The Song of Achilles

by

Madeline Miller

Patroclus’s Mother Character Analysis

Patroclus’s mother is King Menoitius’s wife; she’s implied to be intellectually disabled. Menoitius married her when she was only 14 due to her large dowry. But after Patroclus is born, she has little influence over his upbringing and sometimes doesn’t even recognize him. Menoitius dislikes both Patroclus and his mother for their weakness; when he tries to marry a nine-year-old Patroclus off to the beautiful Helen, he’s really trying to live vicariously through his son. Patroclus’s mother enjoys the ocean and music—her dowry included a lyre, which Menoitius later sends to Phthia along with Patroclus, and which later belongs to Achilles.

Patroclus’s Mother Quotes in The Song of Achilles

The The Song of Achilles quotes below are all either spoken by Patroclus’s Mother or refer to Patroclus’s Mother. 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 3 Quotes

My father had spent his life scrabbling to keep his kingdom, and would not risk losing it over such a son as me, when heirs and the wombs that bore them were so easy to come by. So he agreed: I would be exiled, and fostered in another man's kingdom. In exchange for my weight in gold, they would rear me to manhood. I would have no parents, no family name, no inheritance. In our day, death was preferable. But my father was a practical man. My weight in gold was less than the expense of the lavish funeral my death would have demanded.

Related Characters: Patroclus (speaker), King Menoitius, Patroclus’s Mother, Clysonymus
Page Number: 18
Explanation and Analysis:
Chapter 4 Quotes

It was my mother's lyre, the one my father had sent as part of my price.

Achilles plucked a string. The note rose warm and resonant, sweetly pure. My mother had always pulled her chair close to the bards when they came, so close my father would scowl and the servants would whisper. I remembered, suddenly, the dark gleam of her eyes in the firelight as she watched the bard's hands. The look on her face was like thirst.

[…]

His fingers touched the strings, and all my thoughts were displaced. The sound was pure and sweet as water, bright as lemons. It was like no music I had ever heard before. It had warmth as a fire does, a texture and weight like polished ivory. It buoyed and soothed at once.

Related Characters: Patroclus (speaker), Achilles, King Menoitius, Patroclus’s Mother
Related Symbols: The Lyre
Page Number: 33-34
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:
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Patroclus’s Mother Quotes in The Song of Achilles

The The Song of Achilles quotes below are all either spoken by Patroclus’s Mother or refer to Patroclus’s Mother. 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 3 Quotes

My father had spent his life scrabbling to keep his kingdom, and would not risk losing it over such a son as me, when heirs and the wombs that bore them were so easy to come by. So he agreed: I would be exiled, and fostered in another man's kingdom. In exchange for my weight in gold, they would rear me to manhood. I would have no parents, no family name, no inheritance. In our day, death was preferable. But my father was a practical man. My weight in gold was less than the expense of the lavish funeral my death would have demanded.

Related Characters: Patroclus (speaker), King Menoitius, Patroclus’s Mother, Clysonymus
Page Number: 18
Explanation and Analysis:
Chapter 4 Quotes

It was my mother's lyre, the one my father had sent as part of my price.

Achilles plucked a string. The note rose warm and resonant, sweetly pure. My mother had always pulled her chair close to the bards when they came, so close my father would scowl and the servants would whisper. I remembered, suddenly, the dark gleam of her eyes in the firelight as she watched the bard's hands. The look on her face was like thirst.

[…]

His fingers touched the strings, and all my thoughts were displaced. The sound was pure and sweet as water, bright as lemons. It was like no music I had ever heard before. It had warmth as a fire does, a texture and weight like polished ivory. It buoyed and soothed at once.

Related Characters: Patroclus (speaker), Achilles, King Menoitius, Patroclus’s Mother
Related Symbols: The Lyre
Page Number: 33-34
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: