Discussion topic

athena is the goddess of just war. in other
words, she believes in fighting a war if there is
a purpose behind it. ares, zeus' and hera's
obnoxious son, believes in war because he is
a warrior and loves conflict. discuss these two
approaches to the concept of war. how is
this distinction delineated in the nigd? how is
it delineated in wars that are fought today? is
any war justified in the lliad, achilles, the
greatest greek warrior, sulks the whole time
because agamemnon took his prize girl
away. what do you think of this behavior? is it
ironic that such a strapping greek man would
give up his warrior status based on the
principle that someone took his prize away?
achilles' choice is pivotal in the odyssey. he
knows before he leaves the war that he can
choose to live a short life and die a hero, or
not go to war and live a long and prosperous
life. discuss achilles' choice. do you think that
his decision not to fight for so long was a part
of his choice to live a long life? why does he
feel so passionate about giving up that
choice to avenge his friend patroclus' death?
what would you choose? a central theme in
the dynastic dramas is fate. because one
member in a family angered the gods, the
following generations had to suffer the
consequences. discuss the concept of fate.
do you believe in it? could those characters
have done anything proactive to change
their fate?