In the Iliad, Homer emphasizes how it is human nature that individuals are susceptible to malicious intentions, regardless of the depth of their moral compass, thus enabling the Iliad as a moral play. The Iliad is also considered a morality play, primarily due to the presence of characters other than the protagonist who demonstrate the embodiment of virtue and corrupt behavior. The play also allows the audience to gain moral guidance. It is the sum of these characteristics that allows the Iliad to be considered a morality play. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why violent video games should not be banned”? Get an original essay A major moral of the Iliad is associated with how the failure of reason and lack of control over human passion prove to be the main cause of discord and tragedy. If man behaves irrationally, irrational situations will happen to him. Nature and the gods combine to reinforce this irrationality, and then tragedy culminates in this question of who and what is responsible for man's destiny. The fundamental belief of the ancient Greeks was that man is under the influence of forces much stronger than himself and is at the same time at the mercy of these forces or more specifically subject to the will of Zeus. There are also questions of personal responsibility and men must make decisions in which they balance their passions and reason. Achilles' primary concern, which manifests itself most frequently in the epic, is anger, and it is the source of much suffering on the part of his fellow warriors. He refuses to join their battle out of pride and they suffer many losses and deaths due to his selfish decision-making. In Achilles' case, it is his vengeance and rage that floods him and ultimately causes him to succumb to his untimely and fateful death. The purpose of the Iliad is to show the importance of man's life in this struggle itself. Achilles is a hero because he emerges from this struggle a better man. He first goes through stages of pride, fury and revenge which are all caused by a state of anxiety. He is stripped of his honor and loses his best friend because of his irrational behavior, but when he finally charges into battle, knowing he is doomed to die and moved by the poignant pleas of Hector's father for When he restores Hector's body, he undergoes a significant transformation. He recognizes that there are forces greater than himself and he comments that men are miserable things and that the gods who have no care themselves have built sorrow into the very pattern of people's lives. It is with this realization that he develops a truly tragic outlook on life and becomes a tragic hero in his own right. This transformation provides the audience with the opportunity to be encouraged to live a righteous life and gain moral guidance, thus making this epic a moral play. The Iliad also contains several characters who accurately portray the virtuous and corrupt traits that appear throughout the epic. Odysseus is an intelligent character, but his actions reflect his faulty moral judgment. He appears to be using deception and dishonorable war tactics to advance the Trojan War. His intelligence and his lack of honor allow him to go further in life, but we know that he will later pay for his actions during his return trip to Ithaca, as shown in the Odyssey. The principle of retribution for one's actions is put into.