The Madness and Death of Ajax
After Achilles dies, Ajax and Odysseus compete for his armour. When Ajax loses, humiliation and madness lead to his death.
The Story
After Achilles died, his magnificent armour became the subject of another conflict among the Greeks.
Ajax the Great believed he deserved it.
He had been one of the strongest warriors in the entire Greek army and had repeatedly defended the ships and the body of Achilles.
Odysseus also claimed the armour.
The decision went against Ajax.
Odysseus received the weapons of Achilles.
Ajax was devastated by the humiliation.
In the tragic tradition preserved most famously by Sophocles, madness overtook him.
Believing that he was attacking the Greek commanders who had dishonoured him, Ajax instead slaughtered livestock.
When his sanity returned, he discovered what he had done.
The shame was unbearable.
Ajax killed himself.
One of the greatest Greek warriors therefore died not at Hector's hands or beneath Troy's walls, but because the struggle for honour continued inside his own army.
Key Figures
Why It Matters
The death of Ajax explores heroic honour, humiliation and the destructive consequences of a warrior culture in which reputation can become more important than survival.
Traditions & Variations
Ancient traditions differ over how Achilles' armour was awarded and the circumstances surrounding Ajax's madness and suicide. Sophocles' Ajax provides the most influential surviving dramatic account.