Pandarus' Farewell

In book five of The Iliad, Fagles translates a scene in which the archer Pandarus dies at the hands of both Diomedes and Athena. Alice Oswald also writes about this scene in her poem Memorial, and while both describe the past and death of Aenas, the two writers have very different approaches. For obvious reason Fagles has tried his hardest to keep the original text alive, the form and pace of the poem is similar to what we would expect Homer’s version to be like. Alice on the other hand has peeled away all of the “unimportant” information of the scene. In Memorial Pandarus describes his home life, wife and land with great enthusiasm, “He was a rich man a master bowman, Eleven war cars in his stables brand new beautifully made, With rugs and thoroughbred horses” (Memorial pg.18 Lines 17-9). Alice does not constrain the lengthy and somewhat detailed life of Pandarus, and when he talks of going home in The Iliad she leaves that part in too. “But if I ever get home again and set my eyes on my native land, my wife, and my fine house with the high vaulting roof” (The Iliad IV.237-9). With Alice cutting out most of the other narrative parts of The Iliad, why does she go over the life of this man in such detail? She does it because he will die. This is his memorial, it is here in these words that this man’s life now lies.

The difference between the two versions of Homers The Iliad, is not simply content or structure, but what the two passages are trying to imply. Fagles is keeping the epic piece together with all of its original meaning, this was the day of heros and killers. These warriors were the men of men, well respected for their positions and service as a killer. Alice takes on a different viewpoint, these men are not heroes, but mortal men who entered a conflict which they had no control over and eventually wound up dead. If The Iliad contains the kleos and power of death, Memorial contains the orbituary. Dying in battle is meaningless, simply you stop existing with tens of thousands of other men in an instant, your thoughts are now worth nothing. Fagles keeps the feeling that no matter if you win or lose you will come out on top because you did something good. Oswald knows these men were acting upon selfishness and pride, and because of this gets straight to the point.