Identifying Tone - Accusatory

IDENTIFYING TONE 1. Accusatory: charging of a wrong-doing or misdeed; a tone declaring fault or blame "You are steeped in insolence and lust of gain. With what heart can any of the Achaeans do your bidding, either on foray or in open fighting? I came not warring here for any ill the Trojans had done me. I have no quarrel with them. They have not raided my cattle nor my horses, nor cut down my harvests on the rich plains of Pithia; for between me and them there is a great space, both mountain and sounding sea. We have followed you, Sir Insolence! for your pleasure, not ours- to gain satisfaction from the Trojans for your shameless self and for Menelaus. You forget this, and threaten to rob me of the prize for which I have toiled, and which the sons of the Achaeans have given me. Never when the Achaeans sack any rich city of the Trojans do I receive so good a prize as you do, though it is my hands that do the better part of the fighting. When the sharing comes, your share is far the largest, and I, forsooth, must go back to my ships, take what I can get and be thankful, when my labor of fighting is done. Now, therefore, I shall go back to Pithia; it will be much better for me to return home with my ships, for I will not stay here dishonored to gather gold and substance for you." --Achilles to Agamemnon, The Iliad – Book I Diction: Achilles uses negative nouns and adjectives to describe Agamemnon; words such as “insolence” and “shameless” contribute to the accusatory tone in the passage. Use of Second Person Pronouns: The use of second person pronouns goes beyond a mere face-to-face conversation here. It’s as though Achilles is pointing his finger in the face of his adversary with each “you” and “your” – especially since the use of second person is combined with a comparison between Agamemnon and the men (Agamemnon shown in a negative light, the men in a positive light). Rhetorical Question: The question Achilles asks Agamemnon here points to an obvious answer – that Agamemnon’s behavior renders him ineffective as a leader. Because of his heartless actions, Achilles nor the rest of the men can take him seriously. Specific Example: Achilles here presents Agamemnon (and the reader) with a perfect example of Agamemnon’s “shameless” behavior – by basically calling him greedy and cowardly in battle, Achilles is straight-up accusing him of being a bad leader, unworthy of the men who do battle for him. Achilles also sets himself up as blameless compared to Agamemnon – HE has no quarrel with the Trojans; HE is only there because of Agamemnon.