ABSTRACT
This chapter focuses on the Homeric "core" that constitutes scene 6 of Act IV, or at least its second part. It is certainly Homeric on several counts. To Andromache, who has buried her heart in Hector's tomb, the Trojan War is the end to all hope and ambition, both national and personal. In the story of the Trojan War, two heroes are prominent, Achilles and Hector. Reminiscences of the Iliad abound in Iphigenia: for example, the nightly dreams sent by the gods to Agamemnon. Racine's most important borrowings, however, have to do with Achilles' character and his quarrel with Agamemnon. One may also note that Racine has brought many more emotions into this scene than existed in the scene he imitates. Racine feels obliged to eliminate all that is somewhat vague in Homer, all that gives the impression of being dreamlike, as he also eliminates all that smacks of familiarity in order to create an aura of consistent nobility.
