Achilles
Achilles comes from Phthia and is ruler of the Myrmidons, his troops.
Peleus is Achilles’ father and the goddess Thetis is his mother.
Achilles has a son called Neoptolemus who is at home in Phthia.
Achilles ’ best friend and companion in battle is Patroclus.
Achilles is the central character of the Iliad and the greatest warrior in the Achaian army. His withdrawal from fighting is crucial to the plot.
He is invulnerable, apart from his right heel.
He has all of the virtues of a Homeric hero, most importantly his physical prowess, including running, and he is the best fighter.
His most significant flaw is his excessive pride – hubris.
Homeric heroes are always in the pursuit of:
 Excellence, especially in battle, ‘where men win glory ’.

Nobility, seen through the skill of oratory (public speaking) and diplomacy, ‘where men win glory ’.
Achilles is no exception to this.
His response to Agamemnon’s insult, taking Briseis away from him, may seem extreme. However, Agamemnon is not just taking a prize away from him; he is abusing the heroic code of honour.

All heroes share Achilles’ heroic aspiration for glory but Achilles’ is the most intense.
Achilles is not interested in the Greek cause; he does not feel he has been wronged by the Trojans, ‘It was no quarrel with Trojan warriors that brought me here to fight. They have never done me any harm.’ (Bk1: 152-157), and he is not fighting for his home like
Hector is.
Achilles wants heroic achievement for its own sake, not for what it brings with it e.g. material possessions, social position, revenge or the defence of loved ones. He fights simply and solely for glory .
Achilles would like to share his glory with his best friend, Patroclus,
‘Ah, Father Zeus, Athena and Apollo, if only no Trojan could get away alive, not one, and no Greek either, and we two could survive the massacre to tear off Troy’s holy diadem (crown) of towers singlehanded!’ (Bk16: 98-101)
Achilles’ reasons for fighting are purely for honour and glory. He is the best fighter the Achaians have and he knows this fact too. He is well aware of the honour due to him because of this. If honour is taken from him in any way it makes his choice of life worthless.
This is why he is so angry with Agamemnon, not just because of
Briseis, but because of the insult Agamemnon made to his honour.
Achilles sees what Agamemnon has done to him as the same as what Paris did to Menelaus in kidnapping Helen. Therefore, the quarrel between himself and Agamemnon is as justified to him as is the war against the Trojans.
Achilles values the heroic code of honour above all else, so much so that it is to be the ruin not only of many others but of himself too. His want for glory is so much that this want is the source of his greatness and of his great error.
This paradox (contradiction) is at the centre of Homer’s Iliad.
After the death of Patroclus, Achilles begins to see the importance of both winning glory and of having relationships with others.
These are important both in the Homeric society and in the
Homeric hero.

Achilles knows he must avenge Patroclus’ death, and he realises his own shortcomings as Patrocl us’ protector. He starts to regret the deaths of all his fellow Greek warriors which happened as a result of his withdrawal from battle. ‘I have proved no defence for
Patroclus or for all my many other comrades whom godlike Hector killed, but have sat here by my ships, an idle burden on the earth…’ (Bk18: 102-105)
Towards the end of the Iliad Achilles’ anger and violence comes to a close with the death of Hector and the supplication from Priam.
In the end, Achilles is exhausted and consents to give up the corpse. He is wiser in the end. When he talks with Priam he remembers his love for his own father, Peleus, and Patroclus. He advises Priam to try and recover from Hector’s death as continually lamenting him will not bring him back to life, as Achilles himself has been doing for Patroclus. From his experience and emotions he has felt from the loss of Patroclus, he is able to pass on this wisdom to Priam.
Achilles’ actual death is not included in the Iliad even though it is referred to throughout the poem. He is eventually killed by Paris, who shoots an arrow, guided by Apollo, which hits Achilles in the heel, his only vulnerable place.

Epithets associated with Achilles: swift-footed; godlike; shepherd of the people; son of Peleus; leader of men.
Epic similes:
Achilles chasing Hector – like racehorses
Myrmidons are like wolves; blocks of stone; wasps
Hector allowed Achilles come to him – like a coiled snake allows a man approach him
Immortals who favour Achilles:
Zeus Hera Athena Hephaestus