호머의 『일리아드』, 인신공희를 노래하다

Homer’s The Iliad : a Song of War as a Great Human Sacrifice.

This article attempts to make the assumption that Ilias , written by Homeros, an ancient Greek epic, records itself as the narrative of human sacrifice. If so, the victims are Trojan warriors, and its priest is Achilles, including Greek heroes. This article is divided into three parts. The first part is about the changes in Homeric sacrifices. They will be dealt with three theoretical approaches which are the life-redemption theory; the theory of gift to the god; and the communion theory. The Second is about the procedures of Homeric sacrifices and its analysis. The sacrifices are considered to have been organized as controlled violence against fear of uncontrolled wars. Lastly, I will examine many battle scenes as human sacrificial rituals. Achilles’ murder of Trojan warriors is described like a whip killing a sacrifice. Therefore, the death of Trojan warriors parallels with that of animal sacrifices offered to the gods. In conclusion, The Iliad acts as a kind of war ideology that turns murder on the battlefield into killing for the gods.