Introduction: The Iliad is an epic poem studied by many in multiple areas of research. The epic contains many themes such as pride, morality, compassion, war, etc. However, one that contributes to all of these is the role of fate. It is after a long analysis and rereading of the Iliad that the question is asked: “To what extent does fate play a role in the Iliad regarding the outcome of the war and the individual characters?” Thesis Statement: The role of fate in the outcome of the war and individual characters is used to an extreme extent as Zeus holds power over the fate of everyone and everything. Through research showing how Zeus controls all fate, examples of his use of fate manipulation during war, and the characters, we are able to see this argument as true. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an original essay In the Bible it is said several times that God is the one who controls our destiny; who knows what we are meant to do and has plans for us greater than we can expect. He controls our birth and our death. Topic sentence: In the Iliad it is not clearly stated who is in control of destiny, however everything that is considered destiny has been touched or manipulated by the hands of Zeus. Evidence and Citations: According to Homer's conception of destiny, Zeus represents the highest deity of divine power. Compared to the Holy Bible, Zeus and God have the same stature of power. Both have the power of destiny in their hands. “It is Zeus who maintains the balance between life and death in the conflict. It is from him that victory comes” (Duffy p.477). James Duffy, the author of Homer's Conception of Destiny, believes that Zeus would not be called "omnipotent" and "lord of all" if we were to submit to a higher power more powerful than him, so he is the highest power and he controls destiny. In ancient Greek the word "Moira" has multiple meanings. In the Iliad they are translated to mean fate, it is destiny or death. “Aisa” is also another word for fate that is often used in the epic poem. “On one occasion Homer states that the ruin of Troy must be influenced by Aisa.. . for the poet distinctly attributes the destruction of the city (Troy) to Zeus. Since the word "Moira/Aisa" is assigned to Zeus, it is reasonable to believe that he is in control of destiny. Comment: Destiny is distributed to every individual at birth, however, only the gods can change the course of destiny but, ultimately, Zeus is the one who makes the final decisions about destiny. Zeus can choose to disobey destiny and create a new one, but if this happens, he will lose the respect of the other gods. This can be seen through the death of Sarpedon. Sarpedon was his son who fought in the war against Patroclus. He knows that his son is destined to die in this battle and is watching as he is slowly defeated by Patroclus. He considers saving him, but Hera reminds him that the other gods would respect him less if he saved his son. He decides to let fate remain and watches Sarpedon die. However, during all of this, Zeus had the power to save him and he didn't. James Duffy states: "If it were true that Zeus had nothing to do with Sarpedon's fate, it would follow that he would not be able to deal with situations of a family nature." Comment: Now that it is clear that Zeus is in charge of manipulating fate if he wishes, we can see how this plays out in the epic poem and see how much he contributes. Topic Sentence: In the epic, it is fate that the city of Troy will fall in its ninth year. Therefore, Troy's fate has already been set and put into action. In the second book of the Iliad, Zeus gives adAgamemnon a dream that is deciphered that it is time to gather the Achaeans for battle and that it is time to attack Troy. Zeus sets the war in motion by doing what follows the line of destiny. Although Zeus has the power to control destiny, he often decides to let it remain as it should be; protecting him from the other gods. During the beginning of the war, the gods do their part in trying to protect those they favor, such as Aphrodite saving Paris when she was fighting Menelaus in book 3. In book 8 Zeus tells them to stop intervening in the war and let it be . fought by mortals. Evidence and Quotes: By preventing the other gods from intervening, Zeus ensures that they do not interfere with fate. He also explains his power over them, threatening the gods with it. "Hear me... I don't want any god, male or female, to try to keep my word... If I find any of you with a private plan to help the Greeks or the Trojans... then you will know who is supreme in these parts " . This exposes how, even though other gods may play with fate, in the end, it is Zeus who chooses how fate will unfold. Everyone must follow his orders because he is omnipotent. Despite Zeus' requests, Athena and Hera once again attempt to intervene in the war in their chariot. When Zeus sees this, he sends Iris to stop them. Another instance where Zeus plays with fate is when he asks Apollo to cure Hector to keep his promise to Thetis. Zeus had promised Thetis that Achilles would die with honor. Therefore, by giving the Trojans the upper hand by curing Hector, he is manipulating fate. Zeus is also aware of Hector's fate and knows that he will die at the hands of Patroclus after killing Achilles, which is why he manipulates fate in this way. Evidence and quotes: “The impartiality of his judgment found in Homer an image in the gold flakes that Zeus holds in his hand” (Burkert and Raffin). By manipulating fate, he keeps his promise but also fulfills certain destinies. However, his manipulation of destinies and honoring some causes still affect the course of destiny because the Trojans now have the upper hand, whereas if he had not manipulated the fate of the war the Greeks would still have won. Because of his intervention, there is an ambiguity as to what might have happened if he had not manipulated fate. During this period of manipulating fate to cure Hector, Sarpedon is killed by Patroclus. As stated before, he honors the course of fate and watches him die, but then decides to kill Patroclus, thus manipulating fate again. These are moments in which Zeus protected destiny or manipulated it. Comment: Every action has a reaction, when Zeus manipulates fate there are outcomes that could have been that we are unaware of. While we may not see it with the main characters, there are the minor soldiers fighting in the story who are collateral damage and this is also manipulating their fate. Topic Sentence: It is obvious that Zeus has a major role in causing what happens in the war with the simple way he can turn the tables and give one side an advantage over the other. Through the previous examples we can see how it can also affect individual characters. One character that the Iliad particularly examines regarding fate is Achilles. As stated before, destiny is given at birth. “Zeus weaves the thread of man's destiny at his birth.” Jeremiah 1:5 of the Bible also states that destiny is bestowed before birth. “Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, and before you were born I consecrated you” (Holy Bible). Achilles' fate was decided when he was born. In book 1, Thetis calls him “ôkumoros” (Nikolopoulou p.175). The root of the word is "ôkus" which translates to feet.