In the epics of Homer and Virgil, the meaning and politics of honor play an important role in the decisions and actions of the characters. Honor involves a set of arbitrary rules, so what is it and why did people need to maintain these rules? In these poems, honor is linked to a hero's possessions, identity, and actions. All three are important, but it is the deeds that seem to matter most and without performing great deeds, honor cannot be achieved by the other two means. Honor is often represented by possessions, and in a way, possessions are honor itself. Briseis, the maiden who was taken from Achilleus, is an honor because her movement from one possessor to another is always accompanied by an equal movement of honor. One would think that Agamemnon losing his prize to a god, an already greater being, would not affect his honor, since his strength relative to other men has not changed. This is true if honor is based solely on what one knows of a man's strengths and weaknesses, then the maiden herself must be a source of honor. The Greek army has been camped on the shores of Troy for a very long time, that's why they do it. They don't have many supplies and far fewer tokens to show their honor, so honor itself runs out as well. When Agamemnon says he will need something to replace the prize he lost at the beginning of the poem, Achilles responds, "...how will the kind-hearted Achaeans give you a prize now?" As far as I know, there aren't many things lying around. (Homer, Iliad 1.124) Men must continually increase their honor, and without a great victory they are not able to do so, so there is tension, and the tension is even worse when Agamemnon takes what Achilleus thinks to be more than his fair share. ...... middle of paper ...... photos we can get at least a partial picture of how ancient civilizations viewed the concept of honor and come to some conclusions about what it is and how it works. Sometimes it looks like a commodity that is traded, and it is certainly attached to material goods. A person's birth and destiny, and more importantly, how he acts and what he does with his destiny, adds to his honor, but it is very important to be courageous and show courage. excellence through great deeds, especially military victory. Homer's Iliad. Trans. Richard Lattimore. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1961.—. Homer's Odyssey. Trans. Richard Lattimore. New York: HarperCollins, 2007. Virgil. The Aeneid. Trans. David West. London: Penguin, 2003. Lattimore, Richard. Introduction. Homer's Iliad. New York: University of Chicago Press. 1961. 7–55.