Based on the text, I find it undeniable that Achilles' treatment of Hector's body was despicable. But the argument can be deepened by asking the question of Achilles' role in history. Was Achilles really a knight? Or was he simply an assassin with an army? If Achilles can only technically be considered a knight, then can his actions really be measured by something he really isn't? If one assumes that Achilles was a "knight", the argument will go in one direction. But if Achilles is seen as a murderer, all presuppositions of right action are rejected and, therefore, his treatment of Hector's needs finds an alternative marker. To go back ten steps, let's first discuss Achilles' treatment of Hector, before Hector was simply a body to be discarded. In Homer's Iliad, Hector, son of King Priam and heir to the throne of Troy, finds himself facing in battle Achilles, a Greek man made invulnerable to evil (and known for his number of murders), except for one part of his heel that has not been immersed (as it was as a child) in the River Styx. Their double follows the unjust death of Achilles' close friend Patroclus (who had donned Achilles' armor and entered the battle) at the hands of Hector. Although Hector was wrong and Patroclus' death was probably unnecessary, Achilles holds Hector responsible, and so they meet for battle outside the walls of Troy when Achilles comes looking for Hector, and only Hector. these men, before their battle, and its aftermath, are analyzed. These are two men representing very different backgrounds, who come together to fight in a battle that will test the strength of their fighting skills and morality. Hector is the son of a king and acts like one. He expresses not only his fear of fighting Achilles, but also of what will happen if he doesn't fight. “So now, far better for me / To resist Achilles, slay him, return home alive / Or die by his hand in glory before the walls. (Book XXII 124-131)” Hector embodies a sense of nobility that Achilles does not shares. He fights not only for himself, but for the cause of protecting his country and his pride. Achilles fights Hector for revenge. Therefore, Hector enters the confrontation pursuing an obligation, and Achilles enters it hoping to pacify his grief over the loss of Patroclus..