My discussion is going to touch almost all the three books (XVIII, XXII and XXIV) in the Iliad, and is respectively about i) the death of Patroclus which drives Achilles to go to war with Hector, ii) the confrontation between Achilles and Hector which ends by Hector’s death and iii) the intervention of gods so that Achilles releases Hector’s corpse to Priam, his father. In these books, the conflicts between humans and divines as well as between humans themselves can be clearly noticed in some passages.
When Antilochus announced the death of Patroclus to Achilles, his rage went up as if it was the straw that broke the camel (XVIII, 23-38). Achilles and Hector were both known to be strong heroes, so each one’s parent fears his son to lose glory. Thetis’ reaction, Achilles’ mother, is like any mother who fears to see her son committed to sacrifice his life. She knows that she has to seek reinforcement for his son, and she did so from Hephaestus (XVIII, 137-146) because she wants to see him back glorious. Hector’s family fears the same way to lose glory when he faces Achilles, his father and mother as well as his wife begged him to not confront with Achilles. The negotiation that Hector proposes to Achilles is not credible for a hero (XXII, 306-315) who cannot give up in front of his enemy for any reasons.
All the gods react almost very weakly, they look most like kings than divines, they are not neutral instead they were divided between them, some supported Achilles while others Hector, there was none punishment from any of them to either Achilles or Hector. Many of them contribute to Achilles’ victory, for example when Iris asks Achilles, despite his armor being held by the Trojans, to be courageous and go to the war (XVIII, 208-209). The reaction of Zeus in book XXIV, describes most likely his weakness as a king of all the gods, he should prevent what happened instead of intervening so that Achilles gives back Hector to his father. The passage (XXIV, 70-82) between his wife Hera and him tells us more about his weakness to convince her.
Did really Achilles revenge the death of his friend when dragging Hector’s corpse, I think no because, even though it is in a context of war, violence cannot be resolved by violence instead it will increase rage. However, I would consider it true if Achilles did not take gifts from Priam, (XXIV, 244-254) but did it just because Zeus had asked him to do it.
I like the passages you chose Khadidiatou, because its the three defining moment for Achillis. He goes through sadness when he looses his friend Patroclus, revenge rages him, and grief strikes him when he morns with king Prium. You point out that Gods are acting more like kings rather than divines and I think you right in the sense that Gods are intervening in human affairs and taking sides as if they were the kings of both sides. Gods directly advise and command kings like Prium to go to negotiate and the Gods pretty much set up the meeting of Prium and Achillis. The gods mingle so much in the affairs of these morals that to the point where they wake up Prium and advise him to not sleep in the midst of enemies. The bigger picture here in terms of gods and morals is that both are humanistic, however the Gods are divine and magical thus makes them more superior than morals. The humans are simply chess pieces for the amateur gods to play.
Khadidiatou, you make some excellent points in your response to the text. What really intrigued me was your point about the Gods and their actions in the Iliad. You said, “All the gods react almost very weakly, they look most like kings than divines, they are not neutral instead they were divided between them.” The actions of the Gods within the scenario you wrote about can label the Gods as acting like kings. They are essentially picking out their favorite mortals and siding with them. They create events that benefit/worsen the lives of the mortals. The mortals and what goes on below the Gods is like a game to them, and they are the ones playing the game.