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RE: sdmathlete3
I could not agree more: these two characters’ deaths were completely ironic. To answer your question, the death of Achilles lowered the overall morale of the Greek army to the point that they made the desperate move to capture Helenus. Helenus told the Greeks that they needed to get the bow and arrows of Hercules to destroy Troy. They did and with them they killed Paris, so, in effect, Achilles’s death caused the death of Paris. Balder’s death caused the everlasting torture of Loki (the viper dripping venom on his face).
julianarenee72:
To answer your question, I think Hoder felt horrible about killing his own brother. He probably felt used and saddened that he was so easy to use because he was blind. He probably wished that he’d known beforehand what he was throwing at his brother.Achilles died by getting an arrow shot through the achilles tendon. That was fatal to him because that was the only part of his body that did not enter the river styx when his mother dipped him in it. Balder died when a piece of plant was thrown at him. That plat was the only thing that could harm him. Both Achilles and Balder died of the one thing or area of body that they were the most vulnerable. Achilles death played a major role because he killed Hector and it set the way up for the Greeks to create the Trojan Horse. Balder’s death set up Loki to be locked up and not to bother of annoy anyone else. Was it prophesied that they were going to die, even though everyone thought they were invincible?
Jnpitcher21
To answer your question I do not think that their deaths were necessarily planned, but everyone including themselves knew they were going to die soon.Balder was killed by a simple puncture wound to the heart as from being struck with the edge of a mistletoe. The myth’s author emphasized the idea of fate in this scene in that the wound would not have had a lethal impact if it was not destined that Baldar should die at that moment. Likewise, Achilles’ death resulted from an arrow’s incision to his heel which also alludes back to Achille’s destiny to die during the battle. In both scenarios, the authors imply that invincibilty always comes second to the destiny of fate. In what other situations is this concept emphasized?
RE: jacclewis
Another character in greek mythology with a single major flaw is Hercules. Given the combination of his super-human strength and passionate folly, Hercules was a slave of his violent temper and extreme mad rantsThe reason why these to strange wounds caused such massive damage to both Balder and Achilles is because it was their one weakness. All the heroes and gods in “Mythology” are anthropomorphic, which means they have human characteristics. In both stories it clearly shows the weaknesses of Balder and Achilles which spiral to their deaths. When someone is looking for revenge or punishment they usually look for the person’s flaws so they can get them where it hurts. This is also true with Loki and Balder; once Loki finally figured out Balder’s one fault (mistletoe) he knew exactly what he had to do. Also with Achilles, Paris was able to be triumphant over him after shooting an arrow in the only place that did not get dipped in the River Styx (his heel). Everyone has flaws whether big or small, unfortunately both Balder’s and Achilles’ single blemish was their downfall.
Re: jacclewis
To answer your question: “What other stories in literature had a character with a single weak point?”
As I read this question the first thing that popped into my brain was Superman. I believe that he is exactly like Balder and Achilles; like them he too had one single fault, Kryptonite. Although Superman did not die because of Kryptonite it still has many relations between Balder and Achilles. Both Balder and Achilles had enemies that were trying to kill them and find that one weakness, just like Lex Luthor wanted to destroy Superman, and as soon as they found that one blemish without the slightest hesitation they went straight for the kill. I believe these stories are told so that humans can realize that everyone has flaws and that no one is perfect and no one should be perfect. Let’s say if all three Balder, Achilles and Superman were invisible with not a single imperfection would anyone try and stand against them? Mistakes are what make humans equal, for without them Balder, Achilles and Superman could not be considered “heroes” but must be “Gods”.
Achilles’ death came from an arrow, shot by Paris, into his ankle. Achilles’ mother had dipped him in the River Styx during his infancy thus making him invincible but she failed to dip in his ankles. This made his ankles the only vulnerable part of Achilles’ body. His death was the signified the end of fair play for either side as both heroes of Greece (Achilles) and Troy (Hector) had fallen in battle. This forced Greece to create the Trojan Horse scheme to defeat Troy. Balder died because his mother neglected to protect him from mistletoe while she made him invincible. Loki capitalized on this flaw and tricked the blind Hoder into unintentionally killing Balder. This story is supposed to give an explanation for earthquakes as they are caused by Loki’s punishment induced pain in life. What other similarities do Achilles and Balder have with each other?
@yoyokid
To answer your question. I think that the reason for their invincibility being upstaged by one flaw is to emphasize the concept that no matter the actions or power that one person has, fate will always come around in the way that it will. I think it was also to teach that no one man is 100% invincible and that destiny is not controlled through human desires.Though Balder and Achilles were suppose to be “invincible”, they ended up dying. Balder was killed by some mistletoes, and Achilles was killed by an arrow to the foot. Those are some weird ways to be killed for normal people. The reason why they could be killed by these very minor wounds were because for Balder, his mother tried to make a deal with all the gods to keep him safe throughout his life but somehow forgot mistletoe. How could she not forget it though? It is not a very common thing in the world. For Achilles, his mother dipped him into the Styx river in order to be spared from all danger. But she forgot to dip his heels and feet in also. This is because she was carrying him from this way, which also doesn’t make sense because people should never be hanging upside down; their blood would rush to their head. So two sly people both used these little mistakes to their advantage and killed Balder and Achilles. Balder’s death was important in his mythological story because his death caused the earthquakes caused by Loki’s punishment of pain. Also, it was the first death to be a disaster to the gods because Balder was their most beloved. Achille’s death was important in his Greek story because he was like a god to all of Troy. He was their leader and without him, they were clueless. His death basically changed the outocme of the Trojan War, leading the Greek’s to vitory. Who knew that these two little mistakes could make such a big differnece?
If the death of Achiller would not have happened, do you think that the Greek’s would have still won the Trojan War?craazykat…
to answer your question…
If neither Balder nor Achilles were invincible, I do not think that the story would have pkayed out differently at all. It would kind of almost be exactly the same. Achilles would have ended up being killed earlier on in the war and then that would have been the end of the Trojans, so I guess the war would have ended earlier. And for Balder, he would have been killed by Loki earlier also because anything could have killed him. The only true change in the storys’ would be that they would move along a little faster than they have been already.It was ironic because wasn’t Balder and Achilles sapost to be invincible and no sapost to die? But since no one is or has been invincible Balder and Achilles both die. Balder dies because hit with a thrown mistletoe and Achilles dies because he gets shot in the foot with an arrow. (The only place that could be shot because thats where the “Invincible River Water” didn’t get on his body). I think their deaths play a major role in Mythology because it shows us that everybody dies, no one lives forever. It shows us the power of our God because He is the One that lives and these gods or higher people don’t even compare with our God because they are average human beings. If these deaths didn’t occur, do you think Mythology would be the same? Why or why not? What would change?
RE:reybryce
What’s another example of someone not being faithful in the little things and losing the big things?
Another example of someone not being faithful in the little things and losing the big things is the Bible story of Jonah. He didn’t trust God that he would be able to teach the Ninevites. He thought that he was going to be mocked and made fun of. so he almost lost his whole life because he did not have faith.Balder and Achilles were both said to be “invincible” but their deaths were both very ironic. Balder dies by getting hit with a mistletoe and Achilles dies when he takes an arrow to the heel. For Balder, his mother went around making deals with all the gods so that his son would be safe but she skipped over the mistletoe. So when a mistletoe was thrown at him, he automatically died. For Achilles, his mother dipped him in the River Styx so that he would become safe from all danger. But she held him by the ankle with dipping him into the river. Therefore, when the arrow hit him in the heel, it caused Achilles to die. Balder’s death is important because not only did all the gods love him but his pain caused earthquakes. Achille’s death is important because he was the leader of Troy and without him the city stopped thriving. This led to the Greeks winning the Trojan War.
Humans aren’t invincible but a mistletoe would not kill us. So how could a mistletoe cause a man to die?curlycarrotkaitlin:
Mythology is just a collection of myths and stories to explain the way our world came to be. If these deaths did not occur than the stories of Achilles and Balder would be different. For example, Achilles would have lived to lead the Trojans to victory during the Trojan war. Instead of the Spartans claiming the win, the Trojans would have been the winners.
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