The Fall of Patroclus and the Killing Machine. Guest: Professor Emily Wilson. The turning point of the epic occurs when Patroclus enters the battle wearing Achilles' armor to deceive the Trojans and save the Greek ships. Ignoring Achilles' warning to retu

The Fall of Patroclus and the Killing Machine. Guest: Professor Emily Wilson. The turning point of the epic occurs when Patroclus enters the battle wearing Achilles' armor to deceive the Trojans and save the Greek ships. Ignoring Achilles' warning to return quickly, Patroclus is driven by a desire for honor and continues his assault until he is stripped of his armor by Apollo and killed by Hector. This loss transforms Achilles into a terrifying "killing machine" who returns to the field for vengeance. Before re-entering the fray, his mother Thetis secures new magical armor from Hephaestus, the "tech god" of fire who works with robotic assistants. Achilles' subsequent rampage is so brutal that he violates human norms by killing unarmed suppliants and clogging the river Xanthus with so many corpses that the river god himself rises in protest. The narrative reaches its climax as Hector faces Achilles alone outside the city walls. The poem suggests that without proper burial, a spirit or psyche is doomed to wander, as seen when the spirit of Patroclus visits Achilles to plead for his funeral rites. 7
1890