Kratos and the wrath of Achilles Rewriting the origins of the West by violence

A narratological study of the character of Kratos in the God of War videogame illustrates how the saga plays on the rewriting of the origins of Western society. Like Achilles’ menis in Homer’s Iliad – the engine and womb of Western civilization according to Sloterdijk –, Kratos’ wrath threatens the foundations of the Greek myths. The methodical destruction of the Greek pantheon by Kratos can be seen as an attempt to place American culture as a new point of origin for the Western world.