It is plain that in The Iliad the gods have the same outward form as man. Their social hierarchy is also very similar to that of the Greeks and Trojans, an immortal aristocracy with Zeus unrivalled at the top of the ladder. In the same way that Agamemnon, leader of the Greeks, exerts his power and position over Achilleus in book one, Zeus makes clear to Poseidon in book fifteen that "I am far greater than he [Poseidon] is/ in strength" and his power is not to be challenged.
The gods have the same desire to win honour as men, by way of helping their favourites to win glory. This can be seen in book five where Diomedes has his aristeia. Inspired by Athene, he has success after success on the battlefield:.
to Tydeus son Diomedes Pallas Athene.
granted strength and daring, that he might be .
conspicuous.
among all the Argives and win the glory of valour. .
Book five is a wonderful illustration of the capabilities of gods to partake in the battle of men and the men to exult themselves, empowered by the gods. On the other hand this book both subtly and explicitly illustrates the defining limits of the men and divine. The warriors are well aware that in order to win glory and immortality through fame, destruction and death is the ultimate risk.
And so the gods can never win the glory that heroes such as Diomedes and Achilleus do. Although Aphrodite is wounded in book five, she is quickly comforted and "the strong pains rested" by her divine mother, Dione. Although the gods may outwardly look like men, Homer makes the clear distinction that "ichor runs in the veins of the blessed divinities;/ therefore they have no blood and are immortal." In this way the gods are unageing and they risk nothing, but they can never win themselves any meaningful glory. Zeus even chides Aphrodite, "not for you are the works of warfare". .
Homer uses the epithet "godlike" with regards to a number of men in The Iliad; Achilleus, Polyphemos and Alexandros (Paris) to name but a few.
