Throughout the Iliad it could be argued forcefully that it glorifies or celebrates war. Characters are presented as noble or incompetent based on their bravery or success in battle. For example, when Paris expresses his disgust for the battle, he is rejected by his family and his lover. In volume 6, Hector goes to Paris and tells him “I don’t understand you, Paris. No one could look down on your work in combat. You are a strong fighter, but you slack off. You don't have the will. It breaks my heart to hear what the Trojans say about you. (Homer, 127) Achilles can be seen as the opposite of this and is in turn rewarded with eternal glory by denying him a long and comfortable life with his family at home. The text itself seems to support this claim of judging character based on performance in battle and sometimes applies to the gods of Olympus. The epic appears to praise courageous, war-perpetuating deities such as Athena, while mocking gods who despise battle, using the apprehension of Aphrodite and Artemis to add comic relief. Fighting for Kleos or glory, which is often achieved through glory in battle or through one's own death. To fight in war is to prove one's honor and integrity, while avoiding war is illustrated as being lazy and despicable. Armor in The Iliad is something more than just a set of protective clothing for a soldier. The hero's armor is often described as having an aura or luminous quality. In volume six, Hector removes his helmet to prevent him from frightening his son: "...The resplendent Hector caught his child, who retreated screaming into his nurse's bosom, terrified by the bronze-wrapped face of his father and the horsehair plume. » (Homer, 125-126). When Patroclus wears Achilles' armor to frighten the Trojan... middle of paper ... the innate and ephemeral qualities of human beings and the world they have built, giving way to the idea that mortals should live their lives as honorably as possible, so that their future generations will remember them. The impermanence of the human form and its creations is widely discussed, as neither can survive through time, but their words and deeds can endure through stories. The mere existence of this poem can attest to this idea. Homer depicts war as noble and honorable without ever ignoring the brutal reality of battle. Men die, women and children are forced into a life of servitude and once the great cities fall. Men who serve honorably in the military and fight bravely are often described as heroes and those who act like cowards are chastised both by the characters in the epic and by the language itself used to describe them..