Avalonian

the poem literally starts with "so this guy we are going to talk about is Not a good person and he brought unimaginable suffering to countless people in a meaningless war" and the people are surprised when the suffering he brought IN A WAR includes rape. because women famously aren't raped in war. i am sorry, i love achilles, he is one of the most interesting characters of ancient literature to me, but it is a very important part of the narrative that he is cruel, ego-driven, rageful and violent, and it's THE THING that makes iliad interesting. like genuinely, if you're not interested in ancient reflections on what the realities of warfare are, what are you even reading it for