"Ajax, son of noble Telamon, still determined,
even in death, not once to forget that rage
you train on me for those accursed arms?
The gods set up that prize to plague the Achaeans –
so great a tower of strength we lost when you went down!
For your death we grieved as we did for Achilles’ death –
we grieved incessantly, true, and none’s to blame
but Zeus, who hated Achaea’s fighting spearmen
so intensely, Zeus sealed your doom.
Come closer, king, and listen to my story.
Conquer your rage, your blazing, headstrong pride!"
– Homer
The Odyssey, Book 11, lines 632-642. Odysseus meets the ghost of Ajax the Great, still angry at Odysseus for having won the contest for the armor of Achilles. Odysseus tries to pacify him and reclaim his friendship, telling Ajax that his death was not his fault but Zeus was to blame for it. He calls on Ajax to conquer his rage and pride – just before this passage Odysseus refers to Ajax as the "proud hero." Once again the gods are blamed for something they are not responsible for. Ajax took his own life after he competed with Odysseus for the armor of Achilles and lost.