Many wars have been fought over land, wealth, and women, but are the tangible spoils of war really what humans wage war to attain. In Homer's The Iliad, Achilles and Agamemnon argue over what should be done about the curse that Apollo has inflicted on the Achaean army. The obvious answer to the problem would be Agamemnon returning the daughter of Apollo's priest. However, he states that he deserves to keep her as his prize and that if he must return her, he deserves to take the prize girl of Achilles. Achilles refuses. Why are both men so stubborn about keeping there women? Is it because they actually care about the women themselves?
No. the answer is power. By taking a women from the Trojans, Agamemnon has asserted his power over them, and in turn, by demanding to have Achilles women, he is attempting to assert his dominance over Achilles. However, Achilles like Agamemnon has a large ego. He refuses to give up his power to Agamemnon. He would rather draw out of the war than see Agamemnon win the dispute.
Similar ego battles occur in the real world. Israel and Palestine have been fighting for what they each consider to be holy land for decades. Although the battle may have begun in an earnest attempt to capture Jerusalem, it has turned into a fight for power, similar to that of Achilles and Agamemnon. In an article in The Khaleej Times, a paper published in the United Arab Emirates, talks about the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. It quotes Mira Al Hussein, a Dubai based writer as saying,"Any land belongs to God. I don't think people go to war for land and resources. They go to war for ego and foolish pride. This is my personal opinion. I don't think they are fighting for land as much as they are fighting for ego."
The majority of the non-radicals of each of the two sides would agree with this statement. Both Islam and Judaism preach peace and the love of God for all people, yet Palestine and Israel continue to fight for land. Or so they claim. In reality, the real battle is for power and dominance.
Why do we as humans fight because of our egos? It is within human nature to want to have power and control. War is a time tried method of asserted one's dominance. Why? Because if one's enemy no longer exists or voluntarily suurenders, one can claim complete power.
9 comments:
I believe the concept of power that you bring up plays a huge roll in the play. While Agamemnon and Achilles are jockeying for power (thus displaying their ego's) it is not beneficial for the Achaean army. By Achilles defying the power that Agamemnon is trying to assert, is Achilles defiance/ego hurting the Achaean army? Is The Iliad meant to be a story about power struggles?
I really liked this post. One of the main themes in not only The Iliad, but in all war is ego. During the first days of class, we talked about the reasons countries go to war, and one of the large points was that countries want to be seen as powerful. The reasons that countries strive for this reputation vary, but nevertheless, the nations still fight to stroke their own ego.
Power is an essential element of stature and rank. Agamemnon is expected as King to maintain the highest degree of power, yet Achilles disrespects his authority in his own egotistic attempt to attain power.
Achilles and Agamemnon hurt the Achaean army because they have huge egos and are unable to resolve their differences. They seem to be constantly struggling and quarreling amongst each other and differ focus from the war. Their own problems take focus away from the more battle of the Trojan War.
This is a very insightful post. I too believe that power and ego are driving forces in reasons countries and people go to war. But I also believe that people must be ignited by something to fuel their ego. To use your example, Israel and Palestine both believe that the land is theirs. An interesting question to answer would be whether these countries are egotistical as a result of the desire and need for the land, and their beliefs that the land is theirs, or want and need the land because they are egotistical. I think this can go both ways depending on the situation.
You're right this is all about power, but so is every war (human vs. human). I feel that Achilles doesn't neccesarily want power because he knows he has a lot, he just becomes angered at people who abuse it. But then again you could argue it both ways, Achilles is abusing his by the absence of his physical power in the war, weakens the Aegeans.
So another cause of war in this novel would be the abuse of power.
I feel like the Israel v Palestinians is a decent example. Personally I think they need to give up because they will never get Israel back until the U.S. falls. Anyways I feel that the conflict is more linked to jealous of power, not the abuse of it like Achilles and Agamemmnon
I agree that ego plays a huge part in any war. In live if you want to get ahead you have to have some sort of confidence in what ever you area that is. Achilles and Agamemnon both value their ego above all. A man who has everything he wants and a man who knows that he is the best soldier the world has ever seen. I believe that no one wants to be viewed as week or vulnerable so therefor they must have this tough outer shell of male dominance among everyone. But also what makes Agamemnon such a disliked figure is his ego and thus he can not have the bond and trust to his man that Odysseus has because he is willing to put his ego behind him for the better of his soldiers.
I agree with a lot of what you said, especially that people's egos are the main reason why wars are fought. Taking a woman from a rival man is, in my opinion, one of the most degrading and power driven things a person can do.
Ego, especially in the Iliad, almost seems to have uncontrolable power over humans. The need to assert one's ego over somebody else causes people, notably Agamemnon and Achilles in this case, to do things they otherwise might not do. Having a woman for a war prize doesn't mean that much to Agamemnon until he doesn't have one and Achilles does. He has to have Achilles' because of the jealousy he has, which is caused by his ego. The same goes for Achilles, no longer having his war prize might not be that big of a deal except that it is Agamemnon taking it away. Both of these characters, and most humans in general, are subject to their own ego.
The Iliad does a great job of showing us just how much a large ego can hurt those with similar goals. Although Achilles and Agamemnon are initially working for the same thing, they end up hindering themselves by squabbling over something seemingly unimportant.
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