Miglino 1

Andrew Miglino

Mr. Flood

English 12 Honors

16 February 2024

The Meaning of Fate

Fate comes for everybody. Someday, each person will reach the end of the road and

whatever accomplishments, failures, or reputation a person received in their lifetime directly

relates to how they are remembered. The literary works “The Iliad” by Homer, “To an Athlete

Dying Young” by A. E. Housman, and “Our Town” by Thorton Wilder all contain this recurring

theme of fate and the reputation an individual leaves when they pass away. It is clear to say

whether a hero falls in battle, a celebrity tragically dies at a young age, or an ordinary towns

person goes peacefully after a long life, fate is one of the most universal topics in literature and

in life as a whole.

In “The Iliad” by Homer, the concept of fate has different meanings throughout many

scenes. In Book 6, after searching for his family in order to inform her of the war’s progress,

Hector finds his wife Andromache and his son Astayanax observing the battle from atop the

city’s walls. Andromache pleads with Hector to bail out of the war and stay with her, however

Hector is devoted to fighting and refuses (Ford 1). Hector says to his wife, “Why so much grief

for me? No man will hurl me down to Death, against my fate” (Homer Although he has respect

for his wife, he has confidence that he will not be killed unless it truly is his fate to die in battle.

He continues,“And fate? No one alive has ever escaped it, neither brave man nor coward, I tell
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you - it’s born with us the day that we are born.” (Homer 75.159-160). His wisdom is expressed

deeply, as he recognizes that his fate, what he is destined to achieve in life, cannot be interfered

by anyone and emphasizes that the fates of all people, including himself, are inevitable and

inescapable.

The discussion of fate in the Iliad is made more complex as a result of the gods’ presence.

Zeus, the king of the gods, is equated with being fate itself by the other gods. According to

James Ford, “As wise Nestor notes, ‘not a man alive can fight the will of Zeus.’ The gods also

see fate as the will of Zeus.” (Ford 13). Nestor, along with the other gods, respects the will of

Zeus, as he is the king of the gods. Whatever Zeus prophecies is destiny, as he has the power to

intervene in mortal affairs as he sees fit.

One example of Zeus’ intervention with the fate of the mortals in order to meet his plan is

in Book 22, the face off between Hector and Achilles. Hector senses “that Zeus has tipped the

scales against him” and flees (Ford 3). The sensation that Hector feels here is his recognizing

that his inevitable fate is approaching very near. Another example of Zeus’ intervention is the

death of Patroclus. Ford continues, “Zeus drives Patroclus on, and only Apollo prevents him

from taking Troy. Hector slays Patroclus, who rightly sees that “deadly fate in league with

Apollo killed me” (440). Obeying Achilles’ orders and staying near the ship could have resulted

in escaping his fate, but Hector kills Patroclus causing Achilles to avenge him on a killing spree

and murder Hector in battle. For his plan to work, Zeus needed Patroclus to die, in order for

Achilles’ rage and for the events to play out the way they did.

Although the majority of fates in the Iliad are in the hands of Zeus, it’s clear that Achilles

has a choice on his own fate. James Ford writes “His mother (the goddess Thetis) has revealed to
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him the possibilities, that “two fates bear me on to the day of death” (265). Either he can stay to

besiege Troy, in which case he will die soon, and his glory will live forever; or he can head

home, to a long life without pride or glory” (Ford 4). The fact that his mother points out the

choices he can make and that he has a choice to begin with means that Achilles is lucky. Many

characters in the Iliad, other pieces of literature, and real life are not aware of the moments in

their lives where a key decision can lead their lives down a different path. This is the meaning of

fate; that as a result of key decisions made at various points in their life, people are destined to

end up at a certain point.

Our Town by Thorton Wilder is another work that demonstrates the theme of fate. This

play indirectly reveals multiple life lessons as a result of fate. In Act 1, the town of Grover’s

Corners, New Hampshire goes about their lives where day to day actions like work, school,

meals, homework, chores, gossip, and choir practice are taking place. These daily routines are

relatively mindless, but with the funeral of Emily Gibbs in Act 3, that perspective shifts

dramatically. According to Daniel S. Burt’s structural analysis of Thorton Wilder’s life and Our

Town, “Act 3, which takes place nine years later, is never named, but the Stage Manager's hint at

the start of the second act, together with the setting—the town graveyard—makes it clear that

death is the subject but conjoined, as the audience will see, with what it means to be alive” (Burt

11). Through death and tragedy the characters will find true meaning in their lives and the ability

to be present and truly live each day to the fullest potential, even in the mindless tasks.

Throughout Act 3, two main characters discuss differing life lessons that are discovered

as a result of fate, with the first character being the Stage Manager. As the narrator, he gives an

introductory monologue to act 3. In this, he observes the dead citizens in the graveyard and says
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“Now there are some things we all know, but we don't take'm out and look at'm very often. We

all know that something is eternal. And it ain't houses and it ain't names, and it ain't earth, and it

ain't even the stars ... everybody knows in their bones that something is eternal, and that

something has to do with human beings” (Wilder 3.87) Only when recognizing the inevitable

fate of human beings, physical bodies ceasing to function and dying, does he recognize the

immortality of their impact on earth. He recognizes that humans are limited, but their souls are

eternal.

Another character that reveals a life lesson due to fate is Emily Gibbs. After she dies, she

is allowed to go back and relive one day of her life, in which she chooses February 11th, 1899,

her twelfth birthday. As she relives this day, she realizes that “no human beings realize life while

they live it” When her father does something as simple as walking through the front door after

being away several days, she goes into her monologue and says “I can't. I can't go on. It goes so

fast. We don't have time to look at one another. . . Oh, earth, you 're too wonderful for anybody

to realize you. . . Do any human beings ever realize life while they live it?- every, every

minute?” (Wilder 3.108). As a result of reliving her birthday, she realizes the fragility, wasted

time, and preciousness to life, and that she didn’t appreciate the human experience enough.

The purpose of Emily Gibbs’ failure to appreciate life is to inspire the audience not to

make the same mistake in their own lives. Arthur H. Ballet writes in his journal “In Our Living

and In Our Dying”, “Death is the fear-agent employed as a catharsis. The audience witnesses the

fall of the smallest of God’s creatures: a young mother who becomes aware of the tragedy of life,

and who finally is ennobled by death to understand how wonderful life is.” By this he means that

another person’s fate is supposed to be shocking and ignite a handful of emotions, but to learn
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and grow from the tragedy and live purposefully. He continues, “Tragedy, in its finest sense,

need not and should not be ‘sad.’ It should rather be elevating, should point the way to a higher

level of understanding of man as a creature revolving in the cosmos” (Ballet 439). His

encouragement to have a more positive outlook on fate is wise and crucial for her well being.

“To an Athlete Dying Young” by A. E. Houseman looks at fate from a perspective

different from “Our Town" and “The Iliad.” In the poem, Houseman talks about a young famous

athlete who dies in the height of his career and describes the “benefits” of such an early death.

He writes “Now you will not swell the rout / Of Lads that wore their honors out, / Runners who

renown outran / And the name died before the man” (Houseman lines 17-20). He points out the

pattern of a celebrity’s career; they grow famous, peak for a period of time, lose fame, and then

usually pass away after they’re long forgotten. The death of a young growing athlete whose

peaking is especially tragic because more people know their name, and they get more attention

and recognition.

Another point he makes regards while the athlete is alive and breaking records. He

continues, “Eyes the shady night has shut / cannot see the record cut, / And silence sounds no

worse than cheers / After earth has stopped the ears” (13-16). Dying young means the athlete

doesn’t live to see somebody break their records and feel the demise of their body over time. In

his biography about Houseman, Karen Karbiener writes “Better to die at the height of one's glory

than to linger on until someone else beats the record and is the center of the celebration. Lucky

young athlete, ‘Now you will not swell the rout / Of lads that wore their honors out’”(Karbiener

11). Houseman presents a positive, yet controversial look on fate, but it remains a topic worth

discussing. Instead of looking at fate as an inescapable and unchangeable destiny compared to

“The Iliad,” or lessons on the fragility of life in “Our Town,” “To an Athlete Dying Young” talks

about how in a very particular case an earlier death is more favorable than a long life.

When a person faces their fate, their story is locked in for the rest of eternity. At the

moment of their fate, whatever they did to achieve their life and reputation is history and

permanent. “Our Town,” “The Iliad,” and “To an Athlete Dying Young” all demonstrate the

different ways fate can be approached, whether it be accepting the inevitability and

unchangeableness of it, trying to make the most of it, or putting a positive spin on dying young.
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Works Cited

A.E. Houseman. “To an Athlete Dying Young.” PDF. Accessed

October 31, 2023.

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1us93_fItTWOv7ZYttzZdd1sscUNkLlHX/view?

usp=drivesdk PDF.

Homer. “Iliad.” World Literature. Accessed October 31, 2023.

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1zDrP0q-jqlUZGsPuA1415YnJEKJ4Y8PL/view?

usp=drivesdk. PDF. 80-89.

Thornton Wilder. “Our Town.” PDF. Accessed October 31, 2023..

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1kyO1pPxVfQaKAobJEYcrT1sOYWV4aXDX/view?

usp=drivesdk 12-210.

Ford, James. “Fate in The Iliad.” Encyclopedia of Themes in Literature, Facts On File, 2020.

Bloom’s Literature,

online.infobase.com/Auth/Index?aid=16091&itemid=WE54&articleId=39132.

Cook, James. “The Iliad.” Encyclopedia of Ancient Literature, Second Edition, Facts On File,

2014. Bloom’s Literature, online.infobase.com/HRC/Search/Details/12?

articleId=39132&q=fate%20in%20the%20iliad

Burt, Daniel. “Our Town.” The Drama 100, Facts On File, 2007. Bloom’s Literature,

online.infobase.com/Auth/Index?aid=16091&itemid=WE54&articleId=26571.

Karbiener, Karen, and George Stade. “Housman, A. E.” Encyclopedia of British Writers, 1800 to

the Present, Third Edition, Facts On File, 2013. Bloom’s Literature,

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 online.infobase.com/Auth/Index?aid=16091&itemid=WE54&articleId=31387.

Ballet, Arthur H. "In Our Living and in Our Dying." Contemporary Literary Criticism, edited by

Daniel G. Marowski and Roger Matuz, vol. 35, Gale, 1985. Gale Literature Criticism,

link.gale.com/apps/doc/PQRLOM135471027/GLS?u=unio32044&sid=bookmark-

GLS&xid=a36a0c04. Accessed 16 Feb. 2024. Originally published in English Journal,

vol. 45, no. 5, May 1956, pp. 243-249.