Heroes in the Iliad Thesis Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Heroes in the Iliad - Thesis Example Such a man is shown as suffering a change in fortune from happiness to misery because of a mistaken act, to which he is led by his hamartia (his ‘effort of judgment’) or, as it is often literally translated, his tragic flaw† (Abrams, 1999). There are two types of tragic heroes, those that are born into nobility with a tragic flaw inherent in their character who are therefore responsible for their own fate and doomed to make a serious error in judgment and those who have achieved great heights or esteem through hard work who eventually realize they have made a huge mistake causing them to face and accept their tragic death with honor. Examples of these tragic heroes can be found in Homer’s Iliad, in the characters of Hector and Achilles. Hector falls into this first category of tragic hero in every way. He is born into a noble family, being the son of King Priam of Troy and he continues to make the same tragic mistake in that he continues to take the credit f or his victories instead of giving honor and credit to the gods or goddesses that have taken his side. This can be seen in his taking credit for the retreat of Diomedes after Zeus threw a thunderbolt in front of Diomedes’ chariot to drive him away. ... However, Hector shows a great deal of courage and strength on the battlefield, earning himself honor and protecting the interests of his family and his people in the process. Being guided by Apollo, he eventually comes up against Patroklos wearing Achilles’ enchanted armor and strikes him down with seeming little trouble. This is because Patroklos has already been struck by Apollo, giving Hector the opening he needs to kill his adversary. With this victory on him â€Å"Hector has hope that they can finally defeat the enemy once and for all. Addressing his assembled troops, he says: ‘Would that I were immortal and ageless for all time, like Athena and Apollo, as surely as this day is bringing evil to the Greeks!’ Hector’s words show that he does not realize his own limitations and that he could never have been so successful without the help of Zeus† (Lefkowitz, 2003, p. 66) and the other gods. This overconfidence leads him to ignore the warnings of Ap ollo, who tells him not to go into hand to hand combat with Achilles and is slain because of his pride and overconfidence in his own abilities and counsel. Achilles, on the other hand, falls more into the second category of a tragic hero. Although it could be said that he was born into nobility of a sort because of his parentage, being the son of the water nymph Thetis and the mortal Peleus (a hero in his own right), Achilles is brought to his death by an error in judgment that leads him to quit the field of battle at a time when his countrymen needed him most. The Iliad starts off with the quarrel that leads Achilles to quit the war as Agamemnon seizes Achilles’ prize, the girl Briseis, in exchange for the princess Chryseis he is forced by Apollo to give up. When Agamemnon’s men come to take Briseis

Theological Inquiry Christological Heresies Essay

Theological Inquiry Christological Heresies - Essay Example Athanasius of Alexandria strongly opposed these teachings and emphasized that Jesus Christ was indeed fully divine. Arius argued with the bishop Alexandria stating that Jesus Christ was not immortal and that he was the first creation of God. Arius’ ideas had a huge impact on the definition of Orthodoxy following several creeds, for instance with Jehovah Witnesses who are considered present-day Arians. They present several Biblical arguments stating that Jesus Christ is not God (Fitzgerald 26-27). Arius being a presbyter insisted upon Jesus Christ’s inferiority to God and because Alexandria along with the Greek East was characterized by an intellectual climate, the argument widened and went on to reach Emperor Constantine. Both sides- the Christian church and the Arians did not let up leading Constantine to call for imperial attention and thus the Council of Nicaea was convened. At this meeting, the framework for the official Orthodox Christianity came into being as over 200 bishops argued out the theological and philosophical language. The Council of Nicaea came to be regarded as a major event as it brought about the explanation of spiritual reality as the question of both the dogmatic definition and theological language was raised. Notably, also, the relative authority of offices along with individuals, an assembly of bishops and independent bishops, the emperor along with the council, and the pope and the council was argued out. Subsequently, the issue of authority to define orthodoxy as well as heresy came to be associated at the outset with the issue of where authority was placed in the Christian community (Peters 39). It is crucial to note that Arius got his argument from studying under Lucian of Antioch who depicted Jesus Christ as a semi-divine intermediate being. Since Arius had plenty of friends some of whom were Asian bishops, they tolerated his ideology when he was ordained. This was how he started to raise a following that was spread o ut.