the iliad essay questions

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116 pages • 3 hours read

A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more. For select classroom titles, we also provide Teaching Guides with discussion and quiz questions to prompt student engagement.

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Use these essay questions as writing and critical thinking exercises for all levels of writers, and to build their literary analysis skills by requiring textual references throughout the essay.

Differentiation Suggestion: For English learners or struggling writers, strategies that work well include graphic organizers, sentence frames or starters, group work, or oral responses.

Scaffolded Essay Questions

Student Prompt: Write a short (1-3 paragraph) response using one of the below bulleted outlines. Cite details from the work over the course of your response that serve as examples and support.

1. Though Paris is the one who brought Helen to Troy, Hector leads the Trojan army against the attacking Greeks.

• What does Hector symbolize, to the Greeks, to the Trojans, and even to the gods? ( topic sentence )
• Choose three examples from the text offering different perspectives on Hector and connect them to your central argument.
• In your concluding sentence or sentences, connect Hector’s character to the theme of Poetry as a Medium of Immortalization.

2. The Iliad begins with Achilles’s rage.

• How does Achilles as a character shift over the course of the epic? ( topic sentence )
• What prompts Achilles’s actions throughout the poem? How do his responses change?

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108 Iliad Essay Topic Ideas & Examples

🏆 best iliad topic ideas & essay examples, 📌 simple & easy iliad essay titles, 👍 good essay topics on iliad, ❓ iliad essay questions.

• The Power of “The Iliad” and “The Odyssey” Nowadays The significance of Iliad and Odyssey in the modern world can be explained by the fact that they are the first ancient epics, which have survived to this day.
• The Epic Elements of Homer’s “The Iliad” Although the plot mostly narrates several weeks in the last year of the war, The Iliad has various allusions to the many Greek legends about the siege and the astonishing exploits of ancient heroes.
• Literature Studies: “The Iliad” by Homer It is devoted to the period of the Greek-Trojan War and narrates about the heroic battles between the Greeks and the Trojans.
• Achilles as a Human Hero From the Poem “The Iliad” One of the qualities that distinguish Achilles from the heroes and make him a human is his quick temper and touchiness.
• Hector’ and Achilles Clash in The Iliad by Homer As the poem begins, Achilles is not ready to take orders from Agamemnon, the king of the Greeks, and he is agitated at losing argument to the king.
• Women’s Roles: 1001 Nights and The Iliad Both of the works serve as detailed and deep reflections of the histories and cultures of the countries they came from and elaborately portrayed the relationships between men and women, religions and spirituality, and the […]
• Why Homer’s “The Iliad” Can Be Called an Epic The overall scale of the conflict and the involvement of gods are the key characteristics making the “Iliad” an epic in its traditional sense.
• Homer’s The Iliad and John Milton’s Lost Paradise It was written after the Restoration, but the powerful voice of the poet declared that the spirit of the Revolution was not broken, that it still lived in the hearts of the people.
• War Justification in The Iliad and The Bhagavad-Gita The current paper observes two ancient texts, The Iliad and The Bhagavad-gita, to investigate the arguments of what the virtues of wars are.
• “The Iliad” a Greek Epic Poem by Homer One of the most famous arming scenes in the Iliad is the description of Achilles’ arming, in particular, shield. It could be supposed that Homer tried to highlight the horror of the war and focused […]
• Remembering Humanity: Priam and Achilles at the End of “The Iliad” Priam reminds Achilles that he is still a human, and Achilles urges the Trojan king not to give up under the misfortunes of war because that is also a part of human nature.
• Reality of Achilles in “The Iliad” The character of Achilles is real as it is presented in the poem although most of the powers that are portrayed through this character are mere fantasies.
• The Most Realistic Character in “The Iliad” by Homer The author uses Achilles as a bold character for building all the major themes in the poem; hence he is the most realistic character in The Iliad.
• The Plays “The Iliad,” “The Odyssey,” and “Agamemnon”: Understanding of Leadership Finally, the story of Agamemnon told in The Iliad and Agamemnon taught us that a capable leader must remain humble and self-aware.
• Achilles’ Moral Ambiguity in “The Iliad” by Homer Achilles begs his mother to approach Zeus and request that the deity punish the Greeks unless they accord him the respect he merits. Achilles then urged the remainder of the Greeks to leave Troy and […]
• Abuse of Power in “The Iliad” and “The Metamorphoses” Portraying the lives of gods and depicting relationships between them, as well as their interactions with humans, both “Iliad” and “Metamorphosis” elaborate on the theme of power abuse by those at the helm.
• Homer: The Theme of Men at War in “The Iliad” Patroclus is always beside Achilles to support him in the saddest moments and the moments of his rage. This loyalty shows that the friendship of Achilles and Patroclus was a perfect relationship as seen by […]
• The Figure of Hector in Homer’s “The Iliad” Hector’s behavior is often contradictory since the motives for his actions are either a thirst for glory, which is typical of an epic hero), or an understanding of the duty to the fatherland and the […]
• The Iliad: Religion and Beliefs Homer offers a variety of shades of religious consciousness, and many of the plot elements used by the author indicate a social interpretation of the divine cult and the introduction of human beliefs into the […]
• Humans & Gods: Gilgamesh, Genesis, The Iliad, Nicomachean Ethics The narrative in the book of Genesis is constructed to depict that God created the society of people. It is seen in multiple appeals of the characters in the legend to gods.
• Gilgamesh, The Iliad and Aeneid: On the Similarities in the Works In contrast, the villains are made to capture the fears, and challenges of the societies represented by these epics. The import of these three epics lies in their historicism.
• ”The Iliad of Homer” by Homer: A Reflection of the Culture and Moral Principles That Existed at That Time Themes of Self-Sacrifice and Love in the Iliad Easily seen is the strength that is given from Zeus to mortals either in those into whose hands he gives the surpassing glory, or those he diminishes […]
• Characters of Homer’s The Iliad and Virgil’s Aeneid: A Model of Leadership Anthemed in the Literature of the Ancient World Odysseus along with Aeneas is known all over the world as one of the most outstanding models of leadership anthemed in the literature of the ancient world.
• Comparing Stylistic Features of “Epic of Gilgamesh”, “The Iliad”, “One Thousand and One Nights” In the “Epic of Gilgamesh” Ninsun serves as a mother figure; she is devoted to her son Gilgamesh and is ready to help him in his endeavors.
• Epic Poems: “The Epic of Gilgamesh”, “The Iliad”, and “One Thousand and One Nights” On the other hand, in the epic poem “The Iliad” the author is concerned with the heroic exploits of Achilles in the contexts of death and immortality.
• Ancient Greece Heroes: The Iliad and The Knight’s Tale It is rather tempting to see the later work as a reflection of the ancient Greek story, but Chaucer’s work is rather a re-evaluation of the old story.
• Traditional Epic Hero in Homer’s “The Iliad” The ideals of a given culture are determined by the social cultural conditions of a society or can also be greatly influenced by the views and the perceptions of the author.
• Homer’s “The Iliad” History and Content The review will take the form of an in depth analysis of part one of the whole poem before that, most imperatively, presents the plot of the poem including shading light into the flow.
• Achilles Is One of the Major Characters in “The Iliad” In the texts of the Iliad Achilles is depicted as a great warrior possessing all the marks of a grand fighter by proving his might it the Achaean army. Patroclus death puts Achilles in a […]
• Narrating the Poetry: “The Iliad” by Homer The poem seeks to illustrate on the battles between Agamemnon the King and the warriors Achilles. The Iliad story begins at almost the end of the Trojan War during besiege by the Greeks.
• The Sympathetic Character of Achilles in an Ancient Greek Epic Poem “The Iliad” by Homer
• The Presentation of Inequality of Women in “The Iliad” by Homer
• The Struggles of Diomedes and Pylaimenes in “The Iliad” and “The Odyssey”
• An Analysis of the Importance of the Rituals of Mourning to the Greeks in “The Iliad” by Homer
• The Metamorphosis of Achilles in Homer’s “The Iliad”
• The Gods and Their Role in Homer’s “The Iliad”
• Warfare Ideology in “The Aeneid” by Virgil and “The Iliad” by Homer
• The Tragedies of Patroclus and Hektor in Homer’s “The Iliad”
• The Themes of War and Rage in the Epic Poem “The Iliad” by Homer
• The World-Views of “The Iliad” and “The Odyssey”
• An Analysis of the Heroic Code of Homeric Heroes Hector and Achilles in “The Iliad”
• The Views of Society Regarding “The Odyssey” and “The Iliad”
• The Role of Women in Homer’s “The Odyssey” and “The Iliad”
• The Paradox of Heroism in Homer’s “The Iliad”
• The Relationship Between the Gods and Mortals as Portrayed in “The Iliad”
• Use of Epithets in Homer’s “The Iliad” and “The Odyssey”
• Understanding Similar Concepts in Literary Work: “Beowulf” vs. “The Iliad”
• Manifestation of Free Will in “The Iliad” by Homer
• An Analysis of the Passage About the Making of Achilleus’ Shield in “The Iliad” by Homer
• The Theme of Family in Books 6 and 24 in Homer’s “The Iliad”
• War in Homer’s “The Iliad” and Tim O’Brien’s “The Things They Carried”
• The Similarities and Differences Between “The Iliad” and “The Odyssey”
• A Character Analysis of Agamemnon in “The Iliad”
• Comparison of the Women in “The Iliad” and “The Thousand and One Nights”
• The Types of Love Homer Describes in “The Iliad”
• The Moral Lessons Taught in “The Iliad”
• The Image of the Best Warrior in the Eyes of an Ancient Greek in “The Iliad”
• Character Analysis of Andromache in “The Iliad”
• The Interpretation and Adaptation of “The Bible” and “The Iliad”
• Violence and How It Is Glorified in “The Iliad” by Homer
• The Trojan War Myth: Fact and Fiction of Homer’s “The Iliad”
• The Transformation of the Character of Achilles in Homer’s “The Iliad”
• The Understanding and Concern of the Character of Telemonian Aias in Homer’s “The Iliad”
• Tragic Heroes of “The Iliad” and “Oedipus Rex”
• The Similarities Between “Troy” by Wolfgang Petersen and Homer’s “The Iliad”
• Theme of Revenge in “The Godfather” and “The Iliad”
• The Portrayal of Hector as a Mere Man in “The Iliad” by Homer
• The Qualities of Homeric Hero in “The Iliad” by Homer
• The Use of Imagery, Dialogue, and Similes in “The Iliad” by Homer
• The Tragedy of the Trojans in Homer’s “The Iliad”
• Various Perspectives on War in Homer’s “The Iliad”
• The Main Topic of Vengeance, Fairness and Fate as Described in “The Iliad” by Homer
• Honour as an Important Theme in Homer’s “The Iliad”
• The Myth of the Matador and Theseus and “The Iliad” by Homer
• A Comparison of Achilles’ and Hector’s Honor and Pride in “The Iliad”
• How Does “The Iliad” Reveal the Issues of Gods and Fate?
• How Do Homer’s “The Iliad” War Tactics” Differ From War Tactics Today?
• Is Achilles Interested in Wealth in “The Iliad”?
• How Does “The Iliad” Portray the Ideal Epic World in Terms of Ancient Greek Values?
• What Can “The Iliad” Teach Us About Humanity in War?
• What Does the Image of a Predator Mean in “The Iliad”?
• What Makes Achilleus and Hektor the Heroes of “The Iliad”?
• Why Do Priam and Achilles Cry in “The Iliad”?
• Whether the Olympians Prefer War or Peace in “The Iliad” and the “The Odyssey”?
• Who Killed Paris in “The Iliad”?
• Which Warrior Best Encompasses the Idea of Kleos in “The Iliad”?
• Who Was the Real Hero in Homer’s “The Iliad”?
• Why Does “The Iliad” Conclude With the Funeral of Hektor?
• Where Does Achilles Strike Hector in “The Iliad”?
• Why Was Arête (‘Virtue’) an Important Theme in Homer’s “The Iliad”?
• How Does Homer Depict War in “The Iliad”?
• Why Are the Gods in Bliss When the Men Go to War in Homer’s “The Iliad”?
• How Does “The Iliad” Comment on Human Suffering?
• What Is the Human and Divine Relationship in Homer’s “The Iliad” and “Herodotus”?
• What Caused the Trojan War in “The Iliad”?
• What Are the Roles Women Play in “The Iliad”?
• How Did Ancient People Perceive Death in “The Iliad”?
• What Is the Purpose of Theomachy in “The Iliad”?
• How Is the Truce Broken in “The Iliad”?
• What Language Was “The Iliad” Written in?
• What Does “The Iliad” Suggest to Be the Nature of the Relations Between City-States in Homer’s Time?
• How Many Different Versions of “The Iliad” Exist?
• Does Achilles Demonstrate Sight Blindness in “The Iliad”?
• How Ethical Are the Gods in “The Iliad”?
• What Does Achilles Ask His Mother Thetis to Do in “The Iliad”?
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IvyPanda . "108 Iliad Essay Topic Ideas & Examples." February 25, 2024. https://ivypanda.com/essays/topic/iliad-essay-topics/.