essay topics for the song of achilles

The Song of Achilles Themes and Analysis 📖

Madeline Miller’s ‘The Song of Achilles’ was published in 2011. It tells the story of two men, Patroclus, and Achilles, against the backdrop of the Trojan War.

The Song of Achilles

Madeline miller.

Article written by Emma Baldwin

B.A. in English, B.F.A. in Fine Art, and B.A. in Art Histories from East Carolina University.

Inspired by the works of Homer, this novel focuses on the relationship between the two men and Patroclus’ attempts to save Achilles from his fate. Throughout the novel ‘The Song of Achilles,’ Miller engages with a number of themes, including pride and belief, and uses symbols that become important to the novel’s progression.

Themes 

Below, readers can explore a few of the most important themes in ‘ The Song of Achilles .’

Honor and Pride 

These two themes come together in different ways. Characters like Achilles are fitting for their own honor and an attempt to establish a legacy, while characters like Agamemnon and Menelaus are fighting for pride (something they’ve lost a degree of when Helen is taken to Troy). Pride is also why Agamemnon gets so upset when Achilles saves Briseis from him. 

The Greeks believe that honor is an integral part of life and that violence is sometimes (if not all the time) needed to prove one’s honor. Death was preferable to most Greeks over a loss of honor. In the end, Patroclus defines Achilles’ legacy far more than the latter’s actions do. He shares his memories of the man with Thetis, Achilles’ mother, showing a side of Achilles that the history books do not record. 

Belief 

Belief comes into play as the characters deal with their fates, prophecies, and the Gods. Achilles is half-god and has, throughout the novel, an awareness of his own fate. He’s doomed to die at Troy, something he chooses to ignore and proceed there anyway, against his mother’s wishes. As the characters attempt to control Achilles’ fate, they end up manifesting it. They interfere with his will, and in the end, Achilles ends up exactly where he was prophesied to be. The other characters believe they understand what they need to do to save Achilles. They think they have more control than they do and believe they can save him. 

Power 

Power is another primary theme in ‘ The Song of Achilles ‘. It can be seen throughout the novel as men like Achilles and Agamemnon battle for control of their own lives and the men around them. It’s also one of the main reasons that the Greeks went to war against the Trojans. They intended to reclaim Helen, Menelaus’ wife, but it was even more so about exerting power over that which they had a right to (or so they determined). 

It should also be noted that female power, or powerlessness, is another major part of the novel. There are women, like Helen, Thetis, and Bresies, that play an important role in the story, but they are passive figures. Briseis’s crucial role only comes into effect because of the way that the men treat her. The same occurs in regard to Helen, who is forced to select a husband and then has a war fought to reclaim her from Paris. 

Analysis of Key Moments in The Song of Achilles 

• Patroclus recalls his youth and the blood oath he swore to Helen’s husband, Menelaus. 
• He expresses his understanding of his father’s shame in him. 
• Patroclus accidentally kills a highborn boy, Clysonymus, and is exiled to Phthia, where he meets Achilles. 
• The other boys are fearful of Patroclus, but he becomes friends with Achilles. 
• Achilles’ mother, Thetis, hates Patroclus, believing he is not a good companion for her half-god son. 
• At thirteen, the two boys kiss for the first time. Thetis informs Patroclus that Achilles will be leaving to train with Chiron. 
• Patroclus and Achilles live with and train with Chiron, a centaur. 
• Achilles and Patroclus continue their relationship, and the young men eventually have to return to Peleus’ palace. 
• Peleus informs everyone that Helen has been kidnapped by Paris, son of King Priam of Troy. 
• Peleus wants Achilles to lead the army. They have not made up their mind about fighting, but Achilles tells Patroclus he will go to war if Patroclus is forced to due to the blood oath from his childhood. 
• Thetis takes Achilles in the middle of the night to Scyros. Achilles is disguised among the women, hidden by Thetis in order to avoid the war. 
• Diomedes and Odysseus want Achilles to join the war in order to be immortalized in history. But everyone knows that Achilles is prophesied to die in the war. 
• When they arrive for battle, Achilles refuses to do what Agamemnon says, angering the king. 
• Iphigenia and Achilles are married, and she is later killed as an offering. 
• They arrive at Troy and set up camp. Achilles and Agamemnon fight over Briseis. 
• They fight at Troy for nine years before the camp is struck with a disease. 
• Paris challenges Menelaus to a duel for Helen to end the war. The duel ends in a tie. 
• Achilles refuses to fight anymore, despite Patroclus pleading with him to do so and maintain his honor, and protect those around him. 
• Patroclus puts on Achilles’s armor and fights. He is killed by Hector. 
• Achilles is enraged by his loss, and Briseis blames him for the loss of their mutual friend. 
• Achilles kills Hector and releases the body to Priam. 
• Paris shoots Achilles to death with his arrow. 
• The novel ends with both Achilles and Patroclus in the underworld together. 

Style, Tone, and Figurative Language

Miller’s style in this novel is flowery. She often uses poetic language, emphasizing the poetic origins of her content. This allows moments like the intimate scenes between Achilles and Patroclus to feel all the more beautiful. Throughout, she also uses a lyrical tone. One that is quite introspective and emotional at times. Patroclus is the narrator of the novel, meaning that his emotions often tinge on the retelling of events. 

She also uses examples of figurative language throughout the book. This includes examples of personification, metaphors, and similes. These, along with the examples of poetic language, make the novel enjoyable to read.

Symbols 

Achilles’ spear .

Achilles’ spear, which is an integral part of his weaponry and armor, represents his violence and moments of inhumanity. There are times when, in the heat of battle and around the pride of other men, Achilles seems to lose himself. Patroclus, at points, feels as though he doesn’t recognize his friend. 

The Lyre 

The lyre, which plays a role at the beginning of the novel when Achilles and Patroclus are young, is a symbol of innocence. They have to set it aside, along with their youth, when war breaks out. 

What is the main theme of The Song of Achilles?

The main theme of this novel is the power of love. The novel shows how love is capable of overcoming vast obstacles, including death. Readers may also find themselves noticing themes of pride and violence.

What is the message of The Song of Achilles?

The main message of ‘ The Song of Achilles ‘ by Madeline Miller is the strength of love to overcome adversity. The two endure the disapproval of their families, separation, and violent war. Eventually, they come back together in the afterlife. 

Is The Song of Achilles a love story?

Yes. ‘ The Song of Achilles ‘ is a love story. It is wound within a retelling of Homer’s Iliad. The story expands the mythology surrounding Patroclus and Achilles and alludes to the romantic relationship between the two.

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Emma Baldwin, a graduate of East Carolina University, has a deep-rooted passion for literature. She serves as a key contributor to the Book Analysis team with years of experience.

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The Song of Achilles

Madeline miller.

Ask LitCharts AI: The answer to your questions

Achilles is an ancient Greek warrior who’s prophesized to die during the Trojan War; he is, as a result, obsessed with what he’ll leave behind. His lover, Patroclus , notes that after Achilles dies, “his honor is all that will remain”—in Greek society, honor refers to social status, military rank, fame, and general reputation. Achilles’s honor is the novel’s central focus: the Fates have prophesized that the war will make him famous, so he believes that he’s entitled to honor, often confusing it with pride and violence. Furthermore, the Greeks, including Achilles, believe that warfare is honorable, and that this honor will define their legacies. But by demonstrating the dishonorable tactics that Achilles and the rest of the Greek army use to gain and maintain honor, the novel suggests that there is no real honor in war, and that honor alone can’t define someone’s legacy. In other words, the type of “honor” that the Greek warriors in the novel pursue is inherently dishonorable.

From the novel’s start, the Greeks believe that honor is key to a worthwhile life, and that this honor involves certain forms of acceptable violence. As a child, Patroclus accidentally kills another boy, who tried to steal his dice . The fallout proves that Patroclus violated the unspoken rules of Greek honor: he’s exiled from his kingdom with his name and title stripped. He notes that for the Greeks, “death was preferable” to this loss of reputation and status. Ironically, however, Patroclus had by this point vowed to go to war if anything happened to the Spartan princess Helen . The takeaway is clear: violence in war is permissible, but violence outside of set parameters is dishonorable. Later, Achilles chooses his honor over life itself. The Fates say that he’ll either fight in the Trojan War, attain fame, and die, or live with no glory or fame. Achilles therefore decides to go to Troy—if he doesn’t fight, he’ll be left with nothing, since the Greeks prize honor above all else.

However, despite the Greeks’ emphasis on committing violence honorably, the army’s treatment of innocent bystanders in the Trojan War begins to imply that violence and war are perhaps never honorable. The Trojan War begins because the Trojan prince Paris stole Helen away from her husband, Menelaus ; the Greeks are supposedly in Troy to retrieve her. But when they arrive, they decide to raid local villages instead of immediately sending an embassy to the palace. This means that Achilles and the other soldiers murder villagers who, Patroclus notes, had “nothing at all to do with Paris or Helen.” The Greeks believe that these sanctioned raids are honorable, but they’re entirely unrelated to Menelaus’s honor, or to Helen’s. Furthermore, even as the Greeks defend Helen’s honor, they sully that of other women. When they raid villages, they take women captive and allow high-status soldiers to select from the women and rape them. Again, the Greeks see this as an honorable process, with rules and regulations, even though it’s unrelated to their larger goals and brutalizes innocent women. If there’s honor in harming innocent people, then maybe the concept of honor is inherently flawed.

Meanwhile, Achilles’s individual quest for honor also leads him to act dishonorably. Because Achilles believes he’s entitled to honor—the Fates, after all, promised him fame and glory—he lets his pride dictate his actions. After the Greek commander, Agamemnon , insults him, he refuses to fight without an apology. This prideful decision ends up costing thousands of lives and sullying Achilles’s reputation: the Greeks believe that he’s acting dishonorably, even though he’s trying to maintain his honor. In fact, Achilles believes his honor is worth any cost. After his quarrel with Achilles, Agamemnon steals Briseis , a Trojan captive whom he believes is Achilles’s “bed-slave.” Achilles knows that Agamemnon will assault Briseis, but he actually wants him to do so—according to the unspoken rules of honor, Achilles would then have the right to kill Agamemnon. Patroclus puts a stop to this plan, and Achilles accuses Patroclus of trading Briseis for Achilles’s honor, not understanding that Patroclus actually prevented him from doing something dishonorable. Achilles is caught up in the Greeks’ definition of honor, which allows innocent bystanders to be harmed. Later, Achilles’s attempt to maintain his honor leads to Patroclus’s death. Patroclus dresses in Achilles’s armor to fool the Greeks into thinking that Achilles has decided to fight with them, when really, he’s too proud. Patroclus is killed in battle, showing how Achilles’s “honor” comes at a steep price, as it indirectly leads to someone else’s death.

Notably, the book suggests that characters like Achilles won’t be remembered for their “honor” as the Greeks understand it—instead, their legacies will be defined by their morals (or lack thereof). After Achilles and Patroclus die in battle, Odysseus (another Greek soldier) speaks to Achilles’s son, Pyrrhus , about burying the two men together. Pyrrhus refuses to do so because Patroclus wasn’t famous, but Odysseus argues that unexpected people attain fame and jokes that he might be more famous than Pyrrhus someday. And indeed, Odysseus’s character (famous for his role in Homer’s Odyssey ) is far better known to modern readers than Pyrrhus. The Greek understanding of “honor” is therefore flawed: even those who believe they’ve attained honor might be forgotten, meaning that the horrors they inflicted could have been pointless. After Odysseus fails to convince Pyrrhus, he says that he hopes others will remember that he tried—and Patroclus, from some otherworldly dimension, says that he does remember. Kindness is therefore Odysseus’s legacy, rather than anything that happened in war.

At the end of the novel, Achilles’s gravestone is marked with his greatest acts of violence, and Patroclus—now a restless spirit—is frustrated that this is how he’ll be remembered. When Achilles’s mother, Thetis , comes to mourn, Patroclus shares his memories of Achilles with her. None of them are violent—instead, Patroclus remembers Achilles’s acts of love and mercy. Given that Patroclus knew Achilles intimately, it’s implied that his memories of Achilles, not the official memorial, comprise the legacy that readers should remember. Achilles’s legacy is therefore defined by his morals, not his “honor.” Achilles misunderstood honor, but Patroclus redefines it: honor is found in small kindnesses, not in war.

Honor, Pride, and Legacy ThemeTracker

Honor, Pride, and Legacy Quotes in The Song of Achilles

I was so small; I was rumored to be simple. If he backed down now, it would be a dishonor. […] Without meaning to, I stepped back.

He smirked then. "Coward."

"I am no coward." My voice rose, and my skin went hot.

“Your father thinks you are." His words were deliberate, as if he were savoring them. "I heard him tell my father so."

"He did not." But I knew he had.

The boy stepped closer. He lifted a fist. "Are you calling me a liar?" I knew that he would hit me now. He was just waiting for an excuse. I could imagine the way my father would have said it. Coward . I planted my hands on his chest and shoved, as hard as I could. Our land was one of grass and wheat. Tumbles should not hurt.

I am making excuses. It was also a land of rocks.

My father had spent his life scrabbling to keep his kingdom, and would not risk losing it over such a son as me, when heirs and the wombs that bore them were so easy to come by. So he agreed: I would be exiled, and fostered in another man's kingdom. In exchange for my weight in gold, they would rear me to manhood. I would have no parents, no family name, no inheritance. In our day, death was preferable. But my father was a practical man. My weight in gold was less than the expense of the lavish funeral my death would have demanded.

Its king, Peleus, was one of those men whom the gods love: not divine himself, but clever, brave, handsome, and excelling all his peers in piety. As a reward, our divinities offered him a sea-nymph for a wife. It was considered their highest honor. […] Divine blood purified our muddy race, bred heroes from dust and clay. And this goddess brought a greater promise still: the Fates had foretold that her son would far surpass his father. Peleus' line would be assured. But, like all the gods' gifts, there was an edge to it; the goddess herself was unwilling.

Everyone, even I, had heard the story of Thetis' ravishment. The gods had led Peleus to the secret place where she liked to sit upon the beach. They had warned him not to waste time with overtures—she would never consent to marriage with a mortal.

His eyes opened. "Name one hero who was happy."

I considered. Heracles went mad and killed his family; Theseus lost his bride and father; Jason's children and new wife were murdered by his old; Bellerophon killed the Chimera but was crippled by the fall from Pegasus' back.

"You can't." He was sitting up now, leaning forward.

"I know. They never let you be famous and happy." He lifted an eyebrow. "I'll tell you a secret."

"Tell me." I loved it when he was like this.

"I'm going to be the first." He took my palm and held it to his. "Swear it."

"Because you're the reason. Swear it."

"I swear it," I said, lost in the high color of his cheeks, the flame in his eyes.

"I swear it," he echoed.

We sat like that a moment, hands touching. He grinned. "I feel like I could eat the world raw."

She slapped me. Her hand was small but carried surprising force. It turned my head to the side roughly. The skin stung, and my lip throbbed sharply where she had caught it with a ring. I had not been struck like this since I was a child. Boys were not usually slapped, but a father might do it co show contempt. Mine had. […]

She bared her teeth at me, as if daring me to strike her in return. When she saw I would not, her face twisted with triumph. "Coward. As craven as you are ugly. And half-moron besides, I hear. I do not understand it! It makes no sense chat he should- " She stopped abruptly, and the corner of her mouth tugged down, as if caught by a fisherman's hook. […] I could hear the sound of her breaths, drawn slowly, so I would not guess she was crying. knew the trick. I had done it myself.

“That if you do not come to Troy, your godhead will wither in you, unused. Your strength will diminish. At best, you will be like Lycomedes here, moldering on a forgotten island with only daughters to succeed him. Scyros will be conquered soon by a nearby state; you know this as well as I. They will not kill him; why should they? He can live out his years in some corner eating the bread they soften for him, senile and alone. When he dies, people will say, who?”

The words filled the room, thinning the air until we could not breathe. Such a life was a horror.

But Odysseus' voice was relentless. “He is known now only because of how his story touches yours. If you go to Troy, your fame will be so great that a man will be written into eternal legend just for having passed a cup to you. You will be—”

"I do not think I could bear it," he said, at last. His eyes were closed, as if against horrors. I knew he spoke not of his death, but of the nightmare Odysseus had spun, the loss of his brilliance, the withering of his grace. I had seen the joy he took in his own skill, the roaring vitality that was always just beneath the surface. Who was he if not miraculous and radiant? Who was he if not destined for fame?

"I would not care," I said. The words scrabbled from my mouth. "Whatever you became. It would not matter to me. We would be together."

"I know," he said quietly, but did not look at me.

He knew, but it was not enough.

My hand closed over his. "You must not kill Hector," I said. He looked up, his beautiful face framed by the gold of his hair.

"My mother told you the rest of the prophecy."

"And you think that no one but me can kill Hector."

"Yes," I said.

"And you think to steal time from the Fates?"

"Ah." A sly smile spread across his face; he had always loved defiance. "Well, why should I kill him? He's done nothing to me."

For the first time then, I felt a kind of hope.

“She must have been willing, though. Menelaus' palace is like a fortress. If she had struggled or cried out, someone would have heard. She knew he must come after her, for his honor if nothing else. And that Agamemnon would seize this opportunity and invoke the oath.”

“So you think she did it on purpose? To cause the war?” This shocked me.

“Maybe. She used to be known as the most beautiful woman in our kingdoms. Now they say she's the most beautiful woman in the world." He put on his best singer's falsetto. "A thousand ships have sailed for her.”

“Maybe she really fell in love with Paris.”

“Maybe she was bored. After ten years shut up in Sparta, I'd want to leave too.”

“Maybe Aphrodite made her.”

“Maybe they'll bring her back with them.”

We considered this.

“I think Agamemnon would attack anyway.”

“I think so too. They never even mention her anymore.”

“Except in speeches to the men.”

“Her safety for my honor. Are you happy with your trade?”

“There is no honor in betraying your friends.”

“It is strange,” he says, “that you would speak against betrayal.”

There is more pain in those words, almost, than I can bear. I force myself to think of Briseis. “It was the only way.”

“You chose her,” he says. “Over me.”

"Over your pride."

“My life is my reputation,” he says. His breath sounds ragged. “It is all I have. I will not live much longer. Memory is all I can hope for.” He swallows, thickly. “You know this. And would you let Agamemnon destroy it? Would you help him take it from me?”

“I would not,” I say. “But I would have the memory be worthy of the man. I would have you be yourself, not some tyrant remembered for his cruelty.”

It is strange how well she fits there. How easily I touch my lips to her hair, soft and smelling of lavender. She sighs a little, nestles closer. Almost, I can imagine that this is my life, held in the sweet circle of her arms. I would marry her, and we would have a child.

Perhaps if I had never known Achilles.

She draws down the blanket, releasing me into the air. She cups my face in her hands. “Be careful tomorrow,” she says. “Best of men. Best of the Myrmidons.”

The thought of Troy's fall pierces me with vicious pleasure. They deserve to lose their city. It is their fault, all of it. We have lost ten years, and so many men, and Achilles will die, because of them. No more.

I will crack their uncrackable city, and capture Helen, the precious gold yolk within. I imagine dragging her out under my arm, dumping her before Menelaus. Done. No more men will have to die for her vanity.

I am delirious, fevered with my dream of Helen captive in my arms. The stones are like dark waters that flow ceaselessly over something I have dropped, that I want back. I forget about the god, why I have fallen, why my feet stick in the same crevices I have already climbed. Perhaps this is all I do, I think, demented—climb walls and fall from them.

He lifts his ashen spear.

No , I beg him. It is his own death he holds, his own blood that he will spill.

Hector's eyes are wide, but he will run no longer. He says, “Grant me this. Give my body to my family, when you have killed me.”

Achilles makes a sound like choking. “There are no bargains between lions and men. I will kill you and eat you raw.”

Her skin is whiter than I have ever seen it. “Do not be a fool. It is only my power that—”

“What does it matter?” He cuts her off, snarling. "He is dead. Can your power bring him back?”

“No," she says. "Nothing can.”

He stands. “Do you think I cannot see your rejoicing? I know how you hated him. You have always hated him! If you had not gone to Zeus, he would be alive!”

“He is a mortal,” she says. “And mortals die.”

“I am a mortal!” he screams. “What good is godhead, if it cannot do this? What good are you?”

“I know you are mortal,” she says. She places each cold word as a tile in a mosaic. “I know it better than anyone. I left you too long on Pelion. It has ruined you.”

“I am sorry for your loss,” Priam says. “And sorry that it was my son who took him from you. Yet I beg you to have mercy. In grief, men must help each other, though they are enemies.”

Priam's voice is gentle. “It is right to seek peace for the dead. You and I both know there is no peace for those who live after.”

“No,” Achilles whispers.

Nothing moves in the tent; time does not seem to pass. Then Achilles stands. “It is close to dawn, and I do not want you to be in danger as you travel home. I will have my servants prepare your son's body.”

“Is it right that my father's fame should be diminished? Tainted by a commoner?”

“Patroclus was no commoner. He was born a prince and exiled. He served bravely in our army, and many men admired him. He killed Sarpedon, second only to Hector.”

“In my father's armor. With my father's fame. He has none of his own.”

Odysseus inclines his head. “True. But fame is a strange thing. Some men gain glory after they die, while others fade. What is admired in one generation is abhorred in another.” He spread his broad hands. “We cannot say who will survive the holocaust of memory. Who knows?” He smiles. “Perhaps one day even I will be famous. Perhaps more famous than you.”

Odysseus looks at the young man's implacable face. “I have done my best,” he says. “Let it be remembered I tried.”

I remember.

Others stand at the base to look at the scenes of his life carved on the stone. They are a little hastily done, but clear enough. Achilles killing Memnon, killing Hector, killing Penthesilea. Nothing but death. This is how Pyrrhus’ tomb might look. Is this how he will be remembered?

You said that Chiron ruined him. You are a goddess, and cold, and know nothing. You are the one who ruined him. Look at how he will be remembered now. Killing Hector, killing Troilus. For things he did cruelly in his grief.

Her face is like stone itself. It does not move. The days rise and fall.

Perhaps such things pass for virtue among the gods. But how is there glory in taking a life? We die so easily. Would you make him another Pyrrhus? Let the stories of him be something more.

"What more?" she says.

For once I am not afraid. What else can she do to me?

Returning Hector's body to Priam , I say. That should be remembered.

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'The Song of Achilles': understanding the extract

I can show understanding of ‘Song of Achilles’ through comprehension and annotation.

Lesson details

Key learning points.

• Achilles is a renowned warrior from Greek mythology.
• Patroclus is another character from Greek mythology; he is the closest friend of Achilles.
• Madeline Miller wrote ‘The Song of Achilles’ from the first person perspective of Patroclus.
• To start, Miller focuses on the relationship between Patroclus and his father, and when Patroclus first sees Achilles.
• When annotating a text, you can use a range of symbols and notes to help develop an understanding of the text’s ideas.

Common misconception

Annotating means highlighting everything you think is important in a text.

Annotating is a skill that requires time and thought. Using symbols and short notes makes your annotations helpful and understandable, even if you come back to them at a much later date.

First person - the narrator of the story is a character in the story, using pronouns like ‘I’ and ‘me’.

Perspective - point of view.

Renowned - famous.

Captivate - to hold the attention of someone.

Annotate - to make short notes on, and about, a text.

You need a copy of the story ‘The Song of Achilles’ by Madeline Miller published by Bloomsbury Publishing Plc in 2011.

Content guidance

• Depiction or discussion of discriminatory behaviour
• Depiction or discussion of sensitive content
• Depiction or discussion of sexual violence
• Depiction or discussion of violence or suffering

Supervision

Adult supervision required

This content is © Oak National Academy Limited ( 2024 ), licensed on Open Government Licence version 3.0 except where otherwise stated. See Oak's terms & conditions (Collection 2).

Starter quiz

6 questions.

first person -  

the narrator is a character in the story using ‘I’ and ‘me’

second person -  

the narrator speaks directly to the reader using ‘you’

third person omniscient -  

narrator isn’t a character in story; knows thoughts of every one

third person limited -  

narrator isn’t a character in story; shown thoughts of 1 character

Achilles -  

a famous, fast and powerful warrior

Patroclus -  

the closest friend of Achilles

a sea nymph

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The Song of Achilles: A Novel Themes

"The Song of Achilles" is about love, but even more, it is a story about pride. The Trojan war lasts such a long time because neither camp is willing to say 'enough.' Agamemnon is a shining example of how pride can get in the way of victory. He wants to be perceived as the leader. The high priest who seeks his daughter walks away without her because Agamemnon has become too proud.

Achilles does not bow to Agamemnon as all of the other kings have done, because of his pride. Achilles is fiercely proud and he will not bend to anyone. Patroclus is always willing to hide in the background but Achilles will have no such thing. He hides for no one. When Agamemnon takes Briseis, Achilles is more concerned about receiving an apology from him than anything else. His fellow countrymen are dying and Briseis is...

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The Song of Achilles

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Summary and Study Guide

The Song of Achilles , author Madeline Miller’s bestselling novel, retells the events of Homer’s Iliad . Published in 2012, the book reimagines the relationship between ancient Greek Trojan war heroes Achilles and Patroclus . Narrated in the first person by Patroclus, the narrative explores themes central to ancient Greek mythology, notably the immutability of fate and the pursuit of glory.

The novel begins with Patroclus narrating his birth and early childhood. Son of King Menoitius, the undersized and bullied Patroclus is a disappointment to his father. Menoitius brings 9-year-old Patroclus to the court of Tyndareus as a suitor for his daughter Helen’s hand in marriage. While Patroclus’s suit is inevitably rejected, he is obliged to take a blood oath pledging to protect Helen’s marriage.

At the age of 10, Patroclus is exiled for accidentally killing a nobleman’s son. His exile brings him to Phthia, where he meets Achilles, son of King Peleus and Thetis , a nymph. Achilles is drawn to Patroclus and requests him for a companion. The two become inseparable, and their friendship turns to romance as they grow into adolescence. However, Thetis does not approve of their relationship. She believes that a mortal of such little renown is not a suitable companion for her son, who is fated for glory. She whisks Achilles away to train with the centaur Chiron, famed for having trained Heracles and other Greek heroes. Patroclus follows Achilles, and the boys spend two happy years together studying with Chiron.

When Achilles is 16, Peleus sends for him and reveals that Mycenaean king Agamemnon has asked for military support from the disparate kingdoms of the Greek-speaking world. His brother Menelaus’s wife Helen has been abducted by Trojan prince Paris, and Agamemnon plans to lead an expedition to Troy to recover her. Peleus hopes that Achilles will lead the Phthian delegation. However, Thetis is aware of a prophecy that states Achilles will die if he goes to Troy. She spirits him away to the kingdom of Lycomedes on the island of Scyros. There, Achilles hides, disguised as a woman. Still determined to end her son’s association with Patroclus, Thetis weds Achilles to Lycomedes’s daughter Deidameia, and she becomes pregnant.

Grief-stricken to find his lover gone, Patroclus extracts Achilles’s location from Peleus and travels to Scyros. The couple remains in hiding until Greek leaders Odysseus and Diomedes arrive and expose them. Unlike Patroclus, Achilles did not take the oath to protect Helen, but he cannot resist the lure of immortal glory through military exploits. In knowing the prophecy, which stipulates that Achilles’s death will follow the Trojan prince Hector’s death, Achilles resolves not to fight him.

Upon arriving at Aulis, the Greek forces’ meeting point, Achilles immediately clashes with Agamemnon. As the leader of the expedition, Agamemnon expects to be treated as first among the Greeks, but Achilles considers himself superior due to his military excellence. The Greek forces are stranded at Aulis due to insufficient wind for sailing. A priest reveals that the goddess Artemis demands a sacrifice, Agamemnon’s daughter Iphigenia. Agamemnon brings her to Aulis under the pretense that she will marry Achilles. Unaware that the marriage is a ruse, Achilles is horrified to see her throat slashed at the altar and believes that his honor has been defiled by his association with human sacrifice. Though the sacrifice achieves the desired effect by bringing the necessary winds for sailing to Troy, it escalates the tension between Agamemnon and Achilles.

The Greeks begin their siege of Troy, a city crafted by the god Apollo and protected by impenetrable walls. They conduct raids of local farming communities to choke off the city’s food supplies and flood it with refugees. In the process, the Greeks acquire local women as slaves. At Patroclus’s urging, Achilles claims a young woman called Briseis to save her from becoming another warrior’s bed-slave. Meanwhile, in the heat of battle, Achilles discovers his full potential as a warrior. While Achilles revels in his battle skill, Patroclus turns his attention to working in the infirmary. Though he is horrified by the implications of Achilles’s murderous art, Patroclus attempts to support him, knowing that it is Achilles’s chance for immortality.

Agamemnon claims Chryseis at a dispersal of captured women. She is the daughter of Chryses, a priest of Apollo. Chryses appeals to the Greeks for his daughter’s release and offers treasure, but Agamemnon humiliates him and sends him away. Chryses calls on Apollo, who sends a plague to devastate the Greeks. Achilles calls an assembly to demand that Agamemnon return Chryseis. In retaliation, Agamemnon confiscates Briseis. Furious at this perceived attack on his honor, Achilles withdraws himself and his forces. None of them will fight until Agamemnon apologizes and kneels before him. Thetis convinces Zeus to help the Trojans beat the Greeks so that they will further regret having allowed Agamemnon to disrespect Achilles.

The Greeks subsequently suffer devastating losses. The Trojans break the Greeks’ defending wall and begin to set fire to their ships, their only means of returning home. Patroclus, who has grown close to the men after tending to their physical injuries, becomes distraught. Unable to convince Achilles to return to battle, he contrives to impersonate him by wearing his armor. Achilles makes Patroclus promise to return once the Trojans are in retreat. Disguised in Achilles’s armor, Patroclus leads a charge that achieves the intended retreat. Inflamed with bloodlust in the heat of battle, Patroclus fails to turn back. He kills one of their best leaders, but then Hector kills him.

No longer interested in living, Achilles returns to battle and kills Hector. Shortly after, Paris kills Achilles. The Greeks build him a tomb but fail to include Patroclus’s name, at the urging of his son, who Thetis has brought to Troy to replace his father. Patroclus’s shade is left to roam the earth until Thetis relents and writes his name on the tomb, enabling the shades of Patroclus and Achilles to reunite joyfully in the afterlife.

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The Song of Achilles: An Epic of Empathy

12 Pages Posted: 19 May 2022

Panayiota "Nayia" Siderakis

Independent

Date Written: April 1, 2022

In The Song of Achilles, novelist Madeline Miller seeks to instill a wellspring of empathy within her readers. She achieves this by empowering her audience to engage with an array of characters from the first-person narrative perspective of a profoundly empathetic young man named Patroclus. Through Patroclus’ eyes, readers bear witness to an assortment of relationships characterized by differing levels of empathy. His interactions with the enslaved Briseis, for example, illuminate her humanity despite the societal marginalization that she endures. Furthermore, Patroclus’ relationship with Achilles elucidates the empathy prevalent in their ill-fated romance in spite of societal homophobia, warfare, and death. Lastly, the parental relationships that exist in the lives of Patroclus and Achilles also reflect varying levels of empathy as evident through these characters’ respective interactions with Menoitius and Thetis. Overall, Miller’s character renderings and relationships ultimately challenge her audience to gauge the extent to which they exhibit empathy in their own lives.

Keywords: Madeline Miller, empathy, literature, Achilles, Patroclus

Suggested Citation: Suggested Citation

Panayiota "Nayia" Siderakis (Contact Author)

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The Song of Achilles

By madeline miller, the song of achilles literary elements.

Historical Fiction

Setting and Context

Ancient Greece and Anatolia, particularly Phthia, Mount Pelion, and Troy.

Narrator and Point of View

The book is narrated from the first-person point of view of Patroclus, best friend and lover of Achilles.

Tone and Mood

The tone is lyrical and introspective; the mood swings between romantic, ominous, and idyllic reminiscence.

Protagonist and Antagonist

Patroclus is the protagonist; his primary antagonists are fate and Thetis, Achilles' immortal mother. The story follows Greeks as protagonists and Trojans as antagonists in general.

Major Conflict

The major conflict of the novel is that Patroclus and Achilles are trying to escape, or at least put off, Achilles' fated death during the Trojan war.

The novel reaches its climax when Patroclus dresses in Achilles' armor and goes into battle as him, pushing the Trojans back from the Greek camp. During the battle, he is killed by Hector, inciting the events that will bring an end to the 10-year war.

Foreshadowing

Multiple prophecies foreshadow the events of the novel, including Achilles dying young and famous, Achilles dying after Hector, and "the best of the Myrmidons" dying before Hector.

Understatement

While the novel rarely employs understatement, when he describes the end of the Trojan war, Patroclus vastly understates the importance of the Trojan horse, perhaps out of uninterest: "Troy falls. [Neoptolemus] does not do it alone, of course. There is the horse, and Odysseus's plan, and a whole army besides. But he is the one who kills Priam." Patroclus understates the logistics of ending the war to focus on the personalities that accomplish it, as well as those they kill.

The novel makes allusions to other Greek works and myths, including Heracles and Megara, Orpheus and Eurydice, Jason, Perseus, Charybdis, the Labyrinth, and furies.

Miller frequently uses imagery evocative of Homeric epithets, as well as lyric poetry (some examples: "egg-shell thin"; "there was bright pleasure in his eyes"; "singing limbs"; "damp and curled as a flower at dawn").

While Achilles wants to be the first happy hero, he can only be a hero if he dies young.

Parallelism

When Patroclus lies awake dreading Achilles' fated death, his depiction of his thoughts uses parallelism for emphasis: "I think: This is what I will miss. I think: I will kill myself rather than miss it. I think: How long do we have?"

Metonymy and Synecdoche

After Achilles kills Hector, synecdoche is used to demonstrate his progressive detachment from this life. When he fights Penthesilea, Achilles as a whole is represented by "a face," and at other times by shoulders or a spear, progressively dehumanizing him.

Personification

"The green oak leaves crowded around his hair." Oak leaves can't crowd; this personification evokes how Achilles will one day be crowded by men, as he becomes the legendary "greatest of the Greeks."

The Song of Achilles Questions and Answers

The Question and Answer section for The Song of Achilles is a great resource to ask questions, find answers, and discuss the novel.

Study Guide for The Song of Achilles

The Song of Achilles study guide contains a biography of Miller, literature essays, quiz questions, major themes, characters, and a full summary and analysis.

• About The Song of Achilles
• The Song of Achilles Summary
• Character List

Lesson Plan for The Song of Achilles

• About the Author
• Study Objectives
• Common Core Standards
• Introduction to The Song of Achilles
• Relationship to Other Books
• Bringing in Technology
• Notes to the Teacher
• Related Links
• The Song of Achilles Bibliography

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Literary analysis for the song of achilles?

Hey! So TSOA is one of my favourite books and recently I've decided I want to do my A level coursework on it. I'll be comparing and contrasting it to 'a thousand ships' by Natalie Haynes around the themes of heroism and war.

I was just wondering if any other fans of the book have any insight into good scenes or literary devices I should include when looking at this theme. I think TSOA is fascinating as seeing things from Patroclus' POV adds a whole unique layer to the story of the iliad, especially since I'm comparing it to a book from the perspective of the female characters.

Already I've highlighted a few scenes like the 'name one hero who was happy' moment, achilles treatment of Hector's body, the characterisation as a whole with achilles and the 'best of the greeks' thing around Patroclus.

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