The Hero and Morality

The hero is the greatest soldier humankind has to offer. Through his great actions, he earns honor and glory and reputation among his peers. He is the standard by which others should emulate. He is the ancestor of a god and contains superhuman ability and wisdom. However, he is not infallible. Because the hero gains divine abilities from his godly ancestor, he also gains divine emotion. His rage may raze cities. His pride may ruin an army. There is not a character within The Iliad that exemplifies full goodness. Often, a hero's greatest fault is connected to his greatest strength. 

Achilles is the best warrior among the Greeks, respected by all. In Book 24, Apollo condemns Achilles for his mistreatment of Hektor's body:

...Achilles
within whose breast there are no feelings of justice, nor can
his mind be bent, but his purposes are fierce, like a lion
who when he has given way to his own great strength and his haughty
spirit, goes among the flocks of men, to devour them.
So Achilleus has destroyed pity, and there is not in him
any shame; which does much harm to men but profits him also.
...
But this man, now he has torn the heart of life from great Hektor,
ties him to his horses and drags him around his beloved companion's
tomb; and nothing is gained thereby for his good, or his honor.
Great as he is, let him take care not to make us angry;
for see, he does dishonor to the dumb earth in his fury.

Il., 24.39-54

The death of Patroclus has hardened Achilles' heart. He will not perform mercy on his opponents as he did in the past. He refuses Hektor's family the right to perform a burial. Though he is the greatest soldier of the Greeks, he behaves in unacceptable ways. Even as he falls low, by the end of the epic, he quits his wrath and weeps with King Priam, the father of his enemy, and returns Hektor's body to Troy.

CRITICAL THINKING:

What does this say about Homeric morality? How is it different from modern morality?