Heroic choices in Archaic and Classical Greek literature

The aim of this work is to offer a comprehensive overview of heroism and mortality in Archaic and Classical Greek Literature. Through close intertextual readings of epic, lyric and tragic poetry as well as of several Platonic dialogues, this thesis examines aspects of the hero's journey towards death in the context of genre, performance and characterization.; The first chapter investigates the function of makarismos in the Odyssey focusing on Odysseus' makarismos of Achilles in Od.11; their encounter, I argue, sets up a comparison between their heroic profiles and the different fates of the warrior they represent in the epic tradition. Odysseus' katabasis is interpreted as a vital part of his pursuit of personal fulfillment; furthermore, the poetic use of katabasis in Homer and Bacchylides and the poetic personae of Heracles in Bacchyl.5 and Od.11 and Meleager in Bacchyl.5 and Il.9 serve as basis for my analysis of the evolution of heroic models from epic to lyric poetry in the second chapter. In this chapter Achilles, the personification of the model warrior, is viewed as a medium of expression to the multi-faceted ordeals in the pursuit of kleos. Achilles' peculiarity as an epic character, I suggest, consists of his combination of heroic perfection and foreknowledge of death, elements that govern his literary characterization and mythical background in the Iliad.; The third chapter elaborates on Achilles' characterization in Plato; in the Republic, Hippias Minor, Crito and the Symposium , Plato approaches Achilles as a mythological figure whose behavior is open to discussion, praise and criticism. Plato treats important aspects of the Achilles myth and compares him to Odysseus, the model of cunning intelligence, and to Alcestis, the embodiment of self-sacrifice out of eros in women.; Following an analysis of the representation of the relationship between Achilles and Patroclus in the Iliad and Plato's Symposium, I proceed to a reading of Euripides' Alcestis in the fourth chapter with special emphasis on the different versions of the myth of Alcestis, the characters of Alcestis and Admetus as well as the inversion of the heroic model occurring in the play.