Days before Independence, I continue to reads my Homer text, The Iliad. A classic text, not a plain nor ordinary book. It is a war poem. It tells us conflicts of animal in power; distinction between Kingdom to Kingdom however obliterated by the attachment of love and lust. I must say, I am going deeper into the text. Homer was everywhere in the text, and shaping the whole material to, readers feels the absence of his presence palpably. But, let me tell you this. Why I am telling you the story is simply because there is discrepancy between what you want to do and what you ought to do. You might see morality rather ethical. You might see curses rather gift. You might see nobility to clinch victory impeccably, and casualties remains in hardly justify.
Days before Independence is the moment to rethink our spirit and determination, to free from immaturity; to free from captive mind of despotism and misleading thoughts of individualism. I will come to particular point in another discussion. It is the Hermeneutic Circle as Wilhelm Dilthey suggested. The detail is unknown unless you have a grip on the structure. What does Homer implies to us in latest reading?
Achilles is unstoppable. The wrath of Achilles is terrifying sufficiently to Trojan forces. His friend, Patroclus died in the hand of Hektor. Achilles begins to fight back after long 'sulking' scenes. As Book XXI open, he is driving the Trojans back toward Troy:
"But when they came to the crossing place of the fair-running river of whirling Xanthos, a stream whose father was Zeus the immortal, There Achilleus split them and chased some back over the flat land toward the city, where the Achains themselves had stampeded in terror On the day before, when glorious Hektor was still in his fury. Along this ground they were streaming in flight; but Hera let fall a deep mist before them to stay them. Meanwhile the other half were crowded into the silvery whirls of the deeo-running river and tumbled into it in huge clamour, and the steep-running water sounded, and the banks echoed hugely about them,a s they out-crying Tried to swim this way and that, spun about in the eddies. As before the blast of a fire the locusts escaping into a river swarm in air, and the fire unwearied blazes from a sudden start, and the locusts huddle in water; so before Achilleus the murmuring waters of Xanthos the deep whirling were filled with confusion of men and of horses.
But heavan-descended Achilleus left this spear there on the bank leaning against the tamarisks, and leapt in like some immortal, with only his sword, but his heart was bent on evil actions, and he struck in a circle around him. The shameful sound of their groaning rose as they were struck with sword, and the water was red-dened with blood. As before a huge gaping dolphin the other fishes excaping cram the corners of a deepwater harbour in fear, for he avidly eats up any he can catch; so the Trojans along the course of the terrible river shrank under the bluffs. He, when his hands grew weary with killing, chose out and took twelve young men alive fromt he river to be vengeance for the death of Patroklos, the son of Menoitios. These, bewildered with fear like fawns, he led out of the water and bound their hands behind them with things well cut of leather, with the very belts they themselves wore on their ingirt tunics, and gave them to this companions to lead way to the hollow ships, then himself whirled back, still in a fury to kill men." (XXI, 1-33)
