  Patroclus had to die in order for Hector and Achilles to meet.
Hector avoided Achilles, because he knew he couldn't defeat Achilles.  Achilles avoided
Hector because he knew that his death would come shortly after Hector's, which did
not matter to Achilles after Patroclus died.


Achilles slays Hector


The fight between Hector and Achilles was unavoidable.  Achilles killed Hector with ease. 
As I've mentioned before, Achilles also had a little help from Athena.  Achilles' rage did not
end with Hector's death.  Achilles tied Hector's body to his chariot and dragged him
around the Greek army for twelve days.  King Priam eventually went to Achilles to beg
for the body of his oldest son.  He honored Achilles' father Peleus and mentioned how
fortunate Peleus was to never have seen his son fall in battle. Achilles was
moved by Priam's words and gave Hector's body back.  Priam and Achilles agreed
to have twelve days of peace to give Hector a proper burial.


Before Hector died, he told Achilles that his brother Paris and Apollo would avenge
Hector's death.  Despite this warning, Achilles continued to fight for the Greeks. He
remembered his mother's prophecy that he would die by the arrows of Apollo. During
one of the final battles, Paris shot an arrow at Achilles.  The arrow was guided by Apollo
himself and it struck Achilles in his heel. Achilles' heel was vulnerable because
his mother had held him by that heel when she dipped Achilles into the river Styx. 
Achilles later died from the wound.  He was mourned by all Greeks including Odysseus,
who later won his armor in the funeral games that followed Achilles' death.


Death of Achilles

Achilles had become greater than his father, Peleus. Achilles was definitely more famous than Peleus. 
If Achilles had been my son, he would have been a great god and an even greater king.

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