False dream— Zeus, fulfilling his promise to Thetis that he will help the

Trojans, sends a fraudulent dream of hope to Agamemnon. Agamemnon is

absolutely convinced by his dream that he can defeat the Trojans once and for
all in battle the next morning. So, full of false hope, he and his council plan a
mass assault on Troy. But, to test the loyalty of his army before he begins this
mass assault, Agamemnon announces to the soldiers that nine years of war is
more than enough; they should return home. To his great surprise, his troops
react to his suggestion with loud enthusiasm.

Breaking ranks, they run to prepare their ships for the trip home. Only
through the efforts of Odysseus, guided by Athena, is the mad rush to the ships
halted. Then Odysseus convinces the Achaeans that it is far more honorable to
remain and conquer Troy. Wise old Nestor adds his voice to that of Odysseus,
and the army agrees to stay and fight. Offering a sacrifice to Zeus, Agamemnon
orders the army to prepare itself for the attack. He then holds a splendid
review of the whole Achaian army, thus giving Homer an opportunity to
enumerate all of the Achaian contingents and their heroes.

Anthropomorphism

Homer’s epic poem Iliad is one of the most influential literary works in
western literature, and it is a detailed description of the values, norms, and
beliefs of Ancient Greece. The author depicts the Greek pantheon of gods
and their multiple interactions with people. One of the major peculiarities of
Greek gods is their anthropomorphism which is evident in their
appearance, their conduct, and their intentions. The very beginning of the
Trojan War is the result of goddesses’ jealousy, vanity, and vindictiveness.
Gods display a plethora of human traits during the epic, but they are still
divine entities that can control natural and supernatural forces and use this
power to help people who exhibit loyalty.

One of the first features making Greek gods so humane is their appearance.
In the epic poem, the depicted gods are very physical and characterized by
the perfection of human physical traits. Gods are strong, attractive, wise,
and confident, which are positive characteristics. Gods are presented as
glorified and empowered people who have endless riches. Gods’ physical
features are described in detail on diverse occasions, especially when it
comes to interaction between gods and people. Moreover, gods are often
depicted with great attention to objects. For example, when leading the
troops, “the fiery-eyed Athena bore / her awesome shield of storm, ageless,
deathless”. Thus, the poet describes gods as physical beings who, just like
people, use beautiful things to adorn themselves

As mentioned above, gods display very human features of character when

they are on Olympus or with people on Earth. They can be furious, jealous,
kind, generous, vindictive, and just. All these qualities are very humane and
visible in people’s everyday lives. For example, Aphrodite is the goddess of
beauty and love, who can bring a lot of joy to people and gods. However, she
can often be angry and impatient, while one of her most disgraceful features
is her cowardness.

One of the anthropomorphic features of the Ancient Greek gods is the family
ties and relationships between them. The pantheon is an extended family
where Zeus is the head and the ruler and where his siblings and children try
to live in peace, obeying his will. All gods accepted the power of Zeus, which
is displayed in many instances: Zeus went back to his halls, and all the gods
in full assembly rose from their seats at once to meet the Father striding
toward them now.

This distribution of power and responsibilities in the family of gods is

similar to the norms accepted in the human community in Ancient Greece.
During that period, people lived in a patriarchal world where the father had
the utmost power and ensured balance in the family. Other members of the
family could have different responsibilities and degrees of influence on each
other and outsiders. Likewise, gods followed the established rules and Zeus
was the major judge who could solve any conflicts in his divine family. For
example, Zeus’s children had considerable power on the Earth as the
mighty god loved them and let them play the games they wanted. Athena is
the favorite daughter who enjoys more freedom and benefits, but she still
has to obey her father’s will.
Gods are described as creatures supervising people’s actions, guiding them,
and helping or punishing the inhabitants of the Earth. Kings and rulers of
different countries are also subject to the divine power of the Olympic gods.
Agamemnon and King Priam have to obey the will of gods on the battlefield
or when making decisions. God’s help people make these decisions or warn
them about possible negative consequences of some actions. Gods show
their positive and negative attitudes in different ways.

Finally, fate is the major concept showing the parallel between gods and
humans. Although they had considerable freedom and could make diverse
decisions on their own, all gods and people could not escape from what
their destiny was. Even Zeus had to obey some laws as he is responsible for
keeping balance. The primary difference between the gods and people is the
way they accept their fate. While gods may think of changing destinies,
people do not even dare to think about it.

The Iliad, Homer depicts gods as mighty supernatural creatures who live
following the rules people also obey. Moreover, gods are characterized by
all features and traits people tend to possess. They appear as perfect people,
and their physical nature is evident in the poem. Gods live in a community
where a leader ensures that order is preserved, while other deities have to
follow all the rules. Even such trifle aspects as possessions resemble the
way people live because gods tend to be described with different items of
wealth. At that, the way gods have to accept their fate and the fate of all the
creatures in the world makes them similar to humans. Thus, Homer depicts
gods as creatures with human features such as appearance, emotions,
behaviors, and desires. At the same time, these deities live in the
supernatural world, intruding into the world of people when they want to
entertain.