You know, as much as I understand how the ending suits the closure of the story, it doesn't mean that I necessarily have to enjoy it. While lots of people then and today know the events that occurred after book 24, I still feel as if I read an incomplete story. It's as if I watched a movie, predicted where the plot-line was going, but it stopped short right before reaching its conclusion. Even with the end being so well known, I personally crave that final scene that would not only conclude the end of the story, but it would also conclude the life of Achilles and his fated death.
Also, a question that appeared in my head when longing for Achilles's death scene is whether or not the way in which he died affected others view of his honor. I happen to believe that Achilles would not lose any honor because he was fighting as he was supposed to do, but a god intervened and assisted Paris in his demise. If anyone was to lose honor, it would most likely be Paris for taking such a cheap shot against the Achaean hero.
Does anyone have any thoughts or comments about this?
P.S. I commented on Ian Blair's and Haylee Lynd's posts.
I had the same feeling about the book ending. I believe that Achilles’s death would be viewed in honor. However, I believe it depends on how he dies. If he dies running away as a coward then, he would lose his honor. From the common knowledge of his death, he was viewed with honor. The person to lose honor is the person who shot him with an arrow.
ReplyDeleteI felt the same way. I longed to read the climatic death scene of Achilles as well as the rest of the story. I can see, however, how including more could be too much or cause the reader to view Achilles in a slightly different light. Our views of a character can be swayed easily, and Achilles death would mean the book does not end in his victory, even if he dies honorably. His death and the continuation of the story takes away from him being the main character a bit. Still though, I agree; I would like to know more.
ReplyDeleteI felt satisfied with the end personally. I think an open ending that allows us to connect the dots on our own is great and modern TV doesn't really let us use our own imagination anymore. I think Homer did the right thing by leaving us with Achilles honor and victory and that is says a lot about classic Greek culture. Also, don't forget what Aristotle said about saying too much about a war.
ReplyDeleteIn a way I appreciated how Homer ended the epic; it did, in fact, grab your attention and make you long for more, didn't it? That feeling of incompleteness is what I believe Homer was going for. It makes us either search through historical texts to see how the story really ends or simply imagine how the heros meet their end. In a society where information is given to us in full, front to back, nothing left out, I enjoyed how Homer lets the reader imagine their own ending to the story.
ReplyDeleteI for one quite enjoyed the way things ended in Book 24, Priam finding closure about his son's death even if his city is days away from being annihilated. It is a common theme in modern culture to end stories with a nice little bow on top, but I find that the "everything is all right now" narrative gets dry very quickly.
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