I thought that the in depth analysis of Thetis and her power and role in the Iliad was extremely interesting. I had never really questioned Zeus having listened to her, though she is not a very powerful goddess, but it is all much clearer in his motivation to do so. What I thought was most striking was the details on Thetis potential to give birth to a son more powerful than its father, which could be the strongest god in existence. I wonder if I was Zeus or Poseidon if I would be able to not feud over a women I loved because she could be the destruction of everything. .... intersting stuff!
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We'll talk about this more in class on Thursday, but the "back story" of Thetis's role in establishing Zeus's reign sheds a lot of light on the behavior of the gods in the Iliad. There are numerous references in the poem to challenges to Zeus's authority, just as there are to Agamemnon's authority throughout the Iliad. It is worth thinking about what Thetis had to give up to ensure the stability of Zeus's rule, and what she gets in return. Crafty bargains are a feature of Greek poetry (remember how Homer questions whether Glaukos lost his wits when he traded armor with Diomedes, because in monetary terms he traded gold for bronze), and the gods are some of the craftiest bargainers. Here is a question to keep in mind as you read the last half of the Iliad--Did Thetis manage to make Zeus give her recompense, or did Zeus succeed in tricking Thetis and giving her little or nothing in return? Your assessment of the character and behavior of Achilles at the end of the poem will in part determine how you answer this question.
I thought that that analysis was really interesting as well. And Even though I had known about the Oracle of Thetis' son being more powerful than his father, I guess I never went into as much thought as how much it could reshape/upest the whole 'kingship of heaven myth' that is always so prevent in indo-european myth.
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