Introduction
The Iliad is an ancient Greek epic poem attributed to Homer. It seems to have originated based on legends about the Trojan War, and the main character of the poem is Achilles. Dramatic pictures of war, fights of heroes alternate with pictures of peaceful life and with scenes of disputes of the Olympic gods. It seems utterly unusual to observe the images of the gods who are not much different from ordinary mortal humans and even exceed them in their ill actions from the point of morality. This paper aims at analyzing Homer’s portrayal of gods in The Iliad, their relationship to mortals and fate, and essential points of depicting the gods in the way they appear in the story.
Main text
The relationship between men and the gods is one of the most controversial and widely discussed problems in Homer’s works. The action of The Iliad takes place in the two dimensions – the human one, under Troy, and the divine one, on Olympus. The gods are divided into two opposing factions and constantly interfere with the characters’ lives. Sometimes, people and gods are even depicted fighting as equals. The battles are of great importance in the plot, and gods influence how they end and who of the two sides wins: “What god drove them to fight with such a fury?” – here, the constant oppressive relationship of gods to mortals is evident (Homer, n.d.). People are subject to the gods’ will and act like puppets in the hands of masters – the gods. People fear immortal gods that can bring war, destruction, and horror to Earth and try not to make them angry or upset. They must do anything the gods order them to and fear their fury if the order was not fulfilled.
Nevertheless, even though gods possess immense power and hold humans in awe of their character and fury, they are submitted to the power of fate. Zeus says many times throughout the plot that he would gladly drive away Hector from Achilles or his son from Patroclus. However, he states that he cannot stand in the way of what is destined to happen. Hector as well states: “No man or woman born, coward or brave, can shun his destiny” (Homer, n.d.). It is especially true for Ancient Greek society – destiny and fate are not to interfere with. No one, even gods, can change what is meant to be, let alone simple human beings who are in submission to the gods. On the other hand, there is no reason to speak of the Homeric gods as all-powerful despots who completely subjugate mortals. Having lost their power over fate, the gods try to assist it, but thinking purely like humans about how to do it, putting their plan into action with the help of various kinds of cunning tricks.
The so-called divine intervention plays an important role in depicting the general course of action. The plot movement is set by the need that lies outside the character of the depicted heroes, by the will of the gods and fate. The mythological component creates unity in the world image that the epic is not able to grasp rationally. The Homeric interpretation of gods is characterized by two circumstances. The gods are much more humanized than they were in the actual Greek religion, where the cults and worshiping were present. They are fully descended to the human form and passions, and the epic individualizes the divine characters as vividly as the human ones. Moreover, the gods are endowed, especially in The Iliad, with numerous negative traits: they are petty, capricious, cruel, and unjust. The Iliad does not create any illusions about the virtue of the divine government of the world. On the contrary, in the Odyssey, along with features that resemble the gods of The Iliad, there is also the concept of gods as guardians of justice and morality.
Homer’s style of portraying the gods is the way of mockery, ironic images, and obscene stories. Homer often laughs at the gods and makes them look humiliating to describe their foibles and weaknesses. Even in depicting the famous battle of the gods, he shows them not in heroic but rather in a humorous way. Their boasting, fights, and everyday quarrels add to the comic relief of the poem. Indeed, is it impossible to take such battle seriously, when Apollo and Poseidon shook the land and sea in such manner that even “Deep in the dismal regions of the dead, the infernal monarch rear his horrid head” (Homer, n.d.). The comic reaches the level of burlesque when the sublime is portrayed as low. Homer almost always describes the scenes that take place on Olympus in such style – the gods are mostly feasting and laughing. As an example, the first song of The Iliad describes marital jealousy. Zeus intends to beat his jealous wife, and Hephaestus makes the feasting gods laugh, rushing around the house with a cup of wine.
Interestingly, Homer depicts gods in such an ironic manner alongside showing their weaknesses and even immoralities to extend the picture of humans to a simply more powerful extent. In other words, gods are the same as humans in their fear of fate. Just like ordinary people fear mortality and despise gods for never having to stand in awe in front of death, gods hate destiny and fate, which they cannot change and have no power over. Humans envy gods for their immortality: “the immortals spun our lives that we, we wretched men live on to bear such torments, – the gods live free of sorrows” (Homer, n.d.). In turn, the gods boast to people with their wonderful gift of immortality, feeling superior to death-fearing humans. Yet, gods are depicted just as fearful, although it is the fate they are appalled at. This is a beautiful point Homer is making – inequality of power inevitably creates division and war.
Conclusion
To sum up, Homer creates both separation and unity of the two seemingly opposing worlds – human and divine. Gods are shown by the author as in many ways weak and fearful as ordinary mortal people whom they scorn and look down on. Both worlds are interconnected and influence each other in the intertwining of events destined by fate. It is the fate that gods fear most, just like humans fear death. This is one immense similarity between the representatives of the two worlds. To show this similarity, Homer uses irony and comic relief, depicting gods in exaggerated circumstances and humorous scenes. Overall, The Iliad reflects upon everything in the world that happens according to the will of the gods, and men are only blind toys in their hands.
Reference
Homer. (n.d.). Iliad. Perseus Digital Library. Web.