Education of Achilles

Education of Achilles by the Centaur Chiron shows one of the episodes from the childhood of Achilles, one of the most famous heroes of Greek mythology. Prior to joining the ranks of the Trojan War, Achilles' father, Peleus, left him in the care of centaur Chiron, who was renowned for his wisdom, intellectual knowledge and ability to educate kids heroes. Chiron, as a result, provided Achilles not just with training in combat skills, like hunting and fighting, but also music, medicine and other knowledge. In this picture we see Achilles in his childhood, before he turns into the famous warrior of the Trojan War. Regnault here concentrates on the physical training of the young hero. Chiron, with the torso of a muscular man on horse's legs, stands behind Achilles and shows him how to handle the bow and arrow. Achilles copies his mentor, drawing the bow against his cheek and looking intently at the target. The two bodies are almost mirror images of each other, symbolically linking master and pupil, but Regnault emphasizes the vast difference in size and musculature. This is a wild mountain scene, with dark rocks, trees and shrubbery surrounding the forms. Behind Chiron, a large green cloth is caught by the wind energising the work, which would otherwise feel very weighty. The bow, arrow, weapons and the horse also serve to evoke an air of sport and of training of the body. The light and shade through Regnault are stark: the bright bodies set against the landscape draw us to Chiron and Achilles straight away. The painting thus depicts education as a physical, disciplined, rigorous process. In the painting, Achilles is not yet the mythic hero of myth. Instead, he is a student being trained by an older and wiser master, and Chiron stands as the teacher who moulds his physique, his technique and his soul for the hero and for the battle.