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(the Iliad, Book Twenty Three, 795801; Pp.503-504) This Essential Heroic ...

(The Iliad, Book Twenty Three, 795801; pp.503-504)
This essential heroic difference between boxing wrestling is further cemented via the identity of the competitors at Patroclus' funeral games: both Ajax and Odysseus are known to be legendary fighters whose heyday is long behind them. Both are seasoned campaigners who are no longer thought of in terms of boxing; but instead in more jovial terms; hence, of wrestling. Once again, therefore, Homer makes the connection between boxing and virulent youth and between old age and an inability to box against younger, fitter opponents.
Mention at this point must be made of the essential homoeroticism prevalent in Greek games during the Homeric era. Not only did these celebratory games explicitly exclude women; they also made sure that the men competing in the games did so in a discernibly homoerotic manner by wrestling, boxing, jousting and at the end of the day enjoying copious amounts of wine and merriment.
Banquets were strictly all-male affairs. Here we get a clear glimpse of that aspect of Greek society already alluded to apropos education and pederasty: freeborn women were vigorously debarred from these social occasions, just as they were from any participation in political affairs. (Flaceliere, 2002:173174)
One can only imagine what went on towards the end of these games, symposia and banquets although the practice of pederasty (the sexual and philosophical coupling of an adult male and a junior adolescent boy) which was highly popular at the time that Homer was writing ought to make us believe that the games the likes of which occur in Book Twenty Three of The Iliad were much more ‘masculine' as we could ever comprehend today. Moreover, in The Iliad, Homer alludes to Patroclus playing the part of Achilles' young, adolescent lover; thus, the entire funeral procession takes place under the broader umbrella of homoeroticism and homosexual love. This is a highly important point and one that directly impacts upon the construction of the idealised ancient Greek hero during the Homeric era. While boxing and other comparable combat sports were important composite parts of the heroic whole, the conception of the male hero during the Hellenistic period fluctuates wildly from our own, chiefly in a sexual way whereby the ancient Greeks saw no cultural taboo in men enjoying sexual relationships with other men. This was as true of the politicians operating on the Acropolis as it was of heroic warriors such as Achilles. Similarly, whereas boxing is today seen as one of the manliest expressions of sporting prowess, to the Greeks it was seen as this in addition to a uniquely Hellenistic type of male bonding.
Homer augments his depiction of boxing in The Iliad with a similar scene which takes place in The Odyssey.


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