Iliad

I

Introduction

Iliad, ancient Greek epic poem in 24 books attributed to the poet Homer. It was probably composed in the 8th century bc, but it describes events of the Trojan War, a conflict between Greece and Troy that took place four centuries earlier. The initial cause of the Trojan War was the abduction of Helen, the queen of Sparta, by Paris, a Trojan prince. The Iliad relates in 15,693 lines a momentous episode in the Trojan War—the wrath of the Greek hero Achilles and its destructive consequences.

II

The Action

The action of the Iliad begins in the tenth and final year of the Greek siege of Troy. The Greek army has been besieging Troy for over nine years. In a recent raid on a nearby district, the Greeks have captured Chryseis, daughter of a priest of the god Apollo. Agamemnon, commander in chief of the Greek forces, has taken her for his slave woman. Apollo in anger afflicts the Greeks with a devastating plague after Agamemnon humiliates the priest.

A

The Wrath of Achilles

At an assembly of the army Agamemnon, urged by Achilles, agrees to send back Chryseis. But he insists that he shall have Briseis, Achilles’ captive, in her place. Achilles, in anger at this slight on his honor, draws his sword to attack Agamemnon, but is restrained by the goddess Athena who wishes the Greeks to win the war. Achilles abuses Agamemnon as a shameless and selfish coward and announces his withdrawal from active service in the war.

Nestor, by far the oldest and wisest of the Greek kings, tries to reconcile the quarrelers, but fails. Chryseis is restored to her father by Odysseus, the most diplomatic and effective of the Greek commanders. Agamemnon takes Briseis, and Achilles asks his mother, Thetis, to persuade Zeus, the king of the gods, to allow the Trojans to win a victory, so that the Greeks may learn how much they owe to his valor and honor him accordingly. Zeus consents despite protests from his wife Hera, who favors the Greeks.

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B

The Armies Prepare

Zeus sends a deceptive dream to Agamemnon, who calls a council of the commanders. Confusion follows: The army is seized by a sudden desire to return home, but Odysseus, prompted by Athena, checks the rush toward the ships with a powerful speech. Thersites, the only ugly and mean-spirited soldier in the poem, boldly insults Agamemnon until Odysseus stops him with abusive language and blows. After a prudent speech from Nestor and a sacrifice to the gods, the whole Greek army, except Achilles and his followers, prepares for battle.

A detailed description of the forces contributed by each Greek state (the so-called Catalogue of the Ships) follows. The use of colorful poetic descriptions saves it from being a dry list. The Trojan army assembles to resist the attack and is described in a briefer catalogue. The army is led by Hector, the chivalrous and valiant son of Priam, king of Troy. Hector’s brother Paris has caused the war by abducting Helen, wife of Menelaus, king of the Greek state of Sparta.

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