The Character of Achilles in Homer's Iliad The story of Homer's Iliad is actually centered on "Achilles' anger, contrary to popular belief. At first viewing or reading the epic poem it seems that its main theme is ultimately the totality and cruelty of war. In reality it is an ancient "Saving Private Ryan" in that it tells us the crude details of the war without any lack of description and of description.However, this final detour and emotion of the real fighting and the Trojan War is not the main focal point of this heroic tale. The real story centers on a fantastic fighter, man and hero: that man is Achilles' military prowess any Achaean rank and has the greatest fighting ability of all warriors, Trojan or Achaean. At the beginning of Homer's tale Achilles is disenfranchised by the rest of his fellow warriors and chooses to retreat to his own Myrmidon ships and refuses. to fight for the Achaean cause against the Trojans. Not only is Achilles plagued and troubled by problems with his fellow soldiers, but he must ultimately face the fact that he has chosen to live a short and glorious life, as opposed to his other option of a long and bland life. Achilles knows that he will eventually have to die in the heat of battle and gain great fame for this fact: if he really existed and the story is true in this sense, then he has certainly established immortal fame in the pages of Homer's tale. Achilles eventually returns to fight on the side of the Achaeans, but not because of something Agamemnon offers him to convince him to return to the fight. Achilles' best friend and essential "soulmate", Patroclus, is killed at the hands of the mighty Hector of Troy. Achilles is therefore shocked by this event and therefore goes to devastate Hector's life to take revenge. He eventually manages to kill many Trojans and finally, after chasing Hector several times around the city of Troy, kills him and desecrates his body by excessively dragging him as a sort of artifice to release his accumulated hatred, anger and fear..