Achilles Named Prophetically

One writer has proposed his name must mean

The “lipless” one.  How strange.  Or is that weird?

Despite Homeric speeches there’s not been

A record of his words.  His nascent beard

Is what we can infer beneath his nose.

The rest is guessing.  Witnessed words might stain

His glory anyhow.  Who would want prose

From that throat?   Maybe, though, it was the pain

That he would suffer which this writer thought

Would make him lipless.  There was no relief

For blood-like wounded pride, that blackened clot,

But most of all his petrifying grief

For that one friend said liplessness would yield

The shape of joy forever repealed.