All About The Iliad
GREECE 1250 B.C
The Iliad tells of the war
between Greece and Troy
(located in Asia Minor or the
present day country of
Turkey).
The Iliad provides the
background for The Odyssey .
The war lasted 10 long years.
How the Trojan War began –
reality versus myth
In reality the war probably began over control of trade routes.
According to myth, Paris, a prince of Troy, kidnapped Helen, queen of Sparta
and wife of King Menelaus of Sparta (a Greek city-state). And, the Greeks
responded!
MYTH: King Peleus marries the sea
nymph Thetis (parents of Achilles)
For the Fairest
• All gods on Olympus invited
except ERIS, the goddess of
Discord
• Eris tosses an apple among the
guests
• Inscribed on the Apple - “For The
Fairest”
• Hera (Queen of Gods), Athena,
(Goddess of Wisdom/War), and
Aphrodite (Goddess of Love) all
claim apple
• Paris, Prince of Troy, is chosen to
judge who wins the title
• Paris chooses Aphrodite who
promises him the most beautiful
woman in the world.
Helen “the face that launched a
thousand ships”!
• Helen is the beautiful
daughter of Zeus
• She is married to
Menelaus- King of Sparta
• Paris, prince of Troy and
the Goddess Aphrodite,
abduct Helen!!!
• 1000 ships, including
Odysseus & Achilles,
leave for Troy to rescue
Helen (and, save the
honor of the Greeks)
Book 1 begins with the rage of Achilles.
Theme – the consequences of greed
and rage will only end in death and
destruction.
1. The Greeks have captured two
women as part of their conquests –
Chryseis and Briseis
2. The priest of the god Apollo,
Chryses, offers a ransom for the
return of his daughter.
3. Agamemnon refuses.
4. The god Apollo is enraged and
inflicts the Greeks with arrows,
killing them in droves (referred to
as a plague)
5. Achilles learns from Calchas the
reason Apollo is angry.
6. Agamemnon still refuses to release
Chryseis unless he receives more
than his share of the spoils from
the war including Achilles captive
woman, Briseis
from Book 6: Hector returns to Troy
Although the Greeks are at a
disadvantage without Achilles, they
are able to drive the Trojans back in
to temporary retreat.
• Hector returns home to his wife
and infant son.
• Andromache, his wife, says
Achilles killed her father and 7
brothers
• she is fearful as she knows it is
fate that she will lose Hector too
• Hector decides to fight as he will
not live with the shame of being a
coward – he also knows his fate has
been decided
• Agamemnon and Achilles are more
concerned with the outward appearance
of heroism and military achievement.
• They argue and begin to fight when
Athena (visible only to Achilles)
intervenes. She convinces Achilles of
greater rewards still to come.
• Achilles, prideful and angry, no longer
wants to help the war campaign and
retreats, yet he still yearns for battle
• goddess Thetis (Achilles’ mother)
implores Zeus to help the Trojans until
the Greeks beg for Achilles to return so
he can have the military honor he
deserves
COMPARE & CONTRAST
ACHILLES (GREEK HERO)
• Internal conflict over
purpose of the war
• Sees duty and honor as
separate ideas
• Sees heroism as defined
by prizes of war
HECTOR (TROJAN HERO)
• War directly threatens
his city and family
• Sees his duty to fight
regardless of his fate
• Sees heroism as loyalty
to family and his city as
well as valor in war