1. In Bk. 19 we see the "reconciliation" of Agamemnon and Achilles. How do they manage this? How much reponsibility for the quarrel and its consequences does each of them accept? How much do they attempt to off-load elsewhere?
2. What is the purpose of the battle between Achilles and the river? How does this encounter affect our view of Achilles' battle fury?
3. Until Bk. 22, Hector is the bravest and the mightiest of the Trojan warriors. How does he react when he is confronted with Achilles? Why doesn't he flee into the city? How would you describe Achilles on his rampage? At this point, is he merely human, or something more?
4. In the beginning of Bk. 23, Achilles is visited in his sleep by the ghost of Patroclus. What is the problem this ghost has? What is the cause of this problem?
5. Why does Achilles treat Hector's corpse the way he does? What impact, if any, does this behavior have on your picture of Achilles?
6. In Book 23 we see Achilles functioning as a gracious host when he holds funeral games for Patroclus. In Book 24 he agrees to return Hector's body to Priam. How would you account for the different view we get of Achilles in these books? Has he changed? Has he finally managed, as Ajax urges him in 9.781, to put some human kindness in his heart?