Why Some Men Refuse Ordinary Life
There are people who live for comfort, and there are people who live for meaning. The world is designed for the first group. History is written by the second. Alex Honnold belongs to the second group in a way that makes even modern society uncomfortable.
When he climbed Taipei 101, a 508-metre skyscraper in Taiwan, without ropes or safety equipment, he was not chasing attention. He was answering a call that most people silence. The need to test the edge of human possibility. That impulse is not new. It is the same instinct that drove Achilles to sail toward Troy knowing he would not return. Achilles was not reckless. He was conscious. He knew the cost. And so does Honnold. The difference is that Achilles had gods and prophecy to frame his decision. Honnold has only his own mind.
The Choice Between Safety and Immortality
Achilles was given two futures. One was long and quiet. The other was short and legendary. His greatness began when he chose the second. Alex Honnold faces that same choice in a modern form. He could climb with ropes, collect endorsements, live comfortably, and grow old. Instead, he repeatedly chooses free solo climbing, where one mistake ends everything. Taipei 101 was not a mountain. It was glass, steel, and vertical emptiness. There were no natural cracks designed for human hands. Only engineered surfaces that were never meant to be touched.
Yet Honnold stepped onto it anyway.That is the Achilles instinct. Not a death wish, but a refusal to live a life that does not feel fully alive.
Training, Discipline, and the Warrior Mind
Greek warriors were not created on battlefields. They were formed in childhood. Achilles trained from boyhood, sharpening his body and mind for war. Honnold began climbing at around ten years old. Decades before Taipei 101, he was already building a brain that could stay calm in lethal situations. Free solo climbing is not about bravado. It is about precision. You cannot panic when you are hundreds of metres above the ground. You cannot hesitate. You must trust the thousands of hours you have already put into becoming who you are.
Like Achilles, Honnold is not driven by emotion when he performs. He is driven by preparation.That is why he looks almost serene while doing something that terrifies everyone watching.
The Skyscraper as a Modern Battlefield
When Achilles went to Troy, he entered a place built to destroy men. Taipei 101 is not a warzone, but for a free solo climber, it is just as unforgiving. One slip means a fall that no human body survives.
Honnold climbed that building with spectators below and cameras broadcasting every movement. But at that height, there is no crowd. There is only the wall, the air, and the body. In that space, it is just you and your fate. This is where Honnold becomes closest to Achilles. Both step into arenas where survival is no longer guaranteed. Both do it knowing they could turn back. They choose not to.
Glory Without Wealth
One of the most revealing parts of the Taipei 101 climb is how little Honnold was paid compared to what the spectacle generated. In a world where influencers make fortunes for doing nothing dangerous, Honnold risked his life for a relatively small amount of money.
This mirrors Achilles more than people realize. Achilles did not fight for gold. He fought for remembrance. Honnold does not climb for wealth. He climbs because that is who he is. The money is attached to the event, not the meaning. That is why his story feels ancient.
The Difference Between Myth and Modern Life
Achilles died young and became immortal through stories. Honnold survives his climbs and must live with the weight of them. This is the crucial difference. Achilles never had to wake up after Troy and decide what to do next. Honnold does. He returns from something that should have killed him and still feels the pull of the edge. That makes his courage more complicated. It is not a single heroic act. It is a repeated choice. To keep walking toward the cliff.
Why Alex Honnold Matters
Alex Honnold is not just a climber. He is a reminder that greatness does not come from safety. It comes from standing at the edge and choosing to step forward anyway. Achilles showed the world that meaning is worth more than survival. Honnold proves that this truth did not die with ancient myths. It simply moved to a skyscraper in Taiwan. And when he reached the top of Taipei 101, he did not just conquer a building. He proved that the oldest story of all, the story of a man choosing significance over security, is still being written.
