The Tears of Achilles
Warrior, hero, super-male—Achilles, by the protocols of Western culture, should never cry. And yet Homeric epic if full of his tears and those of his companions at Troy. This path-blazing study by Hélène Monsacré shows how later ideals of stoically inexpressive manhood run contrary to the poetic vision presented in the Iliad and Odyssey. The epic protagonists, as larger-than-life figures who transcend gender categories, are precisely the men most likely… Read more