(Agamemnon:)
Aged sir, if only, as the spirit is in your bosom,
so might your knees be also and the strength stay steady within you;
but age weakens you which comes to all; if only some other
of the fighters had your age and you were one of the young men! (4.313-316)
These words, spoken by Agamemnon to Nestor, bring home the universal fact of death. Even though, if you're lucky, you can escape death in battle, old age spares no one.
(Agamemnon:)
Forever quarreling is dear to your heart, and wars and battles;
and if you are very strong indeed, that is a god's gift. (1.177-178)
Even though Agamemnon is talking about Achilleus as a warrior, what he has to say could be applied to any sort of competition. Basically, he's saying that Achilleus isn't any better than he is, because whatever advantage he has is because some god has helped him. The modern-day controversy about doping in sports comes out of similar feelings as Agamemnon's. What do you think about the role of doping in sports? Is it fair when someone has access to an advantage that no one else does?
(Agamemnon:)
Yes, old sir, all this you have said is fair and orderly.
Yet here is a man who wishes to be above all others,
who wishes to hold power over all, and to be lord of
all, and give them their orders, yet I think one will not obey him. (1.286-289)
When Agamemnon makes this complaint during his big argument with Achilleus, he reveals an underlying factor in their contest: the competition for political authority. Did you ever wonder why, when someone seeks political office, we say that he or she is "running" for it? Or, for that matter, why we call it a race?