Warfare has been slowly improving since its primitive beginnings as hunting parties and raids to the large scale tactical invasions of modern warfare. This transition into civilized warfare, the crossing of Turney-High’s military horizon, coincides with modernity for many societies. Improvements in warfare have often allowed for the development of new technologies that propel societies from primitivity to modernity. Warfare has become a major factor in determining a society’s advancement, making it an essential part of understanding a culture. In Homer’s Iliad, battles resemble modern warfare as soldiers fight in organized groups and in close proximity, yet they still rely heavily on arrows, along with primitive elements of ritualization and …show more content…
Many elements of the Iliad closely reflected the ritualization and individual duels of primitive battle. Heroes would look across the battlefield for a single opponent that was of the same social status. In the Battle of Troy, the great Trojan warrior Alexandrus steps forward with “...his bow, and his sword, / and he brandished two spears shod with bronze as a challenge to the bravest of the Achaeans / to meet him in single fight” (Iliad, 3, 22, 7-9). This grandeur display of heroism was a ritual for the warrior, who dueled only through a fair fight between worthy opponents. The duels were done by a small group of heroes that would push forward the narrative, with the mass of warriors often forced to the background of the plot. While the leading heroes dueled, other warriors relied heavily on the arrow in battle just as many primitive tribes. The arrow allowed Greek warriors to both injure enemies from afar while warriors on the frontlines attacked. These similarities between primitive warfare and Homer’s epic show they are closely connected in style. Hans Van Wees in Greece & Rome, states that “...the [primitive] warriors of New Guinea...sounded like extracts from the Iliad” (8). However, Homer’s epic also includes new elements of battle unlike any studied in a tribe. The Battle of Troy reflects a primitive battle and modern day tactics. This leaves the Ancient Greek …show more content…
There is some debate about how the battles depicted in Iliad were actually fought, but many historians can agree on its depictions of elements of civilized war. The arrows that the Achaean and Trojan armies relied on, were used simultaneously with charging warriors. These close encounters were previously unseen in other battles, where often the fighting would be slow without many casualties. In this new form of open formation battle, “...every single man in the army would have his chance to meet the enemy face to face” (Van Wees 7). Homer’s description show, “...mass scenes featuring countless arrows flying, [and] men ‘rushing forward in throngs’” (Van Wees 6). The battles became a “constant flux” of men dueling and charging (Van Wees 7). The Achaeans and Trojans used mass combat in open formation, something much closer to modern warfare than the small ritual battles fought in the early stages of war. The Achaeans war tactics included a plan to, “...swarm onto the plain to charge the Trojans and destroy them” (Iliad, 2, 21, 267). The promise of destruction would only be achieved through instruments beyond the sword, spear, arrow, and club studied in primitive battles. Modern Greek warriors began to use chariots that would act as transportation to the battles until warriors would easily jump off and fight