In today's society, films of all genres thrive on romantic plots and subplots. There's often a form of "Boy meets girl, boy loses girl, boy gets girl back" or a variation of that, where the boy's decisions are all about securing a love interest. Although Homer wrote The Iliad hundreds of years ago, his story is no exception to this ageless idea that love is humanity's driving force. As depicted in the Iliad, love is much more than simply holding hands and taking long walks on the beach; love causes wars, love changes people's minds, and love makes people do things they would otherwise never do. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an original essay. First, Menelaus' love for his wife pushes him to go to war with the Trojans after Paris steals Helen. When offered the chance to end the war with a single duel to decide who gets Helen, Menelaus decides to fight Paris. He tells his soldiers that “they have suffered enough from this quarrel of mine begun by Alexander” (Homer 41). By saying this Menelaus shows that he is willing to fight for the woman he loves. He doesn't want anyone else to be involved and puts all his faith in this duel. In other words, he knows that he will leave with his wife or die trying to win her back. Furthermore, Helen's love for Menelaus causes her to rush out of the house to watch him fight. When told of the duel that is about to occur, Helen "longed for her husband of the old days" and "quickly left the house with tears streaming down her face" (42). Helen knows that her husband is out there, perhaps about to die for her, and she desperately wants to be by his side regardless of the final outcome of the duel. Yet love can take other forms in Homer's narrative. Between Achilles and Patroclus there is no romantic love, but love between friends. This friendly love causes Achilles to lend Patroclus both his armor and his army, even though he wanted the Trojans to win so he could prove Agamemnon wrong. With tears in his eyes, Patroclus asks Achilles to "at least let me go and get our Myrmidons" and to "put your armor on my shoulders" (188). Achilles' willingness to let his friend take his army, along with his warning to return after freeing the ships, is evidence of how much Achilles truly cares for Patroclus. The angry prince trusts that his soldiers will keep Patroclus alive and trusts that his armor will protect him. Upon Patroclus' death, Achilles is angered enough to fight once again, despite the prophecy that states he will die if he does so. He even goes to Agamemnon to apologize, asking him: "What good has it been to both of us, taking things to heart like this... Let me meet the enemy face to face" (229). After book after book about Achilles' absence in the battle, it is his love for Patroclus that finally allows him to understand that his grudge is petty and that he needs to fight. Finally, there is the familial love Priam feels for his son, Hector, which drives the king to kneel before his enemy. This love pushes Priam to make a decision that no one in their right mind would make. Most would be afraid of Achilles; most would never think it safe to go to him and ask for the body of a child. However, Priam came "close to Achilles and clasped his knees and kissed the terrible murderous hands that had killed so many of his sons" (291). Despite the fact that Achilles kills so many of Priam's sons, including Hector, he is willing to kiss,.