Before we begin…
I would like to first state that this is my first ever, never-done-before, blog post. Yay! I’ve created this website, not with intention of reaching a wide audience, nor to create a secondary source of income. This is purely a creative exercise. As I work a good deal in the world of literature, I figured that this would be a nice way to keep me accountable with my reading whilst simultaneously challenging my writing. Please enjoy.
ALSO, this post will have a spoiler-free section at the start. I will note when the spoiler review kicks in down the page.
The Song of Achilles By Madeline Miller truly took me for a loop, leaving me with a forlorn pit in my stomach and a hunger for more Greek myths.
SPOILER FREE REVIEW
The Song of Achilles is a first-person limited retelling of a famous greek myth. We follow Patroclus, an exiled prince. Patroclus is brought to Phthia, where he will be raised to manhood. He, of course, meets the best warrior of all the Greeks, or so it is foretold, Achilles. Achilles takes an interest in Patroclus, and soon they strike up a bond unlike any other. Achilles, the son of a Thetis, a cruel goddess of the sea, is encouraged to train with Chiron, a centaur. Achilles and Patroclus will train with Chiron, and soon discover that they have strong feelings for each other. Soon though, manhood truly does call. The Trojan war is afoot. Achilles will have to answer this call, in full knowledge that he will not return. Patroclus cannot and will not be separated from Achilles and joins him. Together they head to war, intent on finding out if fate can be avoided, or if by attempting to avoid it, one seals it forever. This is the story of Gods, love, hubris, grief, and fate.
The beginnings of the book are slower, but as the story goes on, you being to struggle to put it down. There are some spicy scenes. Those scenes have never been so well written. The use of prose in this story is truly amazing. Dialogue blends very well with exposition as well. This book is best read while walking on a treadmill listening to rock n’ roll music. I pictured Patroclus as Robert Pattinson and Achilles as Americas sweetheart, Timothee Chalomet. I pictured Agamemnon as Michael Shannon.
I give this book 9/10 Nook Points. It almost had me crying at the end, a rare affect for a book to have on me.
END OF SPOILER-FREE REVIEW. READ THE BOOK BEFORE READING ON.
Theme
The theme that comes to mind when I finished this book is as follows: When you attempt to avoid fate, you ultimately seal it yourself. Fate rears its ugly head many times throughout this novel. Achilles spends time avoiding his fate. He prolongs a war causing the deaths of thousands. He causes the death of his lover, Patroclus. Yet, he knows that he is the best warrior on the battlefield. fate and prophecy have an interesting way of being so muddled until they come to fruition. Only then is fates message crystal clear and razor sharp.
There are many other themes present in this book. but as I presume to have free will (The Gods would disagree) I will reframe from listing them here. I feel guilty presenting a theme without textual evidence as it is.
Ahh screw it. One other theme is man’s hubris will be disastrous to those around him. This is exacerbated between Achilles and Agamemnon. They quarrel over a woman by the name of Briseis. Both of them, and by extension, most men in this world, view her as a prized possession. Agamemnon takes her from Achilles, spawning his unwillingness to help with the war effort. Achilles is even willing to risk the rape of Briseis in hopes that by allowing this to happen, his killing of Agamemnon will be warranted. Patroclus reveals, “My shame is caustic, searing every nerve. It is like a night-mare; I expect, each moment, to wake with relief. But there is no waking. It is true. He will not help” (Miller 286). Patroclus assures the audience that Achilles will not help save her, just as he will not help those dying in battle. Achilles does this due to his inflated pride. By not bending to the will of Agamemnon and fighting, and by not saving her, he believes he is showcasing his strength. Achilles does not realize that these non-actions will cost him his reputation and the lives of those around him.
LGBTQ+ Novel
The narrative follows Patroclus, Achilles’ sworn companion, and Achilles himself. This may sound familiar as it is the main narrative of The Iliad by Homer. The Song of Achilles Is a modern retelling of the ancient Greek classic. And boy, does Miller deliver. In this rendition, we see Patroclus and Achilles as lovers. This seemed to strike controversy when the book first came out, however in an interview on Millers website, she addresses this stating, “I stole it from Plato! The idea that Patroclus and Achilles were lovers is quite old. Many Greco-Roman authors read their relationship as a romantic one—it was a common and accepted interpretation in the ancient world” (Miller). While this is a nice sentiment for her to add, it is sad to me that one needs to add such an excuse. If Miller wants her male protagonists to kiss then i’m here for it. It is nice to see how well researched she is on the topic. Not to mention her faithfulness to the source material. I highly recommend this book for those interested in engaging with LGBTQ+ literature because it shines a light on humans being imperfect people. Even to this day, we see characters who are more or less symbols of their demographic. An example would be Anna Taggaro, a lesbian character in the CW show One Tree Hill. In this particular example, however niche, the character is first a lesbian and then a person. Her character arch revolves fully around her demographic. While these characters are indeed important and necessary to showcase the lives, trials, and tribulations of those within that community, it is much more relatable and digestible when presented in a way that showcases them as human-first. When a queer character is shown as “human-first” we see their character arch unfold, in this case we have Achilles hubris and dealings with fate amidst war. All at the same time, he is in love with Patroclus. By showing it this way, the audience is predisposed to rooting for Achilles. This is not to say that any LGBTQ+ story should be written in this way. I believe that different narratives call for different approaches. This approach just happened to work very well for its narrative and I applaud Miller for that.
Aristotle’s Five Requirements for Tragedy
Hamartia: The Tragic Flaw
Achilles’ tragic flaw is his avoidance of fate and hubris (funny enough this is its own tragic element). It is prophesied that Achilles will die following the death of Hector, a fearsome Trojan warrior. So to prolong his death, Achilles avoids killing him. Since he can not die before Hector, and he is the only one capable of killing him, he can continue to live as long as he does not kill Hector. However, this is unravelled when Hector puts an end to Patroclus. This sets Achilles off into a frenzy. He loses his will to live and only seeks vengeance. He defies the Gods wishes, even wounding a God to put an end to Hector, thus sealing his fate. He also is plagued by hubris. During the war, Achilles is wronged by King Agamemnon. In response, he refuses to fight with their army until the king comes begging. This results in a stalemate between the two of them resulting in many Trojans and Greeks dying. This also spurs Patroclus to fight in his stead, which leads to his own death. Hubris is a bitch.
Hubris: Pride. Yeah.
Anagnorisis: The Web of Fate
We see this everywhere. Achilles’ mother brings news of two different prophecies. The first prophecy was given before his birth. Achilles will be the greatest warrior among the Greeks. Later it is prophocised that if Achilles goes to war with the Trojans, he will not return. He goes anyway. The best example of this is the prophecy detailing that Achilles will only die after Hector’s death. Since Achilles causes Hector’s death, he seals his own fate in the web. Bummer.
Peripeteia: Plot reversal from good to terrible
While the novel does not start out completely light-hearted, because, you know, Patroclus bludgeons someone’s head in, it is well and good for quite some time after he meets Achilles. Things really begin to go downhill after they are forced to face manhood. Once they receive the responsibility of battle and honor things really begin to go sour. Although one could argue that the novel does not have a completely tragic ending. By the end of the story, Patroclus’ spirit is forced to remain in the overworld which Achilles has transitioned to the underworld. It is only when Thetis, Achilles’ mother (Patroclus’s biggest hater), visits his grave and reunites their spirits that they reach peace in the afterlife.
Nemesis: Cosmic Punishment
Achilles achieves nemesis, the punisher of his hubris, with an arrow shot by Paris, a warrior of Troy. The arrow is touched by Apollo, and as it flies, Achilles turns into it and dies smiling. This follows his sickening revenge-filled rampage.
Final Thoughts
I am glad to have read this book. I feel as though someday I will return to it with a smile. I also feel inspired to read up on the classics a bit more. As my book list is quite dense, I know that this will take some time. I think that if you are into Greek Myths, representation, spicy scenes, and modern prose, you will love this book. As to the big questions that this book asks, I do not know if fate is avoidable. I cannot begin to answer if I truly have free will or if I am simply a puzzle piece in the world’s jigsaw. What I do know is that I am happy to be alive, even when life is hard. If I can find joy in the mundane, then it does not matter if my fate is sealed. That is, until a God lines an arrow up with my chest. Now it is time to return to the dreadful world of Book-Tok and appease my friend by reading more of Throne of Glass.
