Briseis Quotes

“We’re going to survive–our songs, our stories. They’ll never be able to forget us. Decades after the last man who fought at Troy is dead, their sons will remember the songs their Trojan mothers sang to them. We’ll be in their dreams–and in their worst nightmares too.”
― Pat Barker, The Silence of the Girls

“Briseis is kneeling by my body. She has brought water and cloth, and washes the blood and dirt from my skin. Her hands are gentle, as though she washes a baby, not a dead thing. Achilles opens the tent, and their eyes meet over my body.

"Get away from him," he says.

"I am almost finished. He does not deserve to lie in filth."

"I would not have your hands on him."

Her eyes are sharp with tears. "Do you think you are the only one who loved him?"

"Get out. Get out!"

"You care more for him in death than in life." Her voice is bitter with grief. "How could you have let him go? You knew he could not fight!"

Achilles screams, and shatters a serving bowl. "Get out!"

Briseis does not flinch. "Kill me. It will not bring him back. He was worth ten of you. Ten! And you sent him to his death!"

The sound that comes from him is hardly human. "I tried to stop him! I told him not to leave the beach!"

"You are the one who made him go." Briseis steps towards him. "He fought to save you, and your darling reputation. Because he could not bear to see you suffer!"

Achilles buries his face in his hands. But she does not relent. "You have never deserved him. I do not know why he ever loved you. You care only for yourself!"

Achilles' gaze lifts to meet hers. She is afraid, but does not draw back. "I hope that Hector kills you."

The breath rasps in his throat. "Do you think I do not hope the same?" he asks.”
― Madeline Miller, The Song of Achilles

“I will never forget that she cried for me when I was not able to cry for myself.”
― Pat Barker, The Silence of the Girls

“He is half of my soul, as the poets say. He will be dead soon, and his honour is all that will remain. It is his child, his dearest self. Should I reproach him for it? I have saved Briseis. I cannot save them all.”
― Madeline Miller, The Song of Achilles

“Be careful tomorrow,' she says. 'Best of men. Best of the Myrmidons...It is truth,' she says. 'Let it stand, for once.”
― Madeline Miller, The Song of Achilles

“Achilles' story never ends: wherever men fight and die, you'll find Achilles.”
― Pat Barker, The Women of Troy

“He was worth ten of you. Ten! And you sent him to his death!”
― Madeline Miller, The Song of Achilles

“You betray him by warning me.'
It is true. Achilles has given Agamemnon a sword to fall upon, and I have stayed his hand. The words are thick and bitter. 'I do.'
'Why?' he asks.
'Because he is wrong,' I say. My throat feels raw and broken, as though I have drunk sand and salt.”
― Madeline Miller, The Song of Achilles

“Her safety for my honour. Are you happy with your trade?'
'There is no honour in betraying your friends.”
― Madeline Miller, The Song of Achilles

“She must be strong enough to hold the memory of her husband, to sing his song in her heart until she joined him in the Underworld.”
― Janell Rhiannon, Rise of Princes

“Briseis blinked, shaking her head in disbelief. 'You have taken everything from me. My husband. My brothers. My father. You have given me no word of my mother. There is nowhere else for me to go.'
'I expect too much,' he stated.
'Their faces fade from my memory,' Briseis said, quietly. 'Without them, I have nothing.”
― Janell Rhiannon, Rise of Princes

“Ik zal nooit vergeten dat zij voor me huilde toen ik dat zelf niet kon.”
― Pat Barker, The Silence of the Girls

“I stepped forward to put a hand on her arm, to reassure. She flinched as if expecting a blow. I saw the fear in her eyes, of rape and worse. I could not bear it. There was only one thing I could think of. I turned to Achilles and seized the front of his tunic. I kissed him.
When I let go again she was staring at us. Staring and staring. I gestured to her bonds, and back to the knife. 'All right?'
She hesitated a moment. Then slowly offered her hands.”
― Madeline Miller, The Song of Achilles

“I watch the bolt of his triumph sliding home. He is a connoisseur of pain. There is nothing that could cause Achilles greater anguish: being betrayed to his worst enemy, by the man he holds closest to his heart.”
― Madeline Miller, The Song of Achilles

“It is done then? She is safe? She must be. You would not have come back, otherwise.'
'Yes. She is safe.'
A tired breath. 'You are a better man than I.”
― Madeline Miller, The Song of Achilles

“You have never deserved him. I do not know why he ever loved you. You care only for yourself!'
Achilles' gaze lifts to meet hers. She is afraid, but does not draw back. 'I hope that Hector kills you.'
The breath rasps in his throat. 'Do you think I do not hope the same?”
― Madeline Miller, The Song of Achilles

“Her eyes glittered like the galaxies - a beauty beyond the blood of Aphrodite.”
― Omer Farid, The Incarnate