The Iliad

Wrath-sing, goddess of the ruinous wrath of Peleus’ son Achilles

Author: Homer

Translator: Caroline Alexander

ISBN: 978-0-06-204628-4

Stage 1: Structure

“Wrath–sing, goddess of the ruinous wrath of Peleus’ son Achilles” The Iliad is an epic poem written by Homer around the 7th century B.C. The story follows a several week span nine years into the siege of Troy by an alliance of Greek states. The main plot surrounds Achilles unwillingness to fight until he is dragged back in.

Prelude

The Iliad presumes a lot of context for the reader. Homer would have delivered this epic to people who were well aware of all of the characters involved and the story that led up to this epic.

Helen, the most beautiful woman in the world, was surveyed by a multitude of suitors from across Greece. Eventually she was wed to Menelaus, king of Sparta. As a result the myriad of suitors were upset at Menelaus succeeding in winning Helen’s hand. Tyndareus made all of the suitors swear to uphold the marriage vow between Menelaus and Helen of Sparta. As a part of this vow, all of the Greek kings agreed to go to war with any man who would seek to divide Menelaus from his lawfully wedded wife.

At a wedding of gods and men, Eris, the goddess of Discord, threw an apple (the Apple of Discord) into the party. The apple was dedicated to “the fairest one.” Aphrodite, Athena, and Hera all vied for the apple and demanded the gods decide who was the fairest of the three. Paris of Troy, son of Priam, was chosen to judge. The three goddesses bribed him with their favor. Aphrodite promised to give him the most beautiful woman in the world, Athena promised wisdom and skill in war, and Hera promised kingship over Europe and Asia. Paris chose Aphrodite and was given Helen of Sparta as a prize. On a trip to Sparta Paris and Helen fled (the story of Helen and Paris’ relationship was varied) back to Troy and wed.

The various kings of Greece, in accordance with their vow, agreed to war with Troy over Helen’s hand, making Helen and her beauty “the face that launched a thousand ships.” The Greek forces fought with Troy for nigh on ten years before the Iliad begins. Agamemnon, brother of Menelaus, is the leader of the Greek armies. Immediately preceding The Iliad Chryseus has been taken by Agamemnon as war booty and Chryses, priest of Apollo begs Agamemnon to return his daughter, Chryseus, to him.

Beginning

The Iliad (from the Greek word ilion, meaning “the poem of Troy”) primarily follows the Greek forces over a several week span in the ninth year of the siege of Troy. Over the past nine years the Greeks have gained the beach, part of the land leading to the city, and much of the countryside previously presided by the Trojans. The plot of the Iliad follows three main acts.

Act I: Achilles vs. Agamemnon

The epic begins with Agamemnon releasing Chryseus to her father and taking Briseis, a slave girl, from Achilles, the greatest of the Greek warriors. This shames Achilles and leads him to withdraw from the campaign to spite the dishonor shown to him. While he sulks he cries out to his mother, Thetis, who appeals to Zeus. Zeus assents to Thetis’ request and devises a plan to give glory to Achilles and to give the Greeks victory, which will satisfy Thetis, whom he loves, and Hera (who he loves, is married to, and who sides with the Greeks.) Zeus sends Dream to Agamemnon to tell him of his impending victory. Upon this dream the Greeks fight with renewed vigor.

At the next battle Menelaus and Paris (also called Alexandros) fight to settle the score over Helen’s hand. Aphrodite, fearing for Paris’ safety, whisks Paris away from death’s door to deliver him to his bedchamber.

Agamemnon rouses his troops to continue the war, where Diomedes, son of Tydeus, makes a name for himself by slaughtering his Trojan foes. In the face of Diomedes onslaught, Hector, crown prince of Troy, goes back to the city to prepare a sacrifice to the gods to ensure good fortune in the battle to come. After the sacrifice, Hector and Ajax, son of Telamon, strongest of the Greek, fight. The outcome is close and they retreat before either can inflict a mortal blow. Over the next series of skirmishes, Zeus forces the Greeks back to their line of ships.

Act II: The Greek Retreat

Agamemnon, realizing his folly in offending Achilles, sends a delegation to parley with Achilles. The delegation comprises Odysseus, craftiest of the Greeks, Telamonian Ajax, and Phoenix, household friend to Achilles. In return for rejoining the fight Agamemnon will give untold riches to both Achilles and the man who convinces him to return to war. Odysseus encourages Achilles to take the reward that Agamemnon has offered, Ajax tells him to think of the honor he will win in the battles to come, and Phoenix reminds Achilles of his debt to Phoenix and his filial piety to serve his father, the king, well. All of the objections are raised and dismissed by Achilles.

In the next battle most of the host of Greek heroes, Agamemnon, Odysseus, the Aintes, and Diomedes are wounded and cannon fight at full strength. The Trojans continue to press the Greeks onto the decks of their very beached ships.

At Mount Olympus, Hera devises a plan to put Zeus to sleep by putting on a charm she swindled from Aphrodite, sleeping with Zeus, and sending Sleep to exert his influence over he who gathers the clouds. When Zeus is put to sleep Poseidon, earthshaker, joins the fight on the side of the Greeks and reinvigorates them. After a time Zeus awakes and the tides shift back to the Trojans favor. As the Greek ships burn, Patroclus, friend of Achilles, convinces Achilles to send Patroclus out in Achilles’ armor to fight for the Greeks. Achilles assents and Patroclus goes forth with the Myrmidons. Patroclus fights and slays Sarpedon (a personal favorite character of mine) before fighting Hector and dying. A heroic battle ensues over dominion of Patroclus’ body. Achilles is made aware of Patroclus’ death and is so distraught that he decides to join the battle again. Thetis has Hephaestus build a new suit of armor for Achilles and the next day Achilles goes to war.

Act III: Achilles Goes to War

Achilles dons his new armor, buries the hatchet with Agamemnon, and takes the field. Zeus, his plan accomplished, allows the gods to fight on the field as they wish. This quickly leads to the gods being wounded and deciding to let the mortals live out their fates. Achilles tears his way through the Trojan lines and even fights with the river, Xanthus. He is overpowered by the waters until the interposition of Hephaestus, at the bidding of Hera, frees him from the river. Achilles then chases Hector around the city three times. On the third lap, Athena takes the form of one of Hector’s allies and convinces him to stop and face Achilles. After realizing the gods' trap, Hector resigns and fights Achilles. He is quickly slain and is then paraded around the walls of Troy, tied to the end of Achilles' chariot. His revenge fulfilled, Achilles holds funeral games for Patroclus and has his body burnt. Priam, king of Troy, sneaks into the Greek camp, approaches Achilles’ tent, enters, and begs Achilles to give his son back to him. After a series of speeches Achilles relents, allows Priam to take Hector back, and promises a twelve day truce to allow for proper funeral rites.

Stage 3: Criticism

The Iliad was an enjoyable tale of war and blood and revenge. Caroline Alexander keeps in many of the curious Greek customs of the time, such as Homer’s long metaphors.

He spoke and leapt from his bronze chariot in his armor to the ground,

and terribly did the bronze clash on the chest of the king

as he moved; thereon would fear have seized even a steadfast man.

As when waves of the sea dash on the thundering shore,

one after another under power of the West Wind moving–

the wave rises first in the open sea, then

shattering on land it roars mightily, and curling as it goes

breaks around the headland, and spatters foam of the salt sea–

so in this way did the ranks of Danaans move on after another

Ceaselessly to war.

The Iliad also preserves many pagan customs that are unfamiliar to us in the 21st century.

Thus he spoke and Phoebus Apollo heard him.

Then when they had prayed and thrown the scattering barley before them,

they first drew the heads of the sacrificial animals and cut their throats and flayed them,

and cut out the thigh bones and covered them over with fat

they had made into double folds and placed raw flesh upon them;

The old man burned these on a cleft-stick and over them poured in libation

dark-gleaming wine; and the youths beside him held sacrificial forks in hand.

After my first read-through I could not decide if the epic revels in violence to the point of worship or is an anti-war book with its brutal description of death. I now contend that the Iliad is a bloody book from a bloody age and bloodshed is the chief end of the Greek soldier, after all this is tale of wrath,

For leaping from the chariot, Oïleus had stood to face him,

but Agamemnon struck him in the face as he charged straight for him with his sharp spear;

and his helmet did not hold off the bronze-weighted spear,

but through it and through bone it went, and the brains

were all splattered within it; so Agamemnon beat him down for all his fury.

The Iliad survived for so long partially because it is an enjoyable tale of blood and war. It also deals with issues like the freedom of man and the extent to which the gods play a role in life. While men lay dying in the sands of Illium the gods quarrel among one another because a Trojan chose another goddess as the most beautiful.

Greatly troubled, Zeus who gathers clouds addressed her [Hera]:

“Strange one; how ever did Priam and the sons of Priam

do you such great wrong that you rage so furiously

to destroy the well-built city of Illion?

if entering its gates and high walls

you could eat Priam and the sons of Priam raw,

and all the other Trojans, would you then be cured of your anger?

Do as you want; hereafter let this small quarrel not

become for you and me a cause of strife between us both.

Throughout the epic men will fight and struggle for victory until the gods change their mind and lose all of the gains they made.

The Iliad feels incomplete. It is such a cultural icon that many of the scenes we think of when we think of Troy aren’t in the Iliad itself. There is no Trojan Horse, no Fall of Troy, nothing is said of the first nine years of the war.

Is it worth a read? Yes. The Iliad is one of the foundations of Western Literature and if that were all it were, it would be a good enough reason to read it. Thankfully, it is a good read in and of itself. Read it, reread it, then read it in another translation