The+Iliad

__The Iliad__

Nate Fisher, Nick Davey, and Sam Faucher



Homer wrote //The Iliad// and //The Odyssey// in the 8th century BC. //The Iliad// is an epic poem about the Trojan War, which may have taken place during the 12th century BC. Between the 12th and 8th centuries BC, the stories of //The Iliad// may have been passed down orally. Of course, it is possible that the Trojan War never happened at all, and that Homer simply invented the characters and events that he described through more than 15,000 lines of poetry.
 * Summary:**

Either way, //The Iliad// is one of the world's most famous stories and has influenced many others. It chronicles the end of the Trojan War, a ten year conflict between Greek and Trojan forces. The Greeks were led by Agammemnon and his brother Menelaus. Helen, Menelaus' wife, was taken away to Troy by Prince Paris, precipitating the conflict. //The Iliad// describes the events of a few weeks near the end of the war, although it references many other events from the time period. It starts with Agamemmnon and Achilles capturing two beautiful maidens, Chryseis and Briseis. Agamemmon's maiden of choice, Chryseis, causes a plague among his soldiers, so he gets rid of her. He then asks for Briseis from Achilles, even though he has no right to her. Achilles is dishonored and offended by Agamemmnon's actions and leaves the field of battle, even at times wishing for his own country's defeat in the war. To win back Achilles' support, Agamemmnon sends Patroclus, one of Achilles' best friends, and Odysseus, a Greek warrior who features a more prominent role in //The Odyssey//. Achilles, still hurt by Agammemnon's actions, refuses to return to battle. However, the Greeks were subsequently dominated by Trojan forces, led by Prince Hector. Achilles still refuses to return to combat, but allows Patroclus to wear his armor to inspire the rest of the Greek forces.

The Greeks and the Trojans continue to fight, pushing each other to the brink of defeat. Patroclus, wearing Achilles' armor, scores major victories that take the Greeks to the walls of Troy. Achilles had warned him not to pursue the Trojans too far, but he did anyway. This action turns out to be his undoing, as Apollo meets him at the gates and chases Patroclus until Hector finally slays him. Swearing revenge, Achilles resolves to kill Hector, despite the fact that his horse prophesizes that he will die if this happens. Achilles routs the Trojan forces the next day and Hector meets him outside the gates, despite the pleas from his parents Priam and Hecuba. Achilles and Hector fight to the death and Achilles stabs Hector in the neck, sealing his fate. In his final words, Hector prophesizes Achilles' death. Achilles, triumphant and angry, then proceeds to drag Hector's body around the outskirts of Troy every day for the next week, dishonoring Hector's body. Eventually, Priam finally convinces Achilles to bury Hector's body:

Remember your own father, great godlike Achilles— as old as I am, past the threshold of deadly old age! No doubt the countrymen round about him plague him now, with no one there to defend him, beat away disaster. No one—but at least he hears you’re still alive and his old heart rejoices, hopes rising, day by day, to see his beloved son come sailing home from Troy.

Priam, Book 24

These words come near the end of the epic, where Priam begs Achilles to honor Hector's body and bury it properly. He draws parallels between himself and Achilles' father, Peleus, and asks him to empathize with his situation. He tells Achilles that at least his father knows that he may come back one day; Hector is gone forever. The irony is that Achilles knows he will perish at Troy; Fate has decided this already. Achilles subsequently agrees to bury Hector with honor and the two lament their losses in the terrible war. This is how //The Iliad// ends.


 * Tip-Offs:** Achilles, Achilles' Heel, Trojan Horse

The story of the Trojan Horse isn't actually in //The Iliad//, but it has become one of the story's most famous elements in pop culture. The first mention of a Trojan Horse came in Virgil's epic poem //The Aeneid//, written between 29 and 19 BCE. In the story, the Greeks were desperate after 10 years of war with Troy. As a desperate way to take Troy and win the war, the Greeks constructed an enormous horse and filled it with 30 soldiers. Depending on the version of the story, they either presented it to the Trojans as a gift or left it "abandoned" when their fleet sailed away. The Trojans moved the horse within the city walls. During the night, 30 Greek soldiers emerged from the horse and helped others from outside scale the walls, winning the war for the Greeks.

The death of Achilles is another part of the story that wasn't part of the original //Iliad//. Achilles' death was first covered in //The Achilleid,// an epic Roman poem written by Statius between 94 and 96 CE. In Statius' version, Achilles died from getting shot in the the ankle with an arrow shot by Paris. Even though Paris shot and killed Achilles, //The Achilleid// and otherstories that tell of Achilles' death don't credit Paris with any valor or glory in killing Achilles. Achilles was still unmatched by other soldiers; it was just that his death was predicted by fate and his heel was his one weak spot. Different versions of the story give different accounts as to Achilles' apparant invincibility and sudden downfall. In the original Greek mythology, Achilles became invincible because of consuming ambrosia. In another version, he became invincible because of a house fire that burned away his mortality in everything but his heel. The version of the story that we know best today is that his mother dipped him in the river Styx, which had the power to give invincibility. Since she was holding him by the heel at the time, the river water did not cover his heel and he was left with a weakness. In modern society, an "Achilles heel" is a fatal weakness that exists despite great strength, goodness, or courage.


 * Literature/Pop Culture:** Greek Mythology, Shakespeare, Bob Dylan, Homer Simpson, //Troy//

//The Iliad//, along with //The Odyssey,// is perhaps the world's most famous epic poem. It includes elements of Greek mythology, incorporating intervention by several gods, including Zeus, Apollo, Hera, Poseidon, and Athena. The Shakespearean play Troilus and Cressida is loosely based on //The Iliad//, and Bob Dylan penned the song Temporary Like Achilles. Homer Simpson of The Simpson's derives his name (but little else) from the epic poet Homer. The movie //Troy// was a cinematic representation of //The Iliad//, with additions to the story which drew from subsequent legends.


 * Troy Movie Trailer:**

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