This series of blog posts has alluded to a number of different themes portray in The Iliad and Petersen's Troy, including strife, arrogance, sympathy, and more. This post will quickly cover one more theme.
This theme of that of kleos, or immortal fame (often through heroic warfare), which I have only alluded to. Kleos is displayed by the character of Achilles, who goes to war in seek of fame, knowing that it will lead him to his death. His struggles are evident in The Iliad: "Either,
if I stay here and fight beside the city of the Trojans, my return
home is gone, but my glory shall be everlasting; but if I return home
to the beloved land of my fathers, the excellence of my glory is
gone, but there will be a long life left for me, and my end in death
will not come to me quickly."
Achilles' desire for physical longevity, however, is outweighed by a different kind of immortality: the immortality in which his body would die, but his name and his legend would live on. Thus, he travels to Troy, where he plays a key part in the war.
Ironically,
it appears that, at the end of the film Troy,
Achilles wishes for a long and quiet life. While he is dying, he
whispers affectionately to his lover, Briseis: "You
gave me peace, in a lifetime of war." This
implies that he perhaps acted rashly, or even stupidly, rather than
bravely. Perhaps he would have rather lived a long and happy life
with Briseis than achieve eternal glory.
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