The Iliad · Chapter
Book XXIII: The Funeral of Patroclus explained
Achilles and the Myrmidons mourn Patroclus, build his funeral pyre, and offer sacrifices including twelve Trojan youths.
What happens
Achilles and the Myrmidons mourn Patroclus, build his funeral pyre, and offer sacrifices including twelve Trojan youths. Patroclus's ghost appears to Achilles in a dream, urging him to hasten the burial. The pyre is lit with the help of the winds Boreas and Zephyr. Achilles presides over funeral games, awarding prizes for chariot racing, boxing, wrestling, and other contests.
Themes in this chapter
Grief and Loss
Achilles' profound mourning for Patroclus drives the chapter, from the funeral rites to the games held in his honor.
Heroism and Mortality
The funeral games celebrate heroic prowess while underscoring the inevitability of death, as even the greatest warriors must be honored in death.
Wrath and Its Consequences
Achilles' wrath, though partially abated, still manifests in his brutal sacrifice of Trojan youths and his treatment of Hector's body.
Characters to notice
- Achilles
Leads the mourning for Patroclus, performs sacrifices, and presides over the funeral games.
- Patroclus
Appears as a ghost to Achilles, pleading for a proper burial so he can enter Hades.
- Agamemnon
Offers Achilles a bath and later dismisses the troops at Achilles' request.
- Nestor
Receives a prize from Achilles and recounts his youthful athletic prowess.
- Antilochus
Competes in the chariot race and receives a prize from Achilles.
- Diomedes
Encourages Euryalus in the boxing match and competes in the chariot race.
Key passages
“Hail thou, Patroclus, even amid the shades! For now shall I perform what once I vowed: That, dragging Hector hither, I will give His corse to dogs, and they shall rend his flesh; And at thy funeral pile there shall be slain Twelve noble Trojan youths, to avenge thy death.”
Achilles addresses the dead Patroclus, promising to fulfill his vow by leaving Hector's body to dogs and killing twelve Trojan youths at the pyre.
Achilles' vow combines vengeance and ritual sacrifice, highlighting his enduring wrath.
“The soul of his poor friend Patroclus came, Like him in all things—stature, beautiful eyes, And voice, and garments which he wore in life. Beside his head the vision stood and spake:— 'Achilles, sleepest thou, forgetting me? Never of me unmindful in my life, Thou dost neglect me dead. O, bury me Quickly, and give me entrance through the gates Of Hades; for the souls, the forms of those Who live no more, repulse me...'”
Patroclus's ghost appears to Achilles in a dream, identical in appearance to when he was alive, and pleads for a swift burial so he can enter the underworld.
This visitation emphasizes the importance of proper burial rites in Greek belief and Achilles' lingering guilt.
“Receive thou this, O ancient man, to keep In memory of the funeral honors paid Patroclus, whom thou never more shalt see Among the Greeks. I give this prize, which thou Hast not contended for, since thou wilt wield No more the cestus, nor wilt wrestle more, Nor hurl the javelin at the mark, nor join The foot-race; age lies heavy on thy limbs.”
Achilles gives Nestor a prize as a token of remembrance for Patroclus, acknowledging that Nestor's age prevents him from competing.
Achilles shows respect for Nestor's wisdom and age, contrasting with his earlier harshness.