Day 35: A Dagger Not Quite Drawn

Lines 182-92
ὡς ἔμ' ἀφαιρεῖται Χρυσηίδα Φοῖβος Ἀπόλλων,
τὴν μὲν ἐγὼ σὺν νηί τ' ἐμῇ καὶ ἐμοῖς ἑτάροισιν
πεύψω, ἐγὼ δέ κ' ἄγω Βρισηίδα καλλιπάρῃον
αὐτὸς ἰὼν κλισίηνδε, τὸ σὸν γέρας, ὄφρ' ἐὺ εἴδῃς
ὅσον φέρτερος εἰμι σέθεν, στυγέῃ δὲ καὶ ἄλλος
ἶσον ἐμοὶ φάσθαι καὶ ὁμοιωθήμεναι ἄντην."
ὧς φάτο· Πηλεΐωνι ὤχος γένετ, ἐν δέ οἱ ἦτορ
στήθεσσιν λασίοισι διάνδιχα μερμήριξεν,
ἢ ὅ γε φάσγανον ὀξὺ ἐρυσσάμενος παρὰ μηροῦ
τοὺς μὲν ἀναστήσειεν, ὁ δ' Ἀτρεΐδην ἐναρίζοι,
ἦε χόλον παύσειεν ἐρητύσειέ τε θυμόν.

Thus Phoebus Apollo deprives me of Chryseis,
So I will send her along with my ship and my comrades,
But I myself perhaps wil go to your tent and lead off your prize,
The fair cheeked Briseis, so that you should know
How much mightier I am than you, and then another
May loathe to say he is my equal and before my face
To liken himself to me."
Thus he finished; grief rose up in Peleus' son, and his heart,
In a rough and hairy chest, pondered two divergent paths:
Whether to draw the sharp sword from his thigh,
Rousing them to their feet, and slay the son of Atreus,
Or to check his anger and keep back his desire?



Marvelous scene. Achilles is about to draw his sword, but then comes the part that everyone seems to forget about when they comment on Achilles' character; he ponders whether or not this a good idea. And then we see what happens next...