Wild as a swollen river hurling down on the flats,
down from the hills in winter spate, bursting its banks
with rain from storming Zeus, and stands of good dry oak,
whole forests of pine it whorls into itself and sweeps along
till it heaves a crashing mass of driftwood out to sea –
so glorious Ajax swept the field, routing Trojans,
shattering teams and spearmen in his onslaught.
– Homer
The Iliad, Book 11, lines 580-586. As Great Ajax attacks and routs the Trojans, Homer in an epic simile conjures up an image of a river swollen by rain storms from Zeus, sweeping through a forest and dragging a mass of driftwood out to sea. The Greek warrior is compared to a force of nature as he heroically sends the enemy running.