On the Heroism of Ancient Greece from the Iliad

First, secular religious culture and secular heroes.

The polytheistic world constructed by Homer's epic established a secular and pluralistic belief principle for the ancient Greeks, which was opposite to the Jewish national religion. The gods of Olympus are very close to secular life. They are no different from ordinary people not only in appearance, but also in temperament, way of thinking and way of action, which is called "similarity between God and man". Russell, a famous western philosopher, pointed out that the god with real religious significance in Greek mythology is fate, while those bustling, cheerful and noisy gods have no religious significance at all. Of course, Russell's religious meaning is based on Christianity and Islam. This just shows that the religious culture of ancient Greece is secular.

Indeed, there was no special sacrificial class in ancient Greece, and its polytheism did not have strict dogma, precepts and sacred etiquette. Therefore, the ancient Greeks were less bound by morality, obligation and authority, and almost everyone could believe at will. Nietzsche's description is more vivid: whoever wants to "look for moral loftiness, sacredness, inanimate emptiness and compassion in Olympus, will be disappointed and turn his head away at once." Nothing here can remind people of asceticism, self-cultivation and obligation. " The Greeks who got rid of religious bondage are real flesh-and-blood free men, and they will not allow their heroes to be dry and rigid moral idols, that is, secular culture will inevitably breed epic heroes with secular characteristics.

First, epic heroes are "dead". In ancient Greek myths and epics, no matter how prominent a hero is, he is a mortal, not an immortal god. In the Iliad (hereinafter referred to as Iraq), Glaucus, a young hero of Troy, sang: "Leaves wither, so do human beings from generation to generation. /Autumn wind blows leaves all over the ground, and spring is coming. /The forest will sprout again and grow new green leaves. /human beings are also born and died from generation to generation. " The existence from birth to death is doomed to the tragedy of life, and it also contains the noble and tragic struggle against the tragic fate.

Second, epic heroes have a more conscious sense of self-salvation. The ancient Greeks in the epic era were in the transition stage from barbarism to civilization, from "comfortable" existence to "self-existence", that is, people's sense of independence gradually awakened. However, due to the limitations of the development of the times, the ancient Greeks did not completely get rid of the original thinking mode in images, and the mysterious nature did not completely transform into a force serving people. Nietzsche explained the origin of Greek mythology from the perspective of psychological needs. He said: "The Greeks knew and felt the horror and horror of survival. In order to survive, they must put the glorious dream of the Olympic people in front of it. " The ancient Greeks really needed God's help, but they never looked forward to God's redemption like slaves: first of all, they didn't think their lives were evil; Secondly, they advocate and believe that they have the ability to save themselves. Prometheus, a famous man, created the myth of human beings with clay containing the seeds of gods, which showed the ancient Greeks' understanding of the equivalence of the relationship between god and man. After people's blind worship of God was lifted, the Greeks were optimistic that self-salvation could be achieved through brave battles on the battlefield, intelligent debates at the venue and competitions in the arena. For example, Ajax's words in Iraq fully reflected the self-help consciousness of the ancient Greeks. He encouraged the soldiers to say, "Take out the courage of men, my friend, and summon up the fierce fighting passion ... We should use fighting to usher in the dawn of self-help, and slackness and procrastination mean death."

Thirdly, infatuation with one's own physical value and concern for the beauty of human nature and strength are another typical feature of Homer's heroes. As we know, there are two kinds of "pan-Greek" activities in Gu Xi 126 La, one of which is the Olympic Games. The ancient Greeks were keen to participate in various sports activities, forging a strong body with strong muscles, symmetry and beautiful lines, and showing their physical beauty and strength beauty in front of everyone. We can take this tendency as a vivid sign that the Greeks are obsessed with physical values, but it also shows that they are eager to pay attention to the beauty of human nature and strength. In Homer's epic, we can see that no matter the gods in the sky or the heroes on the earth, there are all bodybuilding bodies without exception; The author even described Menelius' strong and symmetrical thighs, calves and chiseled ankles in detail. The Trojan hero Aeneas dared not face Achilles, but he was not embarrassed. The main reason is that "every muscle is made of bronze". He is willing to give up. After all, he is moved by the most beautiful bronze body.

Fourth, epic heroes pursue the value of secular life. Homer took pains to repeatedly describe the daily life of heroes, which is an important embodiment. For example, heroes are happy to enjoy rich meat dishes and sweet wine; Longing for a sweet sleep with a woman; They warmly entertain friends or strangers; I like to listen to singers singing heroic deeds, or enjoy the passionate dance of young people; Almighty heroes cry openly when they are sad; In order to safeguard their own interests, they will launch fierce competition, even at the expense of mutual abuse, attack and so on. The details of life itself are insignificant. Compared with fighting wits and fighting bravely on the battlefield, the latter can better highlight the hero's heroism. However, these trivial details of life convey an important message to people, which helps to accurately understand the ancient Greek concept of heroes: epic heroes are not abstract symbols that are sacred and divorced from the world, but secular individuals with all the feelings and desires of normal people.

Second, the individual-oriented "sense of honor" culture and individualistic heroes

Greek culture and Hebrew "guilt-type" culture are opposite and belong to the honor culture. In Homer's time, the ancient Greeks had solved the mystery of the Sphinx and realized that human life was limited, but they were not pessimistic and depressed, but actively used their courage, eloquence and wisdom to win personal honor, thus expanding the width of individual life and increasing the actual and effective value of life. The Greeks regarded personal honor as an innate human right and thought that honor was the meaning of life, so life became the pursuit of honor, and every field of life, including battlefield, venue and stadium, was an arena to win honor. Achilles, hector and so on. Because of their bravery and fearlessness on the battlefield, they enjoy the reputation of the greatest heroes of the Greek Coalition forces and Troy respectively; Odysseus, Nestor and others were eloquent heroes at the meeting; Odysseus is famous for his cleverness, cunning and wisdom.

The cultural character of honor has a profound influence on the life pursuit and survival concept of ancient Greeks, which is reflected in Homer's epic, that is, it has shaped a series.

An individualistic hero whose words and deeds are driven by honor. Achilles is a typical representative of individual heroism. His first "angry" withdrawal from the battlefield was because Agamemnon openly despised and insulted himself at the rally and robbed his female prisoner, which deprived him of the honor he deserved; The second "Anger" returned to the battlefield to avenge his good friend Patroclus. The fundamental reason is that his honor and dignity have been seriously violated. First, the armor bearing its brilliant exploits was taken away by Hecktor; Secondly, and more importantly, Patroclus is the second existence of Achilles. There is evidence from his heartfelt words: after quitting the fighting, he once said to Patroclus, "Let others continue fighting ... I hope all Trojans will die, and none of Algavi will survive. Only you and I will walk out of the battlefield of slaughter-yes/only you and I will break their sacred crown in the Trojan Tower. " Therefore, Achilles returned to the battlefield not for the collective benefit, but to regain the lost honor and personal dignity.

Hecktor, the Trojan general, is often regarded as the reference or foil of Achilles, and is interpreted as a perfect tragic hero: broad-minded, calm and generous, with a high sense of responsibility, and he resolutely chooses to fight, including death, for the collective benefit. However, it is impossible for any individual to be divorced from the spiritual and cultural environment of the era in which he grew up, and so is Hecktor. Under the cultivation of an individual-oriented honor culture, Hecktor, like Achilles, is also an individualistic hero, but in different forms and degrees. The scene of Hecktor's affectionate farewell to his wife on the rostrum deeply touched the readers. However, in his farewell speech, he revealed the same individualistic values as Greek heroes. He clearly knew that Troy would be destroyed, and that his parents and everyone would be doomed. However, what really hurts him is that his wife will become the slave and wealth of the enemy. What he lost was not his wife, but the honor he attached to this woman. In other words, Hecktor can't let go of his personal honor and dignity. At the most critical moment, the life and death of parents and brothers are not considered, let alone Trojans who are not related by blood.

Third, cultural harmony and the hero who pursues harmony.

Burns and Ralph, famous American cultural scholars, once commented on the characteristics of ancient Greek civilization: "Among all the nationalities in the ancient world, the Greeks are the models whose culture can most clearly reflect the western spirit. No country has such a strong passion for freedom, at least for itself, and no country has such a firm belief in the sublimity of human achievements. The Greeks praised man as the greatest creation in the universe. They refused to obey the instructions of priests or tyrants, and even refused to humble themselves before their gods. Their attitude is basically secular and rational; They admire the spirit of free exploration, and make knowledge higher than faith. To a large extent, it is for these reasons that they developed their culture to the highest stage that the ancient world must reach. " The author understands that this passage is also an outline of the spiritual characteristics of the ancient Greeks, which concisely and accurately grasps the dual connotation of the spiritual quality of the Greek nation: (1) advocates rationality and wisdom, and advocates moderation and order. Hamilton pointed out that in the whole ancient world, rational spirit was born and existed only in ancient Greece, and the Greeks were pioneers in advocating rationality. Apollo, the sun god symbolizing light, order and rationality, was widely respected and worshipped in ancient Greece, which can also prove the spiritual connotation of the Greek nation in this respect. (2) Advocating freedom, publicizing individuality, and being passionate and naive. This is the reflection of the freedom and carnival spirit of the ancient Greek Dionysus in the national character. Dionysus, the god of Dionysus, Fruit, Grape and Carnival, is a wonderful portrayal of emotion, pursuit and spirit in the ancient Greek subculture tradition, which embodies the other side of the ancient Greek spirit, namely, enthusiasm, passion, impulsiveness, indulgence, unrestrained and unrestrained. On this point, we can find proof from Greek mythology and the legend of heroes stories. For the ancient Greeks, the world was beautiful and life was happy. They can live freely and even crazily in this world. However, the real greatness of the ancient Greek nation is that she can harmoniously unify the above diametrically opposed spiritual characters and create a harmonious Greek culture. Here in Greece, all contradictory things, such as body and soul, the other side and the present world, ideal and reality, have not become binary opposites, but are harmoniously integrated. One of the fundamental reasons why Homer's epic has been touching human heartstrings for thousands of years is the conflict and coordination between Apollo spirit and Dionysus spirit, which constitutes the richness and harmony of their spiritual structures. In a word, epic heroes present readers with the charm of human sensibility and rationality. For this reason, Marx enthusiastically praised them as "rough children" who were not full of animal breath physically, nor "precocious children" whose vitality and passion were stifled by too heavy and serious thinking, but harmonious "normal children". Achilles is such a "normal child". On the one hand, it is order and rationality, on the other hand, it is disorder and instinctive impulse. Iraq begins with the title: "The anger of Achilles is my theme". "Anger" is a subjective emotion with strong personal color and a disorderly emotional expression under the action of "instinctive impulse" to pursue honor. In Iraq, Homer's greatest performance is Achilles, who is controlled by "anger": passionate, violent, wild and unruly on the battlefield, and so on. He indulged in it without restraint and indulged his instinctive desires, so that he once lost his sober mind. The first "anger" completely forgot the honor and disgrace of the country and the life safety of compatriots; The second "anger" almost made him lose his humanity and turned him into a murderous demon beast. But the heavy and painful cost awakened and inspired his deep rationality. He said, "Forget it, let bygones be bygones!" !

Despite the pain, we must restrain the anger rising in our hearts ... endless hatred is not a desirable behavior. "Achilles realized that in life, everything must be limited, which is exactly the same as Apollo's Oracle of' Don't go too far'. It can be said that Achilles at this time is Apollo on earth. Odysseus' spiritual evolution track is just the opposite of Achilles'. He is good at controlling instinctive impulses and passions, always thinking and planning with reason and wisdom, and often effectively "packaging" his true self to achieve his goals. He is a well-deserved "multi-star". For example, in order to defeat the cyclops, he lied that he was a "nobody"; In order to avenge his family, as a king, he condescended to pretend to be a beggar. Among the heroes portrayed in the epic, Odysseus has the most satisfying ending: his "Trojan horse trick" helped the Greeks finally break Troy; He has a virtuous wife and a brave son; Got the heart of the goddess Calypso mythology myth; While saving my life, I heard the wonderful song of pregnancy. After difficulties and obstacles, I got what I wanted, returned to my hometown after many years, avenged myself, regained the royal power and so on. It can be seen how much the ancient Greeks valued rationality and advocated wisdom! But the Greeks understand that the excessive development of reason will go to the opposite side, and excessive "disguise" may make people lose their id. The epic criticizes Odysseus in good faith through Athena's mouth: "A person must be extremely cunning and cunning to compete with you in all kinds of plots, even the gods." "You are a bold guy, smart and cunning. /Even when I return to my hometown, it's hard to forget/cheat and lie, the tricks I like to play since I was a child. " . After listening to the teachings, the wise Odysseus began his real pursuit of nature: eagerly soaking in seawater to wash away the dirt on his body, kissing the earth enthusiastically and intoxicated, and covering his body with fallen leaves as much as possible. The author thinks that love for the land,

It cannot be simply understood as his yearning for wealth, status and state power. Man is the son of nature, and images such as land, sea and fallen leaves are also a part and symbol of nature. Odysseus eagerly hopes to be integrated with nature, which is the call and return to human nature. Achilles more embodies the original vitality and energy of human life, and finally the awakening of rational spirit improves his heroic character; Odysseus is mainly a model of the supremacy of reason, but his subconscious is still full of attachment to natural perceptual life. Therefore, it seems that these two films are not shaped by epics.

The same heroic image has the same effect on the construction of human spiritual structure: perfect human nature is composed of rational and perceptual life, and the two must develop harmoniously.

Four. abstract

The heroes in Homer's epic, nourished by the secular culture of honor, are free individualistic heroes, and their greatness lies in their success.

Nature, exhaustion and opposing spiritual character are in harmony. This is the idea and expectation of the ancient Greeks for their ideal life state, and it is the ultimate spiritual pursuit, so it has enlightenment significance beyond the nation and the times. It is true that Homer enlightened all mankind.