Athena vs. Ares
Athena and Ares are both Olympian gods of war, and Homer sets them against each other at Troy. In Iliad 5 Athena guides Diomedes' spear into Ares, and in Iliad 21 Ares attacks her first and she knocks him down with a stone. Zeus calls Ares the most hateful of the gods.
Sections on this page
How They Compare
The quarrel between Athena and Ares is told in Homer as two short episodes of the Trojan war, with Athena winning both, once through a mortal and once with her own hand. The page sets out what Homer narrates, the one place where the two are shown acting without a quarrel, and what the sources checked here leave unsaid about the reason for the hostility.
Side by Side
| Aspect | Athena | Ares |
|---|---|---|
| Side at Troy | Athena helps the Greeks and drives Diomedes' chariot at Ares. | Ares fights for the Trojans and is stripping the armor of the slain Periphas when she comes. |
| Part in the wounding of Ares | Athena puts on Hades' cap, turns Ares' spear aside and guides Diomedes' bronze into his belly. | Ares throws first, misses, and bellows so loud that both armies are afraid. |
| Reaction to Zeus | Athena tells Ares to give place and avoid the wrath of Zeus. | Ares goes to Zeus to complain and is told he is the most hateful god on Olympus. |
| How each speaks of the other | Athena calls Ares a madman, beside himself, when he wants to go to the ships. | Ares calls Athena a dog-fly and accuses her of setting Diomedes on him. |
| Ending of the clash in Iliad 21 | Athena picks up a black jagged stone and hits him, and later strikes Aphrodite when she leads him away. | Ares falls and covers seven roods of ground, and is led off by Aphrodite. |
Shared between both
- children of Zeus
- gods who fight in the Trojan war
- gods who take a side and join the fighting
- gods who reckon with Zeus's anger
What was the difference between Ares and Athena?
In the Iliad the two differ in conduct more than in rank. Athena leads Ares away from the fighting in book 5 and tells him to avoid the wrath of Zeus (Iliad 5.29-37). In book 15 she takes the helmet, shield and spear from Ares and calls him a madman, and he sits down (Iliad 15.113-142). Ares is the one restrained in both scenes.
Homer, Iliad 15.113-142
Did Athena ever defeat Ares?
Yes, Homer narrates it twice. In Iliad 5 she drives Diomedes' chariot, deflects the spear of Ares, and guides Diomedes' bronze into his belly, though the hand that strikes is the mortal's (Iliad 5.835-863). In Iliad 21 Ares attacks her first, and she hits him with a great jagged stone so that he falls and covers seven roods of ground (Iliad 21.391-414).
Homer, Iliad 21.391-414
Why does Athena not like Ares?
The sources checked here give no reason for dislike on Athena's side. The grievance is stated by Ares. In Iliad 21 he says she must pay for urging Diomedes to wound him, and in Iliad 5 he tells Zeus that Athena is his own mad and lawless daughter (Iliad 5.864-898). Athena's words to him in the poem are about restraint and Zeus's anger.
Homer, Iliad 5.864-898
Where does the rivalry between Athena and Ares come from?
Homer does not trace it to a quarrel before Troy. It starts in the war itself, when Diomedes is told by Athena not to fear Ares and to drive at him first (Iliad 5.825-834). Ares then brings the wound up as a charge against her when the gods fight in book 21 (Iliad 21.391-399). Their fights in the Iliad follow from taking opposite sides in the Trojan War.
Homer, Iliad 5.825-834
What do Athena and Ares have in common?
Both are children of Zeus in Hesiod, who gives Ares to Hera and has Athena born from Zeus's own head (Theogony 921-926). Both take part in the war at Troy as combatants. Both are also bound by Zeus's anger: Athena urges Ares to give place and avoid it (Iliad 5.29-37), and Zeus tells Ares he is the most hateful of the gods on Olympus (Iliad 5.864-898).
Hesiod, Theogony 921-926
The Two Rivals
Related Terms
Sources
- Hesiod, Theogony 921-926
- Homer, Iliad 5.29-37
- Homer, Iliad 5.825-834
- Homer, Iliad 5.835-863
- Homer, Iliad 5.864-898
- Homer, Iliad 15.113-142
- Homer, Iliad 21.391-414