Odysseus and Ajax (Aias)?

Question

I just want to have a bit of background information before I read the book. I hear that these characters are really hard to charactarize in the Iliad (not the odessy) and some actions that say something about their characters would help.

Answer 1

Odysseus is a hero that relies on trickery and deceit to achieve his goals, and Ajax is more of a straightforward strong and brave hero.  These two characters get in a fight over who gets Achilles' armor.  While Ajax seems more deserving of this honor, Odysseus is more charismatic and is able to argue his case more eloquently and thus is awarded the armor.

Answer 2

I agree with the first poster. Odysseus was more of the mind-over-muscle type while Ajax the Greater was more brawns than brains.

Odysseus was clever and wily. He was one of the most trusted counsellors of Agamemnon during the war. He tries to persuade Agamemnon not to steal Briseis from Achilles as this will have severe repercussions (evident in the book). When Achilles would not fight for the Greeks even after Briseis' return and the urging of Odysseus and other Greek heroes, he persuades Patroclus to fight in Achilles' armor so as to give the Greeks morale as they were lacking at that stage when Hector was in a winning streak. This indirectly would benefit the Greeks as Patroclus' death would force Achilles to take vengeance and kill Hector. Without Hector, Troy would inevitably fall since he was Troy's greatest champion. And perhaps his greatest display of cunning was the idea of creating the Trojan Horse (although not included in the Iliad).

Ajax was strong and able in a physical and warriorly sense. He had a one-on-one fights with Hector. At one point when Hector and the Trojans had breached into the Greek Camp, he throws a rock at Hector and almost kills him, however Apollo heals Hec. Also at this point, he holds off the Trojans singlehandedly when they were about to destroy the camp. Ajax was the one who protects the body of Patroclus and safely brought it back to Achilles thus preventing Hector from stealing it. And even after the Iliad, after Achilles' death, Ajax was the one who fend off the Trojans while Odysseus carries the body into his chariot.