Iliad Week 4: Discussion (Book 4)

Book 4: Events and Observations

-The book opens in Olympus, with the gods discussing the outcome of the duel. Zeus makes a not-so-idle comment about how Aphrodite, on her own, protected her hero, while Hera and Athena, who are on the same side, did nothing to help theirs.

-Hera and Athena decide it is not enough for Helen to go back to Greece. They want Troy to be destroyed.

-Zeus favors Troy, so Hera makes a deal with him, saying if he lets Troy fall, she will later give up a city she favors (this becomes important in the Aeneid)

-Athena goads a Trojan archer into firing an arrow, which wounds Menelaus.

-Agamemnon goes down the line and rallies the troops. Homer uses this as an opportunity to give the reader some the kings’ different family histories.

-The Greeks drive the Trojans back.

-A lot of people die.

-Notable Quotation:

Zeus to Hera, Athena, and rest of the gods

“If only all of you were pleased to see it,

Life might go on in Priam’s town,

While Menelaus took Helen of Argos home” Fitzgerald, Book 4 lines 20-23 (name spellings changed to standard)

Questions to considered (carried over from last week):

- Who is/are the villain(s) here? Who is/are the victim(s)?

- Why might Homer split his narrative view between the three groups (gods, Greeks, Trojans)?

Iliad Week 4: Introduction (Book 4)

Book Four deals mostly with the reactions to the duel in Olympus amongst the gods. Zeus and Hera make a deal that will have far-reaching consequences, and Hera and Athena break the truce that was made between the Greeks and the Trojans.  

Questions to think about

-Why does Homer wait until now to introduce the main conflict behind the Trojan War?

-How does the side the gods choose reflect their involvement in the Judgment of Paris?

Iliad: Week Three Discussion (Book 3)

Book Three: Events and Observations

- Encouraged by his dream, Agamemnon lines up his army, and Troy follows suit

-Hector accuses Paris of starting the war. Paris defends himself, but to placate him, offers to challenge the Greeks to a duel

-A challenge is made, and Menelaus accepts. Both sides take an oath that whoever wins get Helen, and then will leave each other alone in peace.

-Helen, notified by the gods, comes out to watch the duel between her past and current husbands. Homer uses this as a chance to give the Trojans’ views of the Greeks as Helen identifies the Greek warriors for Priam.

-Helen blames herself for the upcoming battle, and expresses regret that she ever left Menelaus.

-The duel begins, and Menelaus is winning. Just as he is about to kill Paris, Aphrodite intervenes and whisks Paris away to safety.

-Aphrodite tries to get Helen to go to Paris. Helen initially refuses, calling him a coward, but Aphrodite uses her power to make Helen fall back in love with him.

-Confused by Paris’ vanishing act, the two armies nonetheless declare Menelaus victor. He is to take Helen back to Greece, and the war will be over.

-Notable Quotation

“Let any parties to this oath who first

calamitously break it have their brains

decanted like these wine-drops on the ground-

they and their children; let their wives be slaves” Fitzgerald, Book 3, lines 357-360


Questions to think about:

-Homer describes the two armies as they prepare for battle. What are the differences between their behavior, and what might this represent?

- Who is/are the villain(s) here? Who is/are the victim(s)?

- Why might Homer split his narrative view between the three groups (gods, Greeks, Trojans)?

Iliad: Week Three Introduction (Book 3)

Book Three: Introduction

The next two books move away from the opening conflict of the Iliad and back towards the cause of the Trojan War. When Helen, the most beautiful woman in the world (the face that could launch 1,000 ships), married Menelaus (Agamemnon’s younger brother) all her other suitors promised to defend that marriage. So when Paris/Alexander “kidnapped” her (Helen’s participation in the event is debatable), all her former suitors, i.e. the princes and kings of Greece, have to uphold their vows and go to Troy to get her back.

Behind of the scenes of these human actions are the gods, specifically Athena, Hera, and Aphrodite. They had asked Paris to judge which of them was the most beautiful, each one offering a bribe if he chose her. Hera offered a kingdom, Athena offered victory in war, and Aphrodite offered Helen. Paris chose Aphrodite’s offer, which explains why she supports the Trojans while Hera and Athena support the Greeks.

Book three begins with what the whole Trojan War should have been to start with: a duel between Menelaus (Helen’s wife) and Paris (the guy who kidnapped her). However, Aphrodite gets involved and the duel ends in an unexpected way. The rest of the book deals with the results of this duel, particularly with Helen’s reaction.

Questions to consider while reading:

-Hera is the goddess of marriage, Athena the goddess of wisdom, and Aphrodite the goddess of love. How do these things affect their interactions with humans? How powerful are each of them, respectively?

-What are the effects of Zeus constantly making bargains about how the war will go?

-Why does Homer wait until now to introduce the main conflict behind the Trojan War?

Discussions on these two books will begin on 
Friday, January 30th and continue through the weekend. 

Please post any questions you may have about the reading here as you go along, 

and I will answer them (or find someone who can). 

However, I ask that you try to save any big discussion questions for Friday. 

See you then! 

Iliad: Week 2 Discussion (Book 2)

Book Two Events and Observation:
-To appease Thetis (whom he had forced to marry a mortal), Zeus sends Agamemnon a dream that if   he attacks Troy now, he will win the war
-Agamemnon comes up with a stupid idea to test the men’s loyalty by saying they are going to go   
  home
-Odysseus cleans up Agamemnon’s mess
-The Catalogue of Ships (Click here for a cool project on this)
-Introduction to Trojan troops
-Noteworthy Quotation: Agamemnon to the Greek army:
"I mean Achilles and myself. We fought
like enemies, in words, over a girl--
and I gave way to anger first. 
We two--
if we could ever think as one, the Trojans'
evil day would be postponed no longer" (2.442-7), Fitzgerald trans.  
 Some Questions to get started:-What does it mean if Zeus, king of the gods and god of justice, tells lies to people?-Why is honor so important to Achilles?-Why does Homer spend so much time on the Catalogue of Ships?

Iliad: Week 2 Introduction (Book 2)

In Book Two, we see the results of Agamemnon’s actions from Book One. We also get a really long list of all the kings who have brought troops to the fight. Here is a cool project exploring what is called The Catalogue of Ships. While this list is a bit hard to read, I encourage you to at least skim it. There are some interesting facts and stories slid in between the list of names. After the list, the reader is introduced to the Trojans and their allies. 

Iliad: Week One Discussion (Books 1,2)

Recap

Book One Events and Observations:

-In the Greek, the first word of the poem is “rage”

-We are given a glimpse into what the future holds:

                -Bodies left unburied, eaten by animals (a very bad thing in Ancient Greece)

                -Zeus’ will will be done in the end

-We are introduced to the power struggle between Achilles and Agamemnon. Agamemnon has to      

  give up his prize (the woman Chryseis) to appease Apollo, so he takes Achilles’ prize (the woman    

  Briseis)

-As a result of this, Achilles and his troops, the Myrmidons (Greek for ant-people), withdraw from battle

-Thetis (Achilles’ sea-goddess mother) appeals to Zeus so that the Greeks will lose without Achilles’   help, thus gaining him honor

-Noteworthy quotation: Achilles to Agamemnon:

“I have seen more action

hand to hand in those assaults than you have,

but when the time for sharing comes, the greater

share is always yours” (1.193-5), Fitzgerald trans.

Some questions to get you started:

-Why is honor so important to Achilles?
-How does a society decide who should have power?

And...go. You can suggest answers to these questions, propose questions and/or observations of your own, and respond to what other people have to say. Also,  feel free to share any good resources you know of, and any quotations you found interesting/noteworthy. Please just be respectful of each other and keep the language PG.