The Iliad Lecture Notes En Medias Res En Medias Res means: the middle of the action Achilles refusing to fight Greeks are dying in battle and by plague Agamemnon refusing to give back Chryseis to her father, Chryses, so Apollo sent a plague Agamemnon s Kingship As king, Agamemnon always gets the best even though he is not the one fighting I never get a prize equal to yours when the army captures one of the Trojan strongholds. No, I do all the dirty work with my own hands, and when the battle s over and we divide the loot you get the lion s share and I go back to the ships with some pitiful little thing (111) Achilles does all the hard work of fighting but Agamemnon reaps the best rewards The song of crooked Cronus split the difference when he gave you gifts. He gave you a scepter and honor with it, but he didn t give you strength to stand in battle, which is real power (130) you are King of a great people, with authority to rule and right of judgment from Zeus. It is yours to speak (134) Do et Des Do et des means: I give so that you may give obey the gods and they hear you when you pray 112) Agamemnon makes a sacrifice to Apollo to stop the plague The Trojans make a sacrifice to Athena so she would take pity on Troy Hecuba gives her loveliest dress and 12 heifers Athena denies the prayer If ever there was anyone in my house who never forgot the Olympian gods, it was my son [Hector]. And so now they have remembered him, even in death (197) Xenia Xenia means: hospitality Glaucus and Diomedes Their grandfathers hosted each other as guests in their houses and this created a bond of hospitality we have old ties of hospitality! (124) But that makes me your friend and you my guest if ever you come to Argos, as you are my friend and I your guest whenever I travel to Lycia (124) so we can t cross spears with each other (124) Departure from Civilized Society Civilization, and elements of civilized society, are extremely important to the Greeks because they believe the world came from Chaos; civilization is the opposite of Chaos only outlaws and exiles favor civil strife (134) Entertaining guests is civilized Food and wine Wine especially seen as a symbol of society Giving of gifts Agamemnon was crazy to take Achilles prize: mad (135) Agamemnon does not allow Chryses to ransom his daughter; uncivilized behavior Giving of gifts to try and appease Achilles is re-entry into society The Rage of Achilles leads him from civilization
Rage: Sing: Goddess, Achilles rage This whole book begins and ends with Achilles Rage His rage began with the taking of Briseis, and that dishonor Achilles refuses all gifts from Agamemnon but he accepts the emissaries and offers them food and drink Is this a return to civilization? Achilles is still raging at the start of Book XXIV As savage as lion bristling with pride, attacking men s flocks to make himself a feast. Achilles has lost all pity and has no shame left (187) Hecuba believes he is savage and faithless; thus, he cannot be trusted to treat Priam honorably Refuses to strike a deal with Hector to save each other s bodies; desires and relishes the opportunity to desecrate and mutilate Hector s body after death Desecration of Hector s body is uncivilized Achilles allows Priam to ransom his son Accepting of the ransom is Achilles return to society Sups with Priam, which also symbolizes return to society They eat food and drink wine Paris Perspective Book III- Single Combat Between Paris and Menelaus It was Paris all right, who could have passed for a god, and Menelaus grinned as he hefted his fear and stepped down from his chariot. He would have his revenge at last. Paris blood turned milky when he saw him coming on, and he faded back into the Trojan troops with cheeks as pale as if he had seen had almost stepped on a poisonous snake in a mountain pass. He could barely stand as disdainful Trojans made room for him in the ranks, and Hector, seeing his brother tremble as Atreus son, started in on him with these abusive epithets: Paris, you desperate, womanizing pretty boy! I wish you had never been born, or had died unmarried. Better that than this disgrace before the troops. Can t you just hear it, the long-haired Greeks chuckling and saying that our champion wins for good looks but comes up short on offense and defense? Is this how you were when you got up a crew and sailed overseas, hobnobbed with the warrior caste in a foreign country and sailed off with a beautiful woman with marriage ties to half of them? You re nothing but trouble for you father and your city, a joke to your enemies and an embarrassment ot yourself. No, don t stand up to Menelaus: you might find out what kind of man it is whose wife you re sleeping with. You think your lyre will help you, or Aphrodite s gifts, your hair, your pretty face, when you sprawl in the dust? (29) Paris is cleaning his weapons, preparing for battle A spear sixteen feet long cradled in his hand, the bronze point gleaming, and the ferrule gold. [Hector] found Paris in the bedroom, busy with his weapons, fondling his curved bow, his fine shield, and breastplate. Helen of Argos sat with her household women directing their exquisite handicraft (126-7) Paris has been holding back from fighting but now he intends to fight Helen doesn t hold Paris in high regard She asks Hector Why couldn t I be the wife of a better man (127) Paris has never had an ounce of good sense and never will (127) You bear such a burden for my wanton ways and Paris witlessness (127) Did Paris kidnap Helen or did she elope with him? Paris does return to the battle with Hector Paris looks confident and looks good: Paris meanwhile did not dally long in his high halls.
He put on his magnificent bronze-inlaid gear and sprinted with assurance out through city (131) Hector says to Paris: No one could slight your work in battle. You re a strong fight, but you slack off You don t have the will (131) Fate Versus Free Will Versus the Will of Zeus Fate Often considered to be fixed and wholly unchangeable Also believed to be controlled by the three Moirai, or the Fates Clotho, the spinner; Lachesis, the allotter; and Atropos, the unturnable Controlled the thread of life of every mortal from birth to death Achilles is destined for an early death (117) My mother Thetis, a moving silver grace, tells me two fates sweep me on to my death. If I stay here and fight. I ll never return home, but my glory will be undying forever. If I return home to my dear father land my glory is lost but my life will be long, and death that ends all will not catch me soon (141) He even claims, no one is going to send me to Hades before my time and no one has ever escaped his fate, rich or poor (130) Thus, Achilles doesn t fear battle because he believes that his death is already fixed; there is nothing he can do about it Zeus wants to save Sarpedon, his son, but cannot Zeus wants to save Hector from his fate Athena reminds him that Hector s fate is already fixed Destiny had Hector pinned, waiting for death (173) Will of Zeus Achilles rage against Agamemnon costs the Greeks: which of the immortals set these two at each others necks (107) As Zeus s will was done (107) When and if Zeus allows us to rip Troy down to its foundations (110) Hector believes the gods will destroy [him] at the hands of the Greeks (128) It is also stated that Zeus will send Achilles fate Patroclus only looses the battle and dies due to fate Scales Zeus put fury for battle in his heart Zeus also chooses the exact moment Patroclus will die Zeus decisions on people s fate is often compared to a set of weighing scales which tip one way or the other Zeus also metes out suffering Zeus has given Thetis her suffering (169) Zeus also deals out suffering to humans: Two jars sit at the doorstep of Zeus, filled with gifts that he gives, one full of good things, the other of evil. If Zeus gives a man a mixture from both jars, sometimes life is good from him, sometimes not (199) Free Will? Stars symbolize fate Double Determination Humans believe that they act because they choose but the gods manipulate humans to do what the gods want done Also known as double motivation Achilles: He ll fight later, all right, when he is ready or a god tells him to (147)
The Gods Interference Athena attempts to calm Achilles rage so he doesn t kill Agamemnon during a meeting Achilles asks his mother, Thetis, to seek our Zeus and ask him to help the Trojans Zeus is the figure of justice; Achilles sees helping the Trojans as just Apollo sabotages Patroclus Pushing Patroclus back from the walls of Troy: Get back, Patroclus, back where you belong. Troy is fated to fall, but not to you (154) Apollo loosens Patroclus breastplate so it falls off: Apollo, Prince of the Sky, split loose his breastplate (157) Hera prompts Achilles to rescue Patroclus body Thetis procures armor for Achilles from Hephaestus Athena interferes in Achilles and Hector s fight She disguises herself as Deiphobus to convince Hector to stop running from Achilles and fight Deiphobus is Hector s brother Athena also returns Achilles spear to him after he has thrown it Zeus prompts Priam to retrieve Hector s body from Achilles Thetis is sent to Achilles to have him release Hector s body Hermes disguises himself as a common warrior and escorts Priam into the Greek camp so that he isn t killed Hermes typically the guide to the underworld Symbolizes the trip to the underworld in the heroic journey Dreams Dreams are often communication with the gods since dreams too come from Zeus (108) Kleos Kleos means: glory, honor Menelaus honor ruined Helen running off/being kidnapped dishonors him Apollos priest dishonored by Agamemnon when he won t allow Chryses to ransom his daughter Agamemnon feels dishonored by giving up his prize: But I want another prize ready for me right away. I m not going to be the only Greek without a prize Agamemnon decides to take Achilles prize Thus Agamemnon dishonored Achilles Achilles Vow: By this scepter I swear: when every last Greek desperately misses Achilles, your remorse won t do any good then When hector the man-killer swats you down like flies, and you will eat your heart out because you failed to honor the best Greek of all (113) Achilles attacks Agamemnon s honor by pointing out he never fights: You ve never had the guts to buckle on armor in battle or come out with the best fighting Greeks (112) Glaucus has godly lineage and will not to bring shame on the race of [his] fathers (124) Hector s struggle with Honor Andromache askes Hector to stay inside the walls but he refuses though he knows it will probably be his death Hector refuses to return to the city even when Achilles return to battle and both his mother and father beg him to return my shame before the Trojans and their wives would be too terrible In battle, Hector injures Patroclus third Not as glorious as being the only man to kill him Dishonors himself when he runs away from Achilles
The taking of armor during battle was a sign of the loss/gaining of honor If you were killed and your armor taken you lost honor If you killed someone else and took their armor you gained honor Hector takes Achilles armor, which Patroclus wore Achilles armor replaced with Hephaestus armor The mutilating of bodies was a sign of disrespect Achilles dragged Hector s body behind his chariot Allowing dogs to feed on the dead s bodies Burial Rituals Proper burial was extremely important to the Greeks because they believed that if you were not buried properly you could not get into Hades The ritual Cleaning of the body Clean Patroclus s body and Hector s body before their burial Anointing it with olive oil If wounded, wounds filled with seasoned ointment (167) Covered with linen cloth Pyre Achilles called the women and ordered them to wash the body well and anoint it with oil After the female slaves had bathed Hector s body and anointed it with olive, they wrapped it round with a beautiful robe and tunic, and Achilles himself lifted him up and placed him on a pallet (200) Hector tries to get Achilles to agree to respect the burial rights; Achilles refuses: If Zeus gives me victory over you I will not dishonor your corpse, only strip the armor and give the body back to the Greeks. Promise you ll do the same (180) Don t try to cut any deals with me, Hector. Do lions make peace treaties with men? Do wolves and lambs agree to get along? (180) Hermes protects Hector s body The twelfth day he has been lying there, but his flesh has not been decayed at all, nor is it consumed by worms that eat the battle-slain (196) Dogs eating bodies was dishonorable Pyre scene in Troy Achilles View of Death It doesn t matter if you stay in camp or fight In the end, everybody comes out the same. (139) Style Time Epithets Achilles: godlike Achilles; the great runner Achilles; swift-footed Achilles; Diomedes: Diomedes, breaker of horses; Odysseus: Odysseus, the strategist; Hera: ox-eyed Hera Thetis: silver footed Thetis Athena: grey eyed Athena Hermes: quicksilver Hermes Priam: godlike Priam; Priam, old and godlike Possible Discussion Questions: Why is Achilles the best of all Greeks?
Why does Achilles cry at the loss of Briseis? Does he love her or is it his pride? Is Zeus really just in all matters? Is slavery worse than death? Why would you take someone s dead body? Is Hector wise to stay outside the wall? Does Achilles accept his fate in the end? Why is family important to Achilles? Is it because he recognizes someone grieving as much as himself?