Achilles

Also known as: Thetis’ son · Family: Greeks · Role: warrior · First appears: Troilus and Cressida · Act I, Scene III

At the start of the war, Achilles’ fame makes him the foremost Greek warrior, but he stays in his tent with Patroclus, mocking the army’s plans. He is at odds with Agamemnon and Ajax, while Hector is named as his enemy; Ulysses and Nestor therefore plan to send Ajax against Hector instead of Achilles. When Hector announces a challenge between the tents and Troy, Achilles refuses to enter the field, leaving Agamemnon and the other Greek commanders to prepare without him.

By Act III, Achilles tells Agamemnon’s forces, “I’ll fight no more ’gainst Troy.” His love for Polyxena, one of Priam’s daughters, is revealed, and Patroclus’s great love for him is said to restrain him from war. Though he has withdrawn from the fighting, Achilles sends Thersites to arrange for the unarmed Hector to visit his tent, and later agrees to meet him in battle while remaining his friend for the night: “Tomorrow do I meet thee, fell as death; Tonight all friends.”

In the final battle, Achilles abandons his planned participation to keep an oath sworn to Hecuba on behalf of Polyxena. When Patroclus is wounded, however, Achilles arms himself, vows vengeance, seeks out Hector, and orders the Myrmidons to kill him. After Hector is disarmed, Achilles kills him, has his body tied to his horse and dragged across the field, and the report is given that Hector has been slain by Achilles.