The Song of Achilles

by

Madeline Miller

Agamemnon Character Analysis

Agamemnon is the king of Mycenae, commander-in-chief of the Greek army, and brother to Menelaus (whose wife, Helen, was stolen by the Trojan prince Paris). Although Menelaus is the one who was wronged, Agamemnon spearheads the war effort; Peleus tells Achilles that, regardless of Helen, Agamemnon likely would have attacked the wealthy Troy. Agamemnon is proud, stubborn, and often cruel: after the goddess Artemis demands a sacrifice, Agamemnon willingly sacrifices his daughter, Iphigenia, which causes Achilles to dislike and distrust him. Achilles and Agamemnon quarrel throughout the war—Agamemnon believes that Achilles is seeking glory for himself, and Achilles refuses to defer to Agamemnon’s authority. This conflict comes to a head after Agamemnon claims a Trojan priest’s daughter as his war spoil and refuses ransom from the girl’s father; the father then asks the gods to unleash a plague on the Greek army. Achilles insists that Agamemnon return the girl, but Agamemnon refuses, demanding that Achilles swear fealty to him instead. When Achilles won’t do so, Agamemnon steals Briseis from Achilles’s camp, intending to assault her, which would ensure his own death at Achilles’s hands. Patroclus warns him about the consequences of his actions to save Briseis, though his dislike for Agamemnon never wavers. Agamemnon’s hot-headedness often gets in the way of his judgment, and his prideful decisions sow distrust among the Greek army and cause thousands of deaths: Achilles refuses to fight for the Greeks until Agamemnon apologizes, but Agamemnon never does so. At the end of the novel, however, even Agamemnon is horrified by Pyrrhus’s monstrous deeds, suggesting that his cruelty has limits that Pyrrhus’s does not.

Agamemnon Quotes in The Song of Achilles

The The Song of Achilles quotes below are all either spoken by Agamemnon or refer to Agamemnon. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
Honor, Pride, and Legacy Theme Icon
).
Chapter 18 Quotes

He leaned forward in his chair. “May I give you some advice? If you are truly his friend, you will help him leave this soft heart behind. He's going to Troy to kill men, not rescue them.” His dark eyes held me like swift-running current. “He is a weapon, a killer. Do not forget it. You can use a spear as a walking stick, but that will not change its nature.”

The words drove breath from me, left me stuttering. “He is not—”

“But he is. The best the gods have ever made. And it is time he knew it, and you did too. If you hear nothing else I say, hear that. I do not say it in malice.”

Related Characters: Patroclus (speaker), Odysseus (speaker), Achilles, Agamemnon, Iphigenia
Related Symbols: Achilles’s Spear
Page Number: 207
Explanation and Analysis:
Chapter 21 Quotes

It turned out that she did know a little Greek. A few words that her father had picked up and taught her when he heard the army was coming. Mercy was one. Yes and please and what do you want? A father, teaching his daughter how to be a slave.

During the days, the camp was nearly empty but for us. We would sit on the beach and halt through sentences with each other. I grew to understand her expressions first, the thoughtful quiet of her eyes, the flickering smiles she would hide behind her hand. We could not talk of much, in those early days, but I did not mind. There was a peace in sitting beside her, the waves rolling companionably over our feet. Almost, it reminded me of my mother, but Briseis' eyes were bright with observation as hers had never been.

Related Characters: Patroclus (speaker), Achilles, Briseis, Agamemnon, Patroclus’s Mother
Page Number: 230
Explanation and Analysis:
Chapter 22 Quotes

“She must have been willing, though. Menelaus' palace is like a fortress. If she had struggled or cried out, someone would have heard. She knew he must come after her, for his honor if nothing else. And that Agamemnon would seize this opportunity and invoke the oath.”

“So you think she did it on purpose? To cause the war?” This shocked me.

“Maybe. She used to be known as the most beautiful woman in our kingdoms. Now they say she's the most beautiful woman in the world." He put on his best singer's falsetto. "A thousand ships have sailed for her.”

[…]

“Maybe she really fell in love with Paris.”

“Maybe she was bored. After ten years shut up in Sparta, I'd want to leave too.”

“Maybe Aphrodite made her.”

“Maybe they'll bring her back with them.”

We considered this.

“I think Agamemnon would attack anyway.”

“I think so too. They never even mention her anymore.”

“Except in speeches to the men.”

Related Characters: Patroclus (speaker), Achilles (speaker), Agamemnon, Menelaus, Helen, Paris, Priam
Page Number: 234-235
Explanation and Analysis:
Chapter 26 Quotes

“Her safety for my honor. Are you happy with your trade?”

“There is no honor in betraying your friends.”

“It is strange,” he says, “that you would speak against betrayal.”

There is more pain in those words, almost, than I can bear. I force myself to think of Briseis. “It was the only way.”

“You chose her,” he says. “Over me.”

"Over your pride."

[…]

“My life is my reputation,” he says. His breath sounds ragged. “It is all I have. I will not live much longer. Memory is all I can hope for.” He swallows, thickly. “You know this. And would you let Agamemnon destroy it? Would you help him take it from me?”

“I would not,” I say. “But I would have the memory be worthy of the man. I would have you be yourself, not some tyrant remembered for his cruelty.”

Related Characters: Patroclus (speaker), Achilles (speaker), Briseis, Agamemnon
Page Number: 295-296
Explanation and Analysis:
Chapter 28 Quotes

It is strange how well she fits there. How easily I touch my lips to her hair, soft and smelling of lavender. She sighs a little, nestles closer. Almost, I can imagine that this is my life, held in the sweet circle of her arms. I would marry her, and we would have a child.

Perhaps if I had never known Achilles.

[…]

She draws down the blanket, releasing me into the air. She cups my face in her hands. “Be careful tomorrow,” she says. “Best of men. Best of the Myrmidons.”

Related Characters: Patroclus (speaker), Briseis (speaker), Achilles, Thetis, Agamemnon
Page Number: 314
Explanation and Analysis:
Chapter 30 Quotes

The thought of Troy's fall pierces me with vicious pleasure. They deserve to lose their city. It is their fault, all of it. We have lost ten years, and so many men, and Achilles will die, because of them. No more.

[…]

I will crack their uncrackable city, and capture Helen, the precious gold yolk within. I imagine dragging her out under my arm, dumping her before Menelaus. Done. No more men will have to die for her vanity.

[… ]

I am delirious, fevered with my dream of Helen captive in my arms. The stones are like dark waters that flow ceaselessly over something I have dropped, that I want back. I forget about the god, why I have fallen, why my feet stick in the same crevices I have already climbed. Perhaps this is all I do, I think, demented—climb walls and fall from them.

Related Characters: Patroclus (speaker), Achilles, Agamemnon, Hector, Apollo, Helen, Paris
Page Number: 332-333
Explanation and Analysis:
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Agamemnon Quotes in The Song of Achilles

The The Song of Achilles quotes below are all either spoken by Agamemnon or refer to Agamemnon. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
Honor, Pride, and Legacy Theme Icon
).
Chapter 18 Quotes

He leaned forward in his chair. “May I give you some advice? If you are truly his friend, you will help him leave this soft heart behind. He's going to Troy to kill men, not rescue them.” His dark eyes held me like swift-running current. “He is a weapon, a killer. Do not forget it. You can use a spear as a walking stick, but that will not change its nature.”

The words drove breath from me, left me stuttering. “He is not—”

“But he is. The best the gods have ever made. And it is time he knew it, and you did too. If you hear nothing else I say, hear that. I do not say it in malice.”

Related Characters: Patroclus (speaker), Odysseus (speaker), Achilles, Agamemnon, Iphigenia
Related Symbols: Achilles’s Spear
Page Number: 207
Explanation and Analysis:
Chapter 21 Quotes

It turned out that she did know a little Greek. A few words that her father had picked up and taught her when he heard the army was coming. Mercy was one. Yes and please and what do you want? A father, teaching his daughter how to be a slave.

During the days, the camp was nearly empty but for us. We would sit on the beach and halt through sentences with each other. I grew to understand her expressions first, the thoughtful quiet of her eyes, the flickering smiles she would hide behind her hand. We could not talk of much, in those early days, but I did not mind. There was a peace in sitting beside her, the waves rolling companionably over our feet. Almost, it reminded me of my mother, but Briseis' eyes were bright with observation as hers had never been.

Related Characters: Patroclus (speaker), Achilles, Briseis, Agamemnon, Patroclus’s Mother
Page Number: 230
Explanation and Analysis:
Chapter 22 Quotes

“She must have been willing, though. Menelaus' palace is like a fortress. If she had struggled or cried out, someone would have heard. She knew he must come after her, for his honor if nothing else. And that Agamemnon would seize this opportunity and invoke the oath.”

“So you think she did it on purpose? To cause the war?” This shocked me.

“Maybe. She used to be known as the most beautiful woman in our kingdoms. Now they say she's the most beautiful woman in the world." He put on his best singer's falsetto. "A thousand ships have sailed for her.”

[…]

“Maybe she really fell in love with Paris.”

“Maybe she was bored. After ten years shut up in Sparta, I'd want to leave too.”

“Maybe Aphrodite made her.”

“Maybe they'll bring her back with them.”

We considered this.

“I think Agamemnon would attack anyway.”

“I think so too. They never even mention her anymore.”

“Except in speeches to the men.”

Related Characters: Patroclus (speaker), Achilles (speaker), Agamemnon, Menelaus, Helen, Paris, Priam
Page Number: 234-235
Explanation and Analysis:
Chapter 26 Quotes

“Her safety for my honor. Are you happy with your trade?”

“There is no honor in betraying your friends.”

“It is strange,” he says, “that you would speak against betrayal.”

There is more pain in those words, almost, than I can bear. I force myself to think of Briseis. “It was the only way.”

“You chose her,” he says. “Over me.”

"Over your pride."

[…]

“My life is my reputation,” he says. His breath sounds ragged. “It is all I have. I will not live much longer. Memory is all I can hope for.” He swallows, thickly. “You know this. And would you let Agamemnon destroy it? Would you help him take it from me?”

“I would not,” I say. “But I would have the memory be worthy of the man. I would have you be yourself, not some tyrant remembered for his cruelty.”

Related Characters: Patroclus (speaker), Achilles (speaker), Briseis, Agamemnon
Page Number: 295-296
Explanation and Analysis:
Chapter 28 Quotes

It is strange how well she fits there. How easily I touch my lips to her hair, soft and smelling of lavender. She sighs a little, nestles closer. Almost, I can imagine that this is my life, held in the sweet circle of her arms. I would marry her, and we would have a child.

Perhaps if I had never known Achilles.

[…]

She draws down the blanket, releasing me into the air. She cups my face in her hands. “Be careful tomorrow,” she says. “Best of men. Best of the Myrmidons.”

Related Characters: Patroclus (speaker), Briseis (speaker), Achilles, Thetis, Agamemnon
Page Number: 314
Explanation and Analysis:
Chapter 30 Quotes

The thought of Troy's fall pierces me with vicious pleasure. They deserve to lose their city. It is their fault, all of it. We have lost ten years, and so many men, and Achilles will die, because of them. No more.

[…]

I will crack their uncrackable city, and capture Helen, the precious gold yolk within. I imagine dragging her out under my arm, dumping her before Menelaus. Done. No more men will have to die for her vanity.

[… ]

I am delirious, fevered with my dream of Helen captive in my arms. The stones are like dark waters that flow ceaselessly over something I have dropped, that I want back. I forget about the god, why I have fallen, why my feet stick in the same crevices I have already climbed. Perhaps this is all I do, I think, demented—climb walls and fall from them.

Related Characters: Patroclus (speaker), Achilles, Agamemnon, Hector, Apollo, Helen, Paris
Page Number: 332-333
Explanation and Analysis: