Violence In The Trojan War Essay

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“In this world’s broad field of battle; In this bivouac of life; Be not like dumb driven cattle; Be a hero in the strife!” From Psalm of Life by Longfellow. Violence. When people hear this word, most think of the physical kind; murder, beating, the like. Yet there are so many more kinds of violence in the world, kinds people never consider in everyday life. Yet these are usually the most hurtful kinds, the kinds that make the greatest imprint on humanity’s life. The kind that are the cause of some of the greatest wars in history. This essay will detail three kinds of violence that are found in the Troy Tale. The first and most noticeable kind is physical violence. “He dared the deed, Slaying his child to help a war.” Pg. 189, Edith Hamilton’s Mythology. This, of course, is referencing the sacrifice of Iphigenia, who was killed by her father to get favorable winds for sailing for Troy. Agamemnon killed her with very little persuasion from his fellow soldiers. To be able to go and kill and be killed was highly valued in those times, and they would find almost any excuse to go to war. Even the…show more content…
“Paris who coming; Entered a friend’s kind dwelling, Shamed the hand there that gave him food, Stealing away a women.” Pg. 188, Edith Hamilton’s Mythology. Kidnapping, a type of political violence, is what fueled the war in the first place. Paris, a prince of Troy, stole Helen, the most beautiful girl in the world, and in retaliation her husband (and all of Greece with him) went to Troy and fought for ten years to get back one girl. In retrospect, it seems a silly thing, to go to war and kill thousands to get back one women who may or may not even want to go back. Yet what would America do, if one of the President’s daughters was taken by a country we despise? Even if they were not in any danger of being harmed, many would agree that we would be at war in a

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