The armour
When the Trojans reach the ships, Patroclus begs Achilles to let him wear his armour and lead the Myrmidons. Achilles agrees, but warns him not to pursue the Trojans to the walls. Patroclus drives the Trojans back, kills Sarpedon, and then, against the warning, pushes toward Troy.
Apollo strikes him from behind, dazing him and loosening his armour. Euphorbus wounds him, and Hector finishes him. The death is the result of a chain of decisions: Patroclus’s compassion, Achilles’ permission, and his own refusal to stop.
The grief
The news reaches Achilles in Book XVIII, and his grief is physical and excessive. He rolls in the dust, refuses food, and fills the air with lament. Thetis comes to comfort him, and he announces that he will kill Hector even though his own death will follow.
Patroclus’s death transforms the poem. The quarrel with Agamemnon becomes irrelevant, and the wrath turns into a purpose. The funeral games in Book XXIII and the return of Hector’s body in Book XXIV are the poem’s attempts to deal with the consequences of this loss.
Relations
Other
Backlinks 4
The following entries mention “The Death of Patroclus”.