Evacuation

I might have been able to accomplish something today if it weren't for the fact that my son's preschool was evacuated. Apparently, there was a rental truck that was parked close by that was suspicious. As of now, the report is that it had stereo equipment in it and may, or may not, have been stolen.

I wrote a response to Paul's comment on the comment section, but there was an error somewhere along the line. So, here's a reconstruction:

Indeed, the Greeks of Homer's time did highly value honor and glory. At the same time, they also knew, in personal terms, what the consequences of war were. But, in the Iliad, Achilles questions whether honor and glory are really sufficient rewards for an early death. He is able to question the system, partly because his mother was a goddess and he has seen his fate and knows he will die young in battle once he starts fighting the Trojans. It is only after his close friend Patroclus is killed in his place (Patroclus even borrows Achilles armor to try and make the Trojans think Achilles, the best of the Greek warriors, has entered the war) that Achilles agrees to fight.

And this last point about Patroclus and Achilles brings up a rather contentious issue. What sort of relationship did the two have? Clearly they had a tender and personal relationship -- to the point where Patroclus sacrifices his life for his frieds. The question that has been asked is, was it a sexual relationship. As one might imagine, scholars are deeply divided on this issue. Perhaps the best book to start with if one wants to investigate the issue is Hubbard's.