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/lit/ - Literature

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23147364 No.23147364 [Reply] [Original]

>Achilles' spear was so heavy that only he could wield it
>It was made from ash tree
How would this work just how big can a spear even be before it becomes impractical?

>> No.23147380

>>23147364
I think they didn't reach 3 meters in length but they were quite long. Nevertheless, I believe the idea the poem is trying to convey is that Achilles had superhuman strength, similar to the case of Odysseus and his bow

>> No.23147452

>>23147364
I'm not sure if oak grows in Greece but Ash is shock resistant.

>> No.23147572
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23147572

>>23147380
Odysseus didn’t have superhuman strength nor was that ever implied in text. Rather, his bow was a recurve bow which was advanced technology to the ancients. Your typical guy on the street wouldn’t have access to something like that.

>The description of how Odysseus' famous bow is strung makes clear it's actually a recurve bow, that has to be strung in a completely different way from a straight bow, looks like one when unstrung, and was a new technological development in the time of the Odyssey. All of this explains why the suitors couldn't string it: they had no idea what they were dealing with. As Penelope obviously knew - hence why she came up with that contest.

>> No.23147838

>>23147572
>Odysseus didn’t have superhuman strength nor was that ever implied in text.
Are you baiting right?

"Not one of us had the strength to string that powerful weapon,
all of us fell far short of what it took. But then,
when the bow was coming round to Odysseus’ hands,
we raised a hue and cry —he must not have it,
no matter how he begged!"

>> No.23147845

>>23147838
Only Telemachus
urged him to take it up, and once he got it
in his clutches, long-suffering great Odysseus
strung his bow with ease and shot through all the axes...

>> No.23147867
File: 84 KB, 768x1024, Khaled_Nabi.jpg [View same] [iqdb] [saucenao] [google]
23147867

>>23147364
I think it was a phallic reference

>> No.23147876

>>23147838
>>23147845
He’s saying that the suitors were unfamiliar with the type of bow so they weren’t able to string it. Odysseus knew how to string it hence he did it with ease.

>> No.23147902
File: 212 KB, 1079x1325, 1708023148909361.jpg [View same] [iqdb] [saucenao] [google]
23147902

>>23147876
The poem literally says they can't due to lack of strength.

"What breaks my heart is the fact we fall so short
of great Odysseus’ strength we cannot string his bow."

>> No.23148102

>>23147902
The suitor says that to explain his failing but if you read between the lines it was because the bow was recurve.

https://formfindinglab.wordpress.com/2016/05/04/strain-energy-the-bow-of-odysseus/

>> No.23148148

>>23148102
Yeah, and this would fall in line with Odysseus’ trickery and cunning. I don’t recall him being famed for superhuman strength

>> No.23148158

>>23147572
Is this from TV tropes?

>> No.23148269

>>23148158
Yes and it’s also a decent theory with weight behind it if you read >>23148102

>> No.23148328

>>23147364
Not big, heavy. "Wield" is also open to interpretation. It makes more sense if you think of it like they couldn't fight practicably with a heavier spear for hours, instead of them not being able to lift or use it at all.

>> No.23148426

>>23147364
I always thought of spears as DEX weapons but I guess he had to max STR

>> No.23148675

>>23147364
Sounds like a rip-off of Goliath, but regardless it works because he's a nephillim. Just take a look at another nephillim from a different tradition--Cuchulainn--chucking spears straight through boulders n' whathaveyou.

>> No.23149443

>>23147572
bugman take

>> No.23149460

>>23147364
I wonder how much more powerful Achiles, Ajax, Diomedes, Ulysses and the other heroes were than normal people.

Agamemnon was murdered by treachery and Diomedes was probably heavy outnumbered when he had to retreat when coming back to Argos.
But Ulysses who was able to analyze the situation before coming back to his palace easily dispatched the pretenders with the help of 3 allies.

>> No.23149467

>>23147364
Impractical for is to wield, not very big really. Impractical for Achilles to wield, fuck off huge!

>> No.23150363

>>23148675
>Ripoff of Goliath
>Ancient Greek mythos

You can't be this retarded.

>> No.23150398

>>23147876
Dumb coomers.

>> No.23150496

>>23150363
>you can't be this well-read*
ftfy